The Musée Carnavalet

On a rainy Saturday, a friend and I hoped to discover the history of Paris, as promised by the Marais' beautiful little museum, the Musee Carnavalet. Unassuming, unpretentious and off the radar for most of the tourists flocking to Paris every year, this is the perfect place to visit if you want to get away from the bustling crowds and the tourist trail.

C'était un samedi pluvieux, et je suis allée avec une amie dans l'espoir de découvrir l'histoire de Paris au Musée Carnavalet dans le Marais. J'imagine que la plupart de touristes n'y prêtent pas attention, donc c'est le choix parfait si vous voulez s'échapper des grandes foules et le circuit touristique. 

It's free for European students under the age of 26 with a proof of identity, and you enter into a big hall filled with old signs and other kitschy objects from Paris' past. 

C'est gratuit pour les étudiants européens qui ont moins de 26 ans - avec une pièce d'identité - et on entre dans un grand hall rempli avec tout sorte d'objet kitsch et des grandes signes des magasins anciens de Paris. 

Several rooms are replicas of rooms from old Paris mansions.

You can also see the rooms of Parisian writers such as Proust. 

Plusieurs pièces sont décorées comme des pièces des hôtels et des châteaux anciens.

Vous pouvez aussi découvrez les chambres de quelques écrivains connus tels de Proust. 

  

One of my favourite rooms was the room full of paintings of Parisians scenes.

Ma salle préférée était celle pleine de peintures des scènes Parisiennes.

 The Canal St. Martin

 A Military Parade

 Bastille and a leisure spot frequented by the bourgeoisie.

 The roof of the Gare St Lazare overlooked by Montmartre

 There was a whole wing devoted to Revolutionary history. Below is a military drum with the motto: Liberty, Egality, Fraternity 

Il y avait une aile entière consacrée à l'histoire révolutionnaire. Au-dessus, un tambour militaire avec la devise: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité 

Pottery with the famous bonnet rouge of the sans-culottes.

De la poterie avec le bonnet rouge notoire des sans-culottes. 

Finish your visit in one of the beautiful gardens that flank the museum, or wander round the cutesy shops in the Marais!

Finissez votre visite avec une promenade dans un des beaux jardins autour du musée, où flânez dans le Marais parmi les magasins mignons.

16, rue des Francs-Bourgeois 

75003 Paris

Standard : 01 44 59 58 58

Ouvert du mardi au dimanche de 10h à 18h.

Dernière entrée à 17h30. 

Fermé le lundi et les jours fériés.

À Bientôt !

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Paris From My Phone

 À Bientôt !

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London By Night

At night in London, there is nothing better you can do on a warm evening than to stroll along by the Thames, on the South Bank of the river.

La nuit à Londres, il n'y a rien de mieux à faire pendant une soirée agréable que de faire une promenade au bord de la Tamise, surtout sur la rive dit "Sud" du fleuve. 

My favourite stretch is from Waterloo station to London Bridge station - which takes in the imposing Brutalist architecture exemplified in the great concrete slabs which form the Hayward Gallery and The British Film Institute, as well as the Undercroft skate-park, where you can watch youngsters performing impressive tricks on their skateboards and BMX bikes.

Ma portion du  promenade préférée se trouve entre la gare de Waterloo et celle de London Bridge, où on peut voir l'architecture fameuse "Brutaliste": des grand blocs en béton  qui forment les murs de "The Hayward Gallery" et "The British Film Institute", aussi que le skate où on peut regarder les jeunes qui font des figures de skate impressionnantes.  

There are a couple of really nice restaurants, and break-taking views of St. Paul's and some of London's most iconic bridges. On warm nights, expect your senses to be pricked by the sound of buskers, and the smell wafting from street-vendors' trucks who sell delicious fast-food to be eaten messily from a napkin - perfect fuel for your meandering.

Il y a plusieurs restos très sympas, et des panoramas à couper le souffle de St. Paul et quelques ponts les plus iconiques à Londres. Pendant les soirées estivales, on peut attendre les sons des musiciens des rues et les odeurs délicieux de la nourriture vendue dans la rue à manger en marchant. 

But do not be fooled into thinking that that is all there is to see at night. Some monuments are most beautiful when lit up in the dark, like Buckingham Palace  which we saw just after twilight.

Ne pensez-vous pas que le rive "sud" est la seule chose à voir pendant le soir ! Plusieurs monuments sont plus beaux quand ils sont illuminés pendant la nuit, comme Buckingham Palace.

For a romantic stroll in a part of London little spoken about, take the tube to Maida Vale and explore 'Little Venice', so-called because of its famous canals.

Pour une promenade plutôt romantique, il y a un quartier moins touristique qui est surnommé "Le Petit Venise" à l'arrêt de Maida Vale sur "the tube", ainsi-nommée par Lord Byron (d'après une histoire) à cause des canaux. 

Boats glitter on the water: either house-boats or restaurants on the water and beautiful grand old houses line the canal-side. 

There are a couple of really cool looking pubs to check out, especially 'The Bridge House'.

If mysteries, fog, shady-dealings and darkened passage-ways sound like your idea of fun, head either to The Clink Museum or The London Dungeons at London Bridge for grisly tales, or if that sounds a little too scary - to the home of everyone's favourite detective and his trusty companion: Mr. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.

Si vous aimez les mystères, le brouillard, les affaires louches et les ruelles sombres, vous aimerez "The Clink Museum" ou "The London Dungeons" à London Bridge pour découvrir des macabres histoires de Londres, ou, si cela vous semblez un peu effrayant, allez chez M. Sherlock Holmes et Dr. Watson, le fameux détective Victorien. 

We were so intrigued that we decided to come back to the Museum at 221b Baker Street the next day! 

 But that's for another time...

À Bientôt !

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Pixar in Paris!

The exhibition was themed around the three key concepts to any Pixar film: The World, The Story and The Characters. For any non-Pixar fans, the exhibition covered Toy Story, Up, A Bug's Life, Cars, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., WALL.E, Brave & Ratatouille, and probably another few I've forgotten about! 

'The World' section was interesting because I had never thought about the process behind each film where Pixar artists have to create a unique world, one magical enough & exciting enough to captivate audience, before creating rules and limitations for how nature, gravity, the animals and buildings function in this imaginary world so that it is believable & reassuring for the audience.

'The Characters' were equally interesting because you would not believe how much they change from the original concept. Many of the characters were unrecognisable & I'm so glad they changed them for the final cut!

 

Carl from 'Up' and Buzz Lightyear from 'Toy Story'

Nemo from 'Finding Nemo'

'The Story' was a series of meticulously drawn story-boards which have to be dreamed up, planned, re-planned, drawn & re-drawn before any animation is carried out because the time wasted & effort spent on creating a scene which isn't used would be too costly. We also watched a couple of films about the music in the stories, whether it be a theme that each character has or the sound effects which go into making the movie more fun. The sound is often so successful that audiences don't realise it's there, it is only when the track is removed that you realise how much it adds to the film.

In the last room was an amazing zoetrope which explained how each individual frame runs together to trick your eye into believing that a moving image is played out on the screen. I took a video which I may upload later.

I think the exhibition is well worth a visit if you are a big Pixar fan, otherwise probably not as it is a bit pricey (€12.00 for a student ticket). 

I think that more probably could have been done to make the exhibition as fun as its subject matter, as the atmosphere was a bit restrained and cold. I think my sister and I were the only people laughing & chatting about the exhibition as we walked around. On leaving the exhibition we had a look at the arty dockside with a couple of studio shops & a fashion museum next door, before heading for some sustenance in the 5th arrondissement!

À Bientôt !

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