The Paris Effect
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Press

Paris Beyond the First Blush

8/29/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Le Passe-Muraille by Marcel Aymé is freaky fun just off the beaten path in Montmartre
That first glimpse of Paris left me breathless.

As a young girl, I didn't know what to expect.
The big monuments like the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe are my first memory
and I still remember how curious it felt to look at people, so stylish and elegant,
as far from my Midwestern roots as you could get.

  It was as close to an out-of-body experience as I'll probably ever realize.

Picture
The Burghers of Calais by Auguste Rodin
But after that first blush of Paris, it's always been about the little things.
The window of temptations at Gerard Mulot, brimming with sticky tarts and seductive cakes.
That first taste of vin ordinaire you order at lunch, so surprisingly good.
A sneaky peek into a hidden courtyard or an open door.
Posters in the Metro that are both sexy and smart.
The surprising wallop of a tiny sprig of parsley -  remarkably memorable.

Lovers cuddling closely on a bench in Parc Monceau.
A well-behaved dog happily ensconced under a table at his master's feet.


Once, as I sat at a café table, a large dog came running around the corner.
The mustachioed Gallic waiter greeted him and offered a very large bone from the bistro
platter he carried, abruptly turned and went back inside as the dog happily returned "home".
It was as if they met every day at the same time and place.
It was exactly 3pm.

No need for the standard "Vous avez choisi?"

Picture
French children are adorable.
  Oh sure, all kids are cute but seriously, les enfants are spectacular.
I do miss the old days when schoolchildren sported tabliers (smocks) to protect
their good clothes.  Today you're more likely to see Nike shoes and ballcaps. 
But still, they already have that "something-something" that sets them apart.

Sweet little voices and appealing accents trigger a pause and
a much needed time-out from sightseeing
activities.
Picture
Art museums, galleries, street art, unpredictable little touches of artistic
ingenuity grab you every time you turn around.
  Every neighborhood seems to have its own special flavor. 

The first time I stood in front of Rodin's Burghers of Calais I wept.
  He captured emotion like I've never seen before.  And in bronze!
  It made the blood pulse through my veins.

That's what Paris brings to the table.
Just open your eyes and let it in.

Picture
Speaking of the table, la cuisine francaise isn't a myth.
They don't mess around.  Good food is expected.
My favorite meals usually involve simple fresh food or a hint of grandma's cooking.
  So many choices, there's never enough time for it all.
You can flirt with every cuisine around the world -- It's all in Paris.
  Do you want couscous or banh mi today?

The pairing of food and wine is taken seriously in Paris and all of France.
In proper French dining etiquette, you're supposed to choose your food first, then the wine.

  Why?
It just makes sense.

  How can you choose your wine before the meal
when you don't know what food you're having?
  The food and wine should be complimentary
like a horse & carriage, not putting the cart before the horse.

  That's why you're asked if you'd like an aperitif before your meal.
It's not meant to accompany the feast.
It's meant to bait your taste buds and invite your appetite to dinner.

Picture
In Paris we're able to dance with kings, embrace an emperor and paint the masters.
  We can discover our inner poet, political firebrand or wandering minstrel.  Which ever brand
you choose, I'll wager you'll end up embracing the romance of your new imaginary self.
Go ahead, scratch your itch.
After all, who isn't better after visiting the capitol of France?

Paris is for fun people.
  You know, the kind that like to sneak off to have a smoke when the boss isn't looking.
  The ones who can tell a good joke at a party.
Or who aren't too scared to backpack through Europe.

I'm not brave.  Not even a little.  But when I'm in Paris, I feel like a rock star.
  Without question, I'm way more fun than the grownup who lives in Nashville.
I can stay awake until the wee hours, I can drink more, I'm able to eat more and still feel good.
 
When I'm in Paris, I notice everything around me, no sleepwalking allowed.
I'm a pirate and a princess.

  Naturally, it was a Frenchman, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry of Le Petit Prince fame,
who sagely wrote "We see well only with the heart."
So true, so true, our hearts are full of Paris moments.

Picture
American transplant Josephine Baker said it well in her hit "J'ai Deux Amours"
(written by Vincent Scotto, Georges Koger & Henri Varna, loosely translated to English below)


I Have Two Loves

It is said that above the seas,
Over there under the clear sky,
Exists a city, where the stay is enchanted,
And under the big black trees,
Every evening,
Towards it tend all my hopes.

I have two loves
My country and Paris.
By them always
Is my heart ravished.
My savannah* is beautiful,
But why deny that
what puts a spell on me is Paris,
Paris in its entirety.

Seeing it one day
Is my pretty dream.
I have two loves,
My country and Paris.

When at the distant shore
I sometimes see a ship depart
To him I extend my arms
And heart beating with excitement,
Whisper softly, I say, “Take me!”

I have two loves…

*In Madeleine Peyroux's version, she substituted Manhattan for my savannah.

Oh yes, it's all in that song -- "my heart ravished by Paris."
  If you want to live life to the fullest, go to Paris.
  End that dull old routine. Search for a plot twist --- the good kind.
Two loves may well be better than one.

After that first blush of Paris, you're in for the full body rosy-tinted look of love.

Picture
0 Comments

Edith Piaf - The Voice

8/3/2014

2 Comments

 
Picture
My mom always took special pride that she saw Edith Piaf perform in Paris.
As a Parisian, she took pleasure in the torch singer's special brand of entertainment.
  No one has ever come close to matching Ms. Piaf's tormented vibrato and
melodramatic notes.  She invented her own unique brand,
becoming the iconic Voice of France.

Piaf's life has been debated and overdrawn, resulting in countless histories, myths and legends about the singer.  The Marion Cotillard movie ("La Vie en Rose") of 2007 brought Edith
Piaf's face and voice to a fresh audience.  Yet here we are, gasping with wonder and
awe as soon as she opens her mouth and lets loose with That Voice.  Nicknamed
The Little Sparrow, she was teeny tiny, just 4'8" with a size 34 shoe (kids' size 3 according
to Zappo's).  Her plain dress (black, of course!) did not make her fodder for fashion spreads.
She was no Beyoncé.

Edith Piaf's melodies were purely mid-century but her lyrics (she wrote most of her own)
came straight from her lacerated heart.
No matter what decade dictates your musical preference, La Môme remains in style.

  How she loved men!  And life!  And drink......and unfortunately in her later years, painkillers.  Edith Piaf died at the age of 47 of liver failure.  She was wracked with the pain of arthritis and hooked on painkillers and morphine.  Her husband, 20 years her junior, drove her body in secret from the French Riviera all the way to Paris to please her fans.  The archbishop of Paris
forbade her mass but 40,000 mourners showed up at Père Lachaise to pay their respects.

Picture
Though better known for the standards "La Vie en Rose" and "Non, Je ne
Regrette Rien", my personal favorite has always been "Milord".  Get a taste of
her lyrics below.  Although it refers to a girl from the port or the docks,
I've always believed the song was about a streetwalker, a prostitute who had enough coins to sit in a café and admire a well-to-do British gentleman (Milord). 

Come along, Milord!
Sit at my table;
It is so cold, outside,
Here it's comfortable.
Relax, Milord
And make yourself at ease,
Your troubles on my heart
And your feet on a chair
I know you, Milord,
You've never seen me,
I'm just a girl from the docks,
Just a shadow of the street... Yet, I crossed you,
While you were passing yesterday,
You were so proud,
God! The sky made you perfect:

Your silk scarf
Floating on your shoulders,
You were so beautiful
You could have been mistaken for the king...
You were walking victoriously

A woman on your arm,
My God! ... How beautiful she was...
It makes my blood run cold..



Taken from http://lyricstranslate.com/en/milord-milord.html#ixzz38nnDfDqc


A bit further in the song, she also sings:

Come into my kingdom.
I heal remorse.
I sing romance.
I sing about Milords who are unlucky.
Look at me, Milord.
You've never seen me before....

Was she singing about herself?  I love the reference to "her kingdom."
  Supposedly, she grew up in her grandmother's brothel
after being abandoned by her parents.  And yet she loved to sing about love and hope.
  Piaf was sassy; she had guts, supposedly even outsmarting some Nazi bigshots
as she helped local Jews outwit their captors.
 

Picture
Edith Piaf was born Edith Giovanna Gassion in Belleville, a place you'd call
the "wrong side of the tracks" in her day.  Local legend has it that two
gendarmes delivered her on the steps of a slum building in the offbeat quartier.

These days, Belleville is an up and coming neighborhood, still saucy but with a good mix of people, restaurants and art. It's particularly well known for street art, where graffiti is
actually encouraged.  Rue Dénoyez is filled with exuberant displays of street art culture
  and local galleries line several other streets and alleys.  Edith Piaf would have been proud.
  She displayed passion and hope no matter what came her way.

Picture
Parc de Belleville is GORGEOUS!
Ms. Piaf's many lovers (including Yves Montand whose career she helped launch) may have caused her much heartache but they also stretched her musical talents into territory
few have wandered.  Many people in the arts have succumbed to their temptations.  We've witnessed individual triumphs & tragedies from any number of "artistic types".
  Amy Winehouse, Janis Joplin, Billie Holiday, Patsy Cline all died much too young
and under tragic circumstances, but I can't think of one other torch singer that
could belt it out the way she did for an entire nation.

Her star rose even after WWII.  She scored two televised performances on
The Ed Sullivan Show, quite an accomplishment for someone who seemed
the exact opposite of Hollywood glamor.


It's hard to compare The Little Sparrow to anyone else in today's music industry. There is simply no VOICE like hers and yet somewhere, somehow, I can feel Edith Piaf's heart beating when I think of Dolly Parton's iconic hymn "Coat of Many Colors".  Read these lyrics and see for yourself.  Perhaps Edith Piaf's brand is still rockin' today.


"Coat of Many Colors" by Dolly Parton

Back through the years
I go wonderin' once again
Back to the seasons of my youth
I recall a box of rags that someone gave us
And how my momma put the rags to use
There were rags of many colors
Every piece was small
And I didn't have a coat
And it was way down in the fog
Momma sewed the rags together
Sewin' every piece with love
She made my coat of many colors
That I was so proud of
As she sewed, she told a story
From the bible, she had read
About a coat of many colors
Joseph wore and then she said
Perhaps this coat will bring you
Good luck and happiness
And I just couldn't wait to wear it
And momma blessed it with a kiss

My coat of many colors
That my momma made for me
Made only from rags
But I wore it so proudly
Although we had no money
I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me

So with patches on my britches
Holes in both my shoes
In my coat of many colors
I hurried off to school
Just to find the others laughing
And making fun of me
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me

And oh I couldn't understand it

For I felt I was rich
And I told them of the love
My momma sewed in every stitch
And I told 'em all the story
Momma told me while she sewed
And how my coat of many colors
Was worth more than all their clothes

But they didn't understand it
And I tried to make them see
That one is only poor
Only if they choose to be
Now I know we had no money
But I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My momma made for me
Made just for me
Picture
Picture
Picture
Piaf & Parton -- perhaps not as different as you think
2 Comments
    Picture

    AUTHOR
    MICHELLE MOGGIO

    Thanks for visiting  my blog!

    I've been experiencing the joys of Paris since the ripe old age of eleven.
    As a big fan of duck fat, raw oysters and bad French movies, my long career in advertising helped pave the way for drinking at lunch. When not living la vie en rose, my husband Gary and I live in Brentwood, TN, where we stay busy planning our next travel adventure and offering unsolicited advice to our daughter.

    Archives

    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014


    RSS Feed

    Click below to buy
    The Paris Effect 
    book today
    Enter your email address to receive blog updates -
    Subscribe Now
    Buy Now

    Categories

    All
    100th Blog
    20th Arrondissement
    Abbaye De Fontfroide
    Absinthe
    Academie De La Grande Chaumière
    Adrian Leeds
    Aix-en-Provence
    Albi
    Aligot
    Alsace
    Ambassade D'Auvergne
    Amboise
    American History
    American Revolution
    Amphitheatre
    Antibes
    Apartments
    Aperitif
    April In Paris
    Arc De Triomphe Du Carrousel
    Architecture
    Arena De Nimes
    Ariége
    Armenian Cathedral Of Paris
    Art
    Art Deco
    Artistic Paris
    Artlover
    Art Museum
    Art Nouveau
    Atonement Chapel
    Auray
    Avenue Foch
    Avenue Frochot
    Avignon
    Baccarat
    Baden-Baden
    Baguette
    Basque
    Bayeux Tapestry
    B&B
    Benjamin Franklin
    Bénodet
    Bercy Village
    Biarritz
    Biot
    Biot France
    Bistros
    Bonbons
    Books Set In France
    Boulangerie
    Brassaï
    Brittany
    Brittany American Cemetery
    Burgundy
    Cagnes-sur-Mer
    Cakes
    Canal Du Midi
    Candy
    Cap D'Antibes
    Caracalla Spa
    Caramels
    Catalan France
    Cathars
    Cathedral
    Cathedrale St-Just
    Cemetière De Passy
    Cemetière Saint-Vincent
    Chantilly
    Chapelle Expiatoire
    Chapelle Saint Vincent De Paul
    #Chapel Of Hospice Saint-Jean
    Charles Aznavour
    Charles Trenet
    Chartreuse Du Val-de-Benediction
    Chateau
    Chateau De Clisson
    Chateau De Foix
    Chateau De Fougeres
    Chateau De Malmaison
    Chateau Grimaldi
    Cheese
    Chinon
    Chocolate
    Choice Vs. Chance
    Christian Constant
    #Church Of Saint-Volusien
    Cimiez
    Cité Des Fleurs
    Cité De Trevise
    Claude Monet
    Clisson
    Cocktail
    Coco Chanel
    Cognac
    Cointreau
    Cole Porter
    Comedie-Francaise
    Cote D'Azur
    Coulon
    Cours Mirabeau
    Cours Saleya
    Coussin De Lyon
    Crêpes
    Dessert
    Dijon
    Dreams
    Duck-confit
    Eating In France
    Ecole Des Beaux-Arts
    Ed Clark
    Edith-piaf
    Eglise Notre Dame De Clisson
    Eglise Sainte-Trinité
    Eglise Saint-Germain-des-Prés
    Elsa Maxwell
    Entrevaux
    Environmental Challenges
    Eric Kayser
    Eugene Delacroix
    Fabergé Museum
    Falling For Paris
    Famous-faces
    Fashion History
    Fauchon
    Fernand Léger
    Fete De La Transhumance
    Fête De Vendanges
    Fish Specialties
    Foix
    Folies Bergère
    Fontainebleau
    Fontaine Du Palmier
    Food Markets
    Fougeres
    Fragrance
    France
    Francois-premier
    Free Museums
    French Atlantic Coast
    French Bread
    French Cuisine
    French Food
    French-food
    French History
    French-islands
    French Musee D'Art Moderne De La Ville De Paris
    French Music
    French Resistence
    French Revolution
    #FrenchRiviera
    French Riviera
    French Slave Trade
    Friedrichsbad Spa
    Fun Fair Museum
    Genevieve De Gaulle-Anthonioz
    Genièvre
    George Sand
    Germaine Tillion
    Germany
    Gertrude Stein
    Gordes
    Grand Mosque Of Paris
    Grand Palais
    Grasse
    Guerlain
    Gustave Moreau
    Harvest Festival
    Haut-de-Cagnes
    Healthy Travel
    Hediard
    Henri Le Roux
    Henri Matisse
    Holocaust
    Hometown Memories
    Hotel Belles Rives
    Hôtel De Soubise
    Hotel Dieu
    Hotels
    Ile De Bréhat
    Ile De Ré
    Isadora Duncan
    Jacques Genin
    Janet Flanner
    Jardin Samuel-de-Champlain
    Jay Z
    Jazz A Juan
    Jean Seberg
    Jewelry
    Josephine Baker
    Josephine Bonaparte
    Juan-les-Pins
    Keith Haring
    La Campagne A Paris
    La Couveroitade
    Lafayette
    La Jourrnée San Voiture
    Lalique
    Language Skills
    Languedoc
    La Rochelle
    La Verrerie De Biot
    Lavinia Wine Store
    Le Bonbon Au Palais
    Le Bon Georges
    Le Capitole
    Le Carrousel Des Mondes Marins
    Le Clos Lucé
    Le Cochon à L'Oreille
    Le Coq Rico
    Legendary Lovers
    Le Grand Véfour
    Le Musée Montmartre
    Leonardo Da Vinci
    Le Rostand
    Les Cocottes
    Les Fauves
    Les Invalides
    Les Machines De L'Ile
    Les Sept Iles
    Lichtentaler Allee
    Lille
    Little Gourmand
    Loire Atlantique
    Luberon
    Luxembourg Gardens
    Maison Carrée
    Malmaison
    Man Ray
    Marais Poitevin
    Marc Chagall
    Marché Beauvau
    Marché D'Aligre
    Marché President Wilson
    Marché Victor Hugo
    Marie Curie
    Market Street
    Marquis De Lafayette
    Matisse
    Maurice Utrillo
    Medieval Festival
    Medieval France
    Memorial De L'Abolition De L'Esclavage
    Memorial De La Shoah
    MFK Fisher
    Minervois Wine
    #ModernArt
    Monolithic Church
    Montmartre
    Montmartre Museum
    Montparnasse
    Montparnasse Cemetery
    Montpellier
    Movies Set In France
    Musee Carnavalet
    Musée De La Chasse Et De La Nature
    Musée Des Arts Decoritifs
    Musée Des Arts Forains
    Musée Des Beaux-Arts De Dijon
    Musee D'Orsay
    Musée D'Orsay
    Musee L'Orangerie
    Musée Marc Chagall
    Musee Marmottan Monet
    Musée Matisse Nice
    Musée Picasso
    Musée Yves Saint Laurent
    Museum
    Museum Of Decorative Arts
    Museum Of Hunting & Nature
    Museum Of Modern Art City Of Paris
    Nancy
    Nantes
    Napoleon Bonaparte
    Napoleon III Apartments
    Narbonne
    Nashville
    Natalie Portman
    Nazi Atrocities
    Nice
    Nice France
    Nimes
    Normandy
    Not-far-from-paris
    Not-far-from-paris
    Notre Dame De Lorette
    Notre Dame De Paris
    Occitanie
    #Occitanie
    Off-the-tourist-track
    Off-the-tourist-track
    Opera-garnier
    Operation Dragoon
    Oradoursurglane
    Our Lady Of Paris
    Palais Lascaris
    Palais Royal
    Paloma Beach
    Pancake
    Pancake Pantry
    Parade
    Parc De Bercy
    Paris
    Paris 1968
    Paris Arrondissements
    Paris Art Museum
    Paris Art Schools
    Paris At Home
    Paris Cafes
    Paris Fashion
    Paris Friend
    Paris Markets
    Paris Metro
    Paris Neighborhoods
    Paris Parks
    Paris Patisseries
    Paris Pets
    Paris Predestination
    Paris Retail Therapy
    Paris Travel
    Parks
    Passage Boudin
    Passerelle Simone De Beauvoir
    Pastis
    Patisserie
    Patricia Wells
    Paul Cezanne
    Perfume
    Pernes-les-Fontaines
    Pet Cemeteries
    Petit Palais
    Photography
    Picpus Cemetery
    Pinching Pennies
    Pink Granite Coast
    Place De Furstenberg
    Place De La Concorde
    Place Des Vosges
    Place Masséna
    Place Stanislaus
    Place Vendome
    Ploumanac'h
    Poilane
    Ponr Alexandre III
    Poster Art
    Promenade Des Anglais
    Provence
    #Provence
    Provence Markets
    Puffins
    Pyrenees-Orientales
    Rambouillet
    Raoul Dufy
    Regional Cooking
    Rennes
    Renoir
    Robert Doisneau
    Robert Wuhl
    Roquefort
    Rue Cler
    Rue Cremieux
    Rue De L'Eole Du Medecine
    Rue De Nil
    Rue Dénoyez
    Rue Des Ecoles
    Rue Des Martyrs
    Rue Irenee Blanc
    Rue Jules Siegfried
    Ruelle Des Chats
    Rue Montorgeuil
    Ruth
    Saintdenis
    Saint-Emilion
    Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
    Saint-Etienne-du-Mont
    Sainteustache
    Saint-Goustan
    Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert
    Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat
    Saint-Malo
    Saint-Medard Church
    Saint-Paul-de-Mausole
    Saint-Remy-de-Provence
    Saint-Vincent Cemetery
    Sculpture
    Senlis
    Serendipity
    Shopping
    Sliceoflife
    Slice Of Life
    Small Paris Pleasures
    Small Town Saturday Night
    Social Media
    So-Pi
    Springtime In Paris
    Square Des Peupliers
    Square Montsouris
    St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral
    Street Food
    Suzanne Valadon
    Suzy Solidor
    Sylvia Beach
    Texas
    The Avignon Papacy
    The-dreyfus-affair
    The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
    The Louvre
    The Moose
    The National Archives
    The Pantheon
    The-paris-effect
    The Pink City
    Toulouse
    Toulouse-Lautrec
    Tourrettes-sur-Loup
    Travel
    Travel Advice
    Travel Planning
    Troyes
    U.N. World Climate Conference
    Urban Art
    Uzès
    Vacation
    Vacation Planning Food
    Vel D'Hiver
    Vichy
    Vieille Bourse
    Vieux Nice
    Villa Eilenroc
    Villefranche-de-Conflent
    Villeneuve-les-Avignon
    Vincent Van Gogh
    Walking
    Walking Paris
    Willi Ronis
    Wine
    Wine Festival
    WWII
    #WWII France
    WWII Paris
    WWII Provence
    Yachts
    Yves Saint Laurent

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.