Is Rentrée Really Just French for Autumn?

Well the end of August has finally arrived. And so, by some strange coincidence, have some chilly overnight temperatures and a certain freshness in today’s breeze, which leads me to wonder if the inevitable end of summer and the change of season is nearly upon us too.

After a morning in the studio, my afternoon errands took me on a lovely walk along the banks of the Seine to Gare d’Austerlitz and through a very tranquil Jardins des Plantes to collect some images of the recently restored Grands Serres (glass greenhouses) for my research.

(Actually the structure of gare itself looked very interesting, but way too many military police with sub-machine guns patrolling the area made me a bit nervous about whipping out my camera with my recent touristy abandon).

The Australasian House lacks the sweaty rainforest experience of the much grander Kew Gardens’ greenhouse, but it was encouraging to see local people so engrossed in familiar Australian flora. (Once upon a time, a visit to Kew was usually a much-needed green dose of home!)

There is also a zoo at the Jardins des Plantes, which I have declined to visit, though from all accounts conditions for the animals are vastly improved on what they once were. Instead, I have included my own menagerie of animals I have recently snapped in the vicinity.

Of course, in a curious pattern that has happened nearly every one of the long evenings since I arrived in Paris, the clouds cleared, the temperature warmed a little and the late afternoon was the best and sunniest part of the day. Do hope there’s an Indian Summer (I wonder if that’s l’été indien in French?) in store for us in Paris.

Musing in the Museum

Another glorious day in Paris today as summer gets her sea-legs back.

As I walked back from my yoga class (bilingual tonight, so slightly less demanding in terms of concentration to keep up with the class than last week’s lesson tout en francais) the restaurants, bars and cobbled laneways of the Marais were buzzing with people out enjoying the warm evening breeze.

There’s always such a sense of excitement and activity in the air on nights like this; the Cité is humming too with atelier doors thrown open and the sound of residents chatting into the night.

I visited the marvelous National Museum of the Middle Ages - Musée Cluny today, a treasure trove of arts and crafts - painting, sculpture, weaving, stained glass, stonemasonry and metalwork from the 10th century onwards and housed in the site of the former Roman Baths. The centerpiece of the museum is the stunning Lady with the Unicorn series of tapestries, so intricately and expertly executed and with such odd subject matter, that I found them quite spellbinding.

Anxious not to waste the beautiful weather indoors, I also paid an all-to-short visit to the Jardins des Plantes (Botanical Gardens) - passing en route the stunning façade of the Institute du Monde Arabe, which also deserves a more leisurely return visit - where all the world seemed to be out enjoying the sun too.

It’s funny, but it already seems like there are many more people back in the city since even last weekend, the shutters of the hibernating bars and boulangeries are being sleepily opened and blinking in the full glare of a return to routine. I’m so pleased I’m going to be here in Paris for a few months to get a sense of the changes in the city as the rentrée (Back to School) grinds into full swing and the seasons change.