Soldes, Soldes, Soldes

Sale, Sale, Sale! All the stores in Paris are having their annual sales promising from 10% to as much as 70% off on clothes and accessories, home goods, and other items I have yet to discover. The stores are a haven right now not only for the discounts they offer but also for temporary shelter (while shopping or dining) from the chilling temperature outside.

The balconies at Galeries Lafayette

I checked out my favorite department at Galeries Lafayette - that is the handbag section. I was astounded at the prices even with the 30-50% discount. Thank goodness I didn't find anything that begged "buy me". I decided to splurge on lunch instead.

On the sixth floor of the Galeries Lafayette on Bd. Haussman, there are three restaurants -Le Café Sushi, Restaurant Sichuan and the self service Lafayette Restaurant. At the latter, you can choose from pasta, grilled dishes, salads or a selection of hot entrées of the day. The pavé de saumon with vegetables (string beans, broccoli, red pepper, mushrooms) and potato balls is 9.90 euros. Only the grilled steak cost over 10.00 euros. It was 14.90. All in all, the menu at the Lafayette posts reasonable prices.

I got a table with a view of the Opera Garnier's rooftop. And behind me the Tour Eiffel was bathed in sunlight, a welcome sight after the snow and rain which greeted my arrival in Paris.

Before leaving the building I took this photo of the famous glass dome of the store. I was standing in the perfume department to take this shot and a Nina Ricci salesperson gave me a whiff of their perfume which smelled very nice. I put the little sniffing card in my coat pocket and forgot my Kleenex was there too. So when I pulled out my Kleenex to blow my nose, I started sneezing. I hope I didn't activate my old allergy to perfume.

The perfume department at Galeries Lafayette

Bienvenue a Paris.

* * *

Photos by Charie

The Philippine Village Life by Vicente Silva Manansala

Pamilya (Family) With the completion of their new headquarters in Manila in 1961, PhilAm Life (a life insurance company) commissioned Vicente Silva Manansala to do a series of paintings for their cafeteria. (Lucky employees!) Before long these seven large-scale paintings about Philippine village life were moved to the front lobby which was deemed a more appropriate setting for the canvases. They remained there until the building was sold in 2012. Mindful of the cultural significance of the paintings and the need for its preservation and conservation, the management of PhilAm Life decided to loan these treasures to the National Museum in 2014. “Pamilya reflects Filipino values of family solidarity and solemnity showing a common scenario of praying before sharing a meal with one’s family.” National Museum of the Philippines Pagkain (Food) One of the Thirteen Moderns and Neo Realists, Vicente Silva Manansala had the good fortune to study art in Canada, the United States, France and Switz...

The Art of Carlos Botong Francisco - Progress of Medicine in the Philippines

Pre-colonial period Pag-unlad ng Panggagamot sa Pilipinas (The Progress of Medicine in the Philippines) is a group of four large-scale paintings depicting healing practices in the Philippines from pre-colonial times to the modern period. Carlos Botong Francisco was commissioned in 1953 by Dr. Agerico Sison who was then the director of Philippine General Hospital (PGH) together with Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing of the National Museum, Dr. Florentino Herrera, Jr. and Dr. Constantino Manahan. These oil on canvas paintings measure 2.92 meters in height and 2.76 meters in width (9.71 ft x 8.92 ft) and were displayed at the main entrance hall of PGH for over five decades. Owing to its location, the artworks were in a state of "severe deterioration" at the beginning of the 21st century from exposure to heat, humidity, dirt, dust, smoke, insect stains, grime, termites and an oxidized synthetic resin used in an earlier restoration. These canvases were restored three times, the last was...

Filipino Struggles in History - Carlos Botong Francisco

In 1968, Antonio Villegas (then Mayor of Manila), commissioned Carlos "Botong" Francisco to paint the history of Manila for Manila City Hall. The series of large scale paintings was called Kasaysayan ng Maynila (History of Manila). The paintings deteriorated over time and no attempt was made to preserve these historical canvases until 2013 when Mayor Amado Lim sent them to the National Museum for extensive restoration. Four years later, in 2017, Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada and the Manila City Council signed an agreement with the National Museum to leave the paintings at the museum so they may reach a larger audience in exchange for museum grade reproductions to replace the originals. Kasaysayan ng Maynila was later renamed Filipino Struggles in History and is now on display at the Senate Hall of the National Museum . Carlos "Botong" Francisco died in March 1969, a few months after completing the paintings. He is one of the first Filipino modernists and...

TravelswithCharie

Search This Blog