Magical Monday: Snake Attack

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical, unexpected or just plain daft. Unless otherwise mentioned, no Photoshop involved.

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Right Place Right Time

Sometimes you're simply in the right place at the right time. I think it would be fair to say that this was the case for me yesterday in the Jardin des Tuileries!

And, once again, the Eiffel Tower in a vase. Who am I to refuse!

Paris, you're so beautiful!

After I had finished visiting the Palais de Tokyo the other day I walked down towards the river as I knew the sun would be setting soon. I headed towards the Passerelle Debilly, a metal footbridge bridge built for  the l'Exposition Universal de 1900. It was first built opposite Avenue Albert de Mun, just by the Palais de Chaillot. It was later moved Eastwards towards the Palais de Tokyo.

Also built for a similar World fair was the Eiffel Tower of course.

Similar structural techniques were used to build the Debilly footbridge as were used to build the Tower.

As the sun set, the light reflected off the Eiffel Tower.


I headed back to the metro along the river side. These seagulls caught my eye, hunkering down from the cold and wind.


Apparently oblivious to the reflection of the Dame de Fer on the glass boat they had chosen as their resting point.


Paris, you're so beautiful!

Magical Monday - The Meeting of a Leaf and a Tower

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected.

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Flaming Chimney

Walking down from the Sacré Coeur I saw a flaming chimney.

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected.

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Magical Monday - Taking shelter

The Eiffel Tower takes shelter from the rain.


Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected.

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Magical Monday - Jumping over the Eiffel Tower

MM: week 15
Jumping over the Eiffel Tower

Those two pigeons didn't seem very impressed, huddled underneath those thundering hooves. But I was.

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected.

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

A silver sun and the Eiffel Tower

Yesterday I went to see the Chloé 'Attitudes' exhibition at the Palais de Tokyo. The exhibition is only on until the 18th November 2012, so if you haven't been already, I urge you to go. It's brilliant. Here are a few snapshots to give you a taster.

When I came out of the exhibition I walked towards the river. The light was magical.

Silver.


The sun was trying to burn through the hazy sky, but it's November so the sun doesn't really burn.


The sun looked like the moon.

It even moved like the moon.


And then, as I crossed the bridge I swear I saw a canon ball. Boom!

Magical Monday - The Eiffel Tower meets distortion

MM: week 7
The Eiffel Tower meets distortion

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected. No Photoshop allowed!

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Magical Monday - The Eiffel Tower meets a cobbled road

MM: week 6
The Eiffel Tower meets a cobbled road

Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical or unexpected. No Photoshop allowed!

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here.

Magical Monday - somebody meddled with the Eiffel Tower

MM: Week 4
Somebody meddled with the Eiffel Tower


Every Monday, Magical Monday, I post a photo that is hopefully puzzling, fantastical and unexpected. No Photoshop allowed!

More photos from the Magical Mondays series can be found here

Magical Monday - La Dame de Fer in a vase

MM: Week 2
La Dame de Fer in a vase
Imagine my surprise when I saw the Eiffel Tower carefully placed in a vase.

For more photos from the 'Magical Mondays' series click here.

Sunset in the Tuileries

Some times you're just lucky. I'd taken the kids on a thrilling outing to the bank - oh joy - followed by a reward trip to the Apple Store to have a chat with Siri. Siri, incidentally, doesn't understand kids which when you think about it is an excellent design feature. Deliberate I'm sure. After our Apple fix we popped up above ground and walked through the Tuileries to catch the metro at Concord. This is what we popped up to.

Well yes, not bad really. Looking back towards the Louvre we had this.


Looking towards Rue de Rivoli, we got this.



The Eiffel Tower in a vase.


Dancing with statues.


Taking a swim. You can just make her out in the ripples.


Flying with gulls.


La Grande Dame.


Imagine my surprise when we came out of the Jardin des Tuileries and there was the Eiffel Tower, on Safari!

La Grande Dame at dusk

I last went up the Eiffel Tower in 1989. Our kids, aged 6 and 10, who have lived in Paris all their lives have never been up.

Definitely time to ascend La Grande Dame.

We decided to go early evening. The sun was low in the sky. Not a cloud.

When we started queuing, we were looking at this.


45 minutes later as we got to the ticket counter, we were looking at this.






When we got out of the lift at the second level, the sun was setting.


Here's a photo of the Musée de Quai Branly gardens (taken by the 6 year old, I think it's lovely).

Looking up.


We decided to walk down. This was just brilliant (less so if you're in any way vertiginous!). You descend the 674 steps from the second level surrounded by golden girders, trusses, wheels, rivets and bolts. It's spectacular.








You lose a sense of what on earth is going on.






You get to peek out at Paris landmarks. Here is Les Invalides.


And then we were down.


Bonsoir.


Details on rates and visiting conditions of the Eiffel Tower can be found here.