Monthly Archives: April 2013

Frolics With Family — Part 1

Have you wondered where Mark and I have been? We’ve been in Louisville, Kentucky after flying from Europe to Iceland to Canada to the USA. And my daughter Jennifer, her charming husband John, and their darling children have been my focus for the last couple of weeks.

This is a VERY quick post because I am sitting in the train station in Portland, Oregon and I have a wifi signal for the first time in days. The Empire Builder train that we travelled on from Chicago to the West Coast didn’t have active wifi. (sigh!) So I am VERY FAR behind on my posts right now.

Here are some shots of my grandchildren Johnny and Elena — and there will be more in the days ahead. We are headed to Tacoma, Washington in 35 minutes to visit with my son and his wife and their 2 children. What a wonderful whirl of activity we are having!

More soon……………

 
Johnny6YearsOldAtSchool

 

ElenaClimbingOutOfPlaypen
 

 

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Photo Of The Day: Seriously Important Yet Smile-Inducing Graphic

An example of a serious but smile-inducing graphic was the neon sign we saw in the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France that instructed wheelchair users what direction to proceed in if there was a fire in the museum. Mark said, “Not chariots of fire — wheelchairs of fire.” And in case anyone misinterprets that, he meant it in a wry and humour-filled manner — not a sarcastic or disrespectful manner.

 

Wheelchair and fire graphic showing evacuation route at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Inside The Pompidou Collections in Paris

As promised, here is a glimpse at some of the artwork within the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France. The collections are vast, so this is just a tiny snippet from a few galleries plus a few shots from a current special exhibition.

Any of the smaller versions of photographs will expand if you click on them and you will be able to see more detail.

The current special exhibit is devoted to the life and work of the artist and designer Eileen Gray. We have been admirers of her work for quite a long time and until we sold off all of our furniture in Australia prior to our 2-1/2 year round-the-world jaunt, we had one of those glass and chrome side tables that you see pictured in the museum shop photo.

 

The lines to purchase tickets at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

A photographic portrait of designer & artist Eileen Gray


 

Examples of the forward-thinking tables and chairs designed by Eileen Gray in the 1920s-1940s which are still relevant in today’s contemporary decor.


 

Curved leather divan designed by Eileen Gray in the 1920s


 

Authorized reproductions of Eileen Gray design pieces which are for sale in the shop at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

And here is a tiny selection of some items in the permanent collection inside the Pompidou.
 

A red metal man sculpture by Olivier Mourgue


 

Hanging neon sculpture at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

A selection of colourful paintings with sexual themes


 

A huge punched metal sculpture that practically fills a room inside the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

A very large hanging sculpture named Fruits de la Passion


 

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Pompidou Photo Essay — Part 2

Here we go with a continuation of the Pompidou photo essay!

Did you ever wonder what the inside of the Pompidou looked like? Or what all of those clear plastic tubes on the exterior of the structure were for? These photos should answer some of that.

 

The vast interior lobby of the Centre Pompidou


 

Walkway through one of the clear plastic tunnels at the Pompidou


 

Even the elevators between the exhibit floors go through the clear plastic tubes on the outside of the building!


 

 

View of the Parisian landscape from the VERY top of the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

Come back soon for MORE from the Pompidou including pieces of artwork inside!

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Perfectly Wonderful Pompidou

We simply adore Paris and from past experience I know that staying in just the right place makes all of the difference in how much you enjoy your visit. Our very small but simply wonderful apartment in the Marais which I had sourced from airbnb enhanced our brief citybreak in Paris on several levels. The neighbourhood was wonderful and a mere few blocks from our front door was the Centre Pompidou.

A few hours after our arrival in Paris, we strolled through a misty rain down the street at dusk and past the Pompidou. It is an astonishingly odd building and it continues to be controversial. Many people snicker at the exterior facade and the brightly coloured ‘plumbing pipes’ that look like nothing else in the neighbourhood. It grew on me!

 

Centre Pompidou at dusk


 

Close-up of Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

Then we walked around to an open plaza in back and took photos of the wonderful sculptural objects in the Stravinsky Fountain.

 

Stravinsky Fountain next to the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

Moving elements within the Stravinsky Fountain next to the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France


 

Next up — photos of the inside of this vast museum and some of the wonderful artwork in the collections.

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Chew On That In Paris

Quick photo of the day because I’m about to jump countries (again!). We’re leaving on the Eurostar tomorrow from Brussels (lots of photo essays from here in the weeks ahead) tomorrow and heading to London for an overnight before flying to the USA for several weeks.

Today’s photo is an example of the ornate bread that is on offer at a boulangerie in Paris, France.

 

View of a boulangerie window in Paris


 

So while I work on some new articles and do photo editing as I travel — chew on that for now!

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.

Photo Essay: Meandering Through Montmartre in Paris

There are more sides to Montmartre, the district that sits high atop the Paris landscape, than the crowds at Sacre Couer. This photo essay will show you some of the lovely or funny things that we saw as we walked around.

 

Art Nouveau building on Rue Lamarck in Paris, France


 

Bright pink boulangerie (bakery) in the Montmartre district of Paris, France


 

Montmartre cafe at dusk


 

Cafe interior in Montmartre


 

Stairway passages through the hilltops of Montmartre


 

Colourful chairs & tables at a sidewalk cafe in the Montmartre district of Paris, France


 

Nun in full habit (which is rather unusual nowadays) walking down Rue Lamarck in Montmartre, Paris, France


 

Cartoon advertisement in the window of a plumbing & heating shop in the Montmartre district of Paris, France


 

Spectacles (events) kiosk in the Montmartre district of Paris, France


 

 

 

COPYRIGHT
©Deborah Harmes and ©A Wanderful Life
Please respect the words and images on this page.
All rights reserved.