You’re strolling on a Sunday afternoon through the 14th arrondissement. As you pass by Pharmacie Didot-Pernety, you make a turn and enter another world. This stretch of plant-adorned, pastel-painted, bicycle-embellished cobblestone is so far from the grime-covered, metro-lined, Seine-smelling city you left behind. You have discovered the paysan within Paris. Welcome to the Rue des Thermopyles.
The street finds its name in an ancient history. Its characteristic narrowness reminded an old quill-wielding Parisian of the tapered passages of the 450 B.C.E. Battle of Thermopylae. And so, this Greek nomenclature wrote its way into the French landscape. The Rue des Thermopyles has been described as a place which lingers in the past and exists outside of the Parisian present. It is the pastoral charm and tranquility of this street which garnered local attention when it was released from private control and made public in 1925. Due to this history, the residential area remains comparatively free of the cafés and shops which clutter every other Parisian street. For a brief 280-meter stretch, your surroundings convince you that you must be in the French countryside.
Yet, on your Sunday afternoon meander, you might notice the ways in which modernity is altering the street’s vintage character. In between the blue, pink and yellow flower boxes, white walls have become the collective canvases for the community’s artists. Miss Tic, the Parisian-born daughter of a Tunisian immigrant and French farmer, is a celebrated feminist graffitist whose compelling work contrasts the pleasant scene of the Rue des Thermopyles. The black-and-white image of a woman with a sword and shield is captioned: “Dépasser le passé. Toute une histoire.” This striking call to arms finds great contrast within its fairytale-like environment.
As you investigate the neighborhood’s street art, be careful! You might accidentally fall prey to the roaming Instagrammer searching the neighborhood for the perfect background to post. The Rue des Thermopyles has become quite the Internet attraction in recent years because of its simultaneous accessibility and foreignness. Just search #ruedesthermopyles, and see for yourself. Is that the back of your head next to the purple heart-shaped door?
References
“La rue des Thermopyles, le charme bucolique du 14e.” Paris Zig Zag. https://www.pariszigzag.fr/balades-excursions/balade-paris/rue-des-thermopyles-le-charme-bucolique-du-14eme
“Paris: Rue des Thermopyles, promenade fleurie et souvenirs du village de Plaisance – XIVème.” Paris la Douce. 1 April 2017. https://www.parisladouce.com/2017/04/paris-la-rue-des-thermopyles-promenade.html.
“Qui est Miss Tic ? Artiste street art ou féministe ?” slave 2.0, 23 January 2017. https://www.slave2point0.com/2017/01/23/qui-est-miss-tic-artiste-street-art-ou-f%C3%A9ministe/.
Vellut, Guilhem. “Rue des Thermopyles @ Paris.” Wikimedia, 14 June 2017. Image. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Search&limit=20&offset=20&profile=default&search=rue+des+thermopyles&advancedSearch-current=%7B%7D&ns0=1&ns6=1&ns12=1&ns14=1&ns100=1&ns106=1#/media/File:Rue_des_Thermopyles_@_Paris_(35182129971).jpg.
At the turn of the nineteenth century, a new art movement took the world by storm and situated itself within the prominent visual identity and culture of Europe and the United States. Although the movement originated in England, with artists like William Morris and Walter Crane, the most prominent and utilized title for the artistic era was the French phrase, l’Art Nouveau, literally translating to, “the new style.” Artists and craftsmen came together with the intentions of breaking away from the traditional and academic study of fine art in an attempt to redefine and redistribute art by imbuing everyday objects with beauty. Rather than referencing the classical and mythological subjects and styles of the past, artists looked to the forms found in nature as well as the various subjects and styles of Japanese woodblock prints. Works manifested as fine art with painting and sculpture, graphic art with drawings and prints, and in more uncommon mediums, such as jewelry, glasswork, and ceramics.
The joy of the creative process, minute by minute, hour after hour, day by day, is the sublime path to true happiness. –George Lois
Like many of you, I am beginning my sixth week of extreme social distancing. My work life, social life, and family life have all moved online. I am very happy to maintain my connections with students, friends and family. My advanced literature course has turned into a fabulous Zoom book club discussing Zola’s Le Ventre de Paris (The Belly of Paris). And raucous family happy hours (“cocktail hour” as Mom calls it) launch me into each weekend.
Language is evolving as we grasp for ways to express pandemic life. People are not only staying in, but hunkering down and practicing self-isolation. We’re actively engaged in social distancing so we can flatten the curve. Some are suggesting we crush the curve…
We often said that Grandma Mary Ellen was a “cookie grandma” rather than a “pie grandma.” She always sent us home from her house with a bag or two of cookies from the big freezer in the basement—chocolate chip, starburst, or cut-out cookies… We each had our favorites. One of the stars in her cookie repertoire was her ginger snap cookies. These crispy molasses cookies seem to please everyone—the ginger, cinnamon, and cloves are warming and serve to balance the molasses.
For the most part, I am maintaining the format and wording of this “vintage” recipe. I like how simply it reads and how easy it is to prepare. If you prefer a more “snappy” cookie, substitute vegetable shortening for the butter.
The depth of nothingness is directly related to the experience of everythingness. —Matthew Fox
I’ve spent years combing the internet for tips on preparing my own meals for airplane travel. Especially on long haul flights, I like to bring my own food along for the ride—it is healthy and economical. Some food bloggers prepare fairly intricate, time-intensive recipes for their trips, but with the last-minute chaos I inevitably encounter before I take off, I must keep things simple. In this post I share my strategy for putting together meals for travel and give you a few examples of recent meals I’ve packed.
I am just back from a brief business trip to France and basking in the glory of home. My days in Nantes passed in a flash—meetings, a bit of research, a few get-togethers with friends, and inordinate amounts of bread, cheese, and Muscadet. Then… poof! The week was over and I was headed home.