Cave of Terror No More

The jazz club Caveau de la Huchette, located in the Latin Quarter, is one of the most popular entertainment places in Paris. The building it occupies dates back to the sixteenth century and is said to have been the meeting place of members of secret societies such as the Rosicrucians (Brethren of Rose Cross), the Templars, and the Free-Masons. During the French Revolution, the place was known as the “Cave of Terror” where prisoners were brought, trials were conducted, and executions have taken place. 


Now, don't be turned off by the building's not-so-pleasant history.  The club is always packed. It is one of the popular places where locals and tourists hang out to have fun, listen to good jazz music, and dance the night away.


Caveau de la Huchette 
5 Rue de la Hutchette, 5e 
Phone. +33 1 43 26 65 05. 
Website: www.caveaudelahutchette.fr


Sending you happy thoughts...

Of Color-Coded Tubes and Pipes

No, it’s not an oil refinery in the middle of the city as critics used to describe it. The Georges Pompidou Center is an audacious, futuristic modernist structure in steel and glass designed by Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano. The idea behind its out of the ordinary “inside out” construction design is to have large, open-spaced interiors by placing what is normally hidden inside the structure of a building on the outside, yet make those ordinarily hidden elements architecturally interesting. The exposed fixtures are color-coded: water pipes are green, electricity lines are yellow, escalators and elevators are red, air ducts are blue, and underground ventilation shafts are white.

The building houses the National Museum of Modern Arts, a center for acoustic and music research, exhibition galleries, cinemas, show and concert halls, and a vast public reference library with facilities for over 2,000 readers. It was named after its initiator, Georges Pompidou, the president of France from 1969 to 1974. Pompidou had a great passion for the modern arts and wanted to build a cultural institution in the heart of Paris completely focused on modern and contemporary arts. 

The building opened its doors to the public more than 30 years ago, on January 31, 1977. However, owing to its success as a must-see Parisian attraction (with daily visitors reaching four times the predicted traffic), the building suffered premature wear and tear. It had to close in October 1997 for 27 months.


Open on Mon, Wed-Sun (11:00-21:00) 
Website: http://www.centrepompidou.fr 
Metro: Rambuteau or Hotel de Ville (Line 11); Les Halles (Line 4)) RER: Chatelet-Les-Halles (Line A) Bus: Lines 38, 21, 29, 47, 58, 69, 70, 72, 74, 75, 76, 81, 85, 96 Parking: Rue Beaubourg Underpass Phone: 33 (0)144 78 12 33

Sending you happy thoughts...

Space Invader

When exploring the streets of Paris, do keep an eye out for the interesting mosaics installed by the French graffiti artist known as “Invader” all over the city. The mosaics depict characters from his all-time favorite video game, Space Invaders. As of last count, he already managed to put up a total of 704 mosaics in the City of Lights.

Through this "Invasion Project", which he started in 1998, the artist intends to invade the world, city by city, with the little aliens. As of date, he has successfully invaded a total of 39 cities all over the globe. 

                    An inconspicuously placed mosaic.

           Rubik's cubes were used to create this mosaic.

I also spotted this Oscar the Grouch mosaic along Rue de la Ferronnerie.  Remember Mac's old trash icon?  This piece is a tribute to it.

If you want to know where the Invader placed the rest of his street mosaics, just head on to the Space Invaders Site.   You can also visit the Invader's Facebook Fan Page.

Happy hunting!

Sending you happy thoughts...

A Sweet Sojourn in Paris

Autumn of 2008 brought me to the City of Lights.  We only had two full days to explore the place. Too little a time, but we've made the most of the time we had.

Notre Dame Cathedral