Paris : An Experience – Part VI

Did I really say it is over !?

No, I didn’t which means I have a reason to continue from where I left. I have been pretty much busy, sick and above all voiceless struggling human to get back full functionality of my throat. It sucks pretty much to know that I have not slept in past all these nights coughing to the worst and finding myself not able to relax. Well, these things in life come and go but this one very much has decided to not really leave me.

Anyways, so as we were saying about Paris & in rain it just has another dimension. The whole architecture gets a good wash, all the old dust and birds shit gets washed away – what better way to see a clean neat architecture. As I have been hovering in the vicinity of Notre Dame – this post pretty much goes around couple of hours spend around, in and away towards Cite station before making my stop in Paris Auto Show(that is for laters) but for now we go back to NOTRE DAME of PARIS.

Notre Dame of PARIS

Nothing makes it more majestic than the dull days. Of course the reality is very dull but who wants to live in reality – we all have our own imaginations to paint, create and be who we are. Being colourful to be being romantic – talking of romance – Yeah – it is a city of love, for those who come to this city to only fall in love or just may be make love – it ends up really very colourful even in the rain.

Paris – City of love

But it has not only got anything to do with age, we can still be in love regardless we are 18 or going towards 80 – All it takes is a courage to hold hand – find someone you can enjoy the life with and share your endless crappy jokes(No, they do not have to be crappy all the times) but in the end you still feel the pleasure of enjoying life.

Paris – City in Love

It just simply shows in how we want to see life. Some people are always the way they are never willing to look beyond their visions and some people are slaves of their own lives. I do not belong to any of the ones I mentioned but rather I believe in seeing the unseen and exploring the unknown. Besides not all the people with camera want to do that – they are bound to the rules of third or even the rules which their minds never allow them to change. I just want to see this world in a way we all have not really seen.

A view of Notre Dame across the river.

For once the views don’t really do the justice. I have to have birds,  I have to see the freedom, I have to have emotions in a picture even though in cities the birds rarely exist – their flights don’t really go far but then again – It is how I said earlier – I want to see the life differently.

Birds of Paris

As I walk along the little path on near side to the wall – it all looks even more dull and gory. It is not really how one shall visit Paris, because it just keeps reminding me that I am getting wet and should have brought more water protected clothes unless of course you have plenty of latex to cover you in from the drizzling rain.

Notre Dame on the Seine River, Paris, France

Seine River of Paris

Walking under the bridge and then over the bridge, NOTRE DAME is calling me. It has been a while that I have been lurking around its corners from far and away but it needs to be seen. It needs to be stamped on my life book – I have been there or I have actually stood under it – in rain and I shot it before it was long lost in the busy modern life of virtual presence.

Standing under the Notre Dame, PARIS, France.

It does gives me thoughts of what this world would have been – let us assume 200years ago when the power of Church and life of poor farmer would collide to say – I have never seen anything as amazing, as huge and as powerful as NOTRE DAME of PARIS. On the serious thoughts I really respect the architecture this city has still survived with through the period of world wars. Notre Dame is not just to do with the religion but it is marvelously crafted piece of architecture which needs more than just one look at it. You need to stand under it for hours and ask yourself each one of those statues and their emotions put together to create this huge living wonder – it is just simply astounding to appreciate it. Sometimes we just want to see what we are shown and beyond it – we are blinded by faith, religion, books or even our own minds.

Western side of Notre Dame

It does spark me with the questions in my head, the authority of Church and its existence through all these human years – this has been one huge evolution which nothing else has survived. Anything else that has survived has to be these faces standing still on the great architecture. Each of these faces bears a different emotion, each one has different direction but a single faith. The wheel of life always moved in a circle. The bigger the faith was the bigger its believers – the huge its presence. For some to look up even in the rain seems challenge but this is what is the essence of traveling light. You get to see the faith under its own glory in its own style. For I must not soak all the water from standing outside and there has to be way inside of the Church too.

Interestingly noticed that there is a huge long queue to get inside and then alongside someone just walk inside without even getting noticed by the people in long 300mtrs queue – This is really to the disbelief but I got to try it myself now and I managed to just walk through the crowd without even getting noticed. For heaven sake – it is heavenly, or call me whatever you may want to. Not every one tells you the full story.

Inside NOTRE DAME

So the insides, there is welcome corner with you to buy your souvenirs of the Notre Dame, some tickets for additional tours and for others they can rush through the huge architecture on their own. I preferred to be on my own – the best way to explore, ask and to collect new stories. I have not been so amazed but for few seconds I didn’t realize that my lens had a plenty of mist on it – producing its on foggy light effect without any effect. The deeper you will see the more you will be pulled into it. Each pillar, each window, each block of dome has stories embedded into it from the times of past.

Inside view of Notre Dame, Paris

If you are very much unaffected by the size and the depth of what this place offers to the human vision – you must be quite unappreciative of the beauty in architecture. I am not just “wow” but fully amazed, enjoying this glazing colourful painted windows, the huge radius of the dome, the size of the doors, the pillars which are beyond imagination to consider this was constructed in 1345(fully) after almost the period of nearly 200 yrs – Now can you imagine at the time when there were no modern machines – the humans still managed to make something as marvellous, huge and beautiful – which stood ages of its destruction, alterations, vandalism and restorations. On the serious note this is not just for the purpose of religion but to me it matters to understand how humans shaped this planet in the name of god. God – the beauty that is integral in each of the living creature and not just if you believe in one god. God exists in you, around you and in your nature – Just that for me GOD has a different meaning.

Getting back to the essence of NOTRE DAME, isn’t this getting amazing. There is a reason for you to even leave your imprint of being here just in case if your children, grand children or even their grand children want to come here tracing you – only if you leave a note for them somewhere that you have been to NOTRE DAME in 2012 .

Beauty of Notre Dame, Paris

For once, this place has something about it which makes me really wonder. The story behind the architecture is one bit but the story even today in front of our own eyes is something nothing less than a masterpiece of human creation. We “The Humans” never deter to impress when it comes to be being god creations. Humanity only loses itself when they go battling out in wars, living out in ego, raging their anger and hurt for others. Over and out with this chapter of Notre Dame and I must proceed back to the rain outside.

For once, I must have been still standing in rain if I was being very queue person. The proof of getting wet is quite subtle, I just did not plan for a full wet weekend still I did plan for full use of my camera and its shutter.

Queue for Notre Dame

Good luck to you if you plan to visit Paris in rain, it generally is quite impressive if you get to see some sun. Out of my two trips, I never managed to see the sunny side of Paris and yet I have possibly enough shots to call it a Paris well shot. Ah, yes – Indeed – “Paris – Well Shot” Candidly hasselblad shot 🙂 Only if I had a umbrella like him and patience to wonder under my umbrella – I would have brought you 10 shots in total. Photography is always about being candid – for others must stick to the studio and to their magazines which they subscribe life long.

Hasselblad Moment in Paris

My views are not the one of a photography magazine but of one who goes out, does it and share without being worried of who is going to see it. Cry all my life if I never won a “Photographer of the year” award because that is what happens now – you get a camera, you take pictures and you scream all along the way I took 2000 pictures for once – I feel the count is merely a number and with someone who started at 13, you stand no chance to compare – so move on like me and keep shooting. Ha ha haa… “Photographic Slap”

We say the “Goodbye” to Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, France.

Shades of Autumn in Paris

For I must now find a place to dry up myself, clear the water from the camera and carry on calmly to my next destination. For once this day is really amazing – it does not seems to be coming to an end. Even the whole city seems to have spring back to life even under the rainy skies.

Nature of Paris City

Like any other city, this city has its own charm – the charisma and its own flaws. City of Paris, some call it city of love and for me it is just another city. City like many others this one is one for those moments when you are thoughtful, rich and with time to enjoy the busy pace of non stop life.

For now, I have next destination to reach.

Lets take you there too …

Paris people, would certainly know where this is leading me to.

More on the next post. Till then I have got to plan, pack and ride to North of England just a little south of Scotland.

PARIS : An Experience – Part V

No, it is not over yet as I said Paris, is not a place where you can see it all within a day that is why I took two days to scroll through the streets and collect all that I could to bring you in this post. Some of you who have followed me from the past posts – I really appreciate your patience and at the same time welcome you again to continue this journey through this cold and rainy day. I Just cannot get over the fact that I am swamped by rain back to back.

Enough said !! Let’s get back to where we left so we can start the rest of the walk through the city and its architecturally vivid stances. By chance it happens that I have a camera that I do enjoy sticking in people faces for sometimes it really makes them angry but they don’t dare to fight a black ninja.. ha ha ha.. Just kidding.. lets go 🙂

Out of the Luxembourg experience and into another plane of architectural embrace. Just as I stepped out of the gardens, the greens disappear to a sudden extent that all you have is a concrete jungle around you. For two seconds, I had to make sure I was not going to wet myself beyond the desired urge so took a deep breath, adjusted my warm jacket inners and off I go.
Across the road, looking at the huge inviting dome, which for one stance does give a feel same to National Museum of London looking from this spot. Actually you are looking at Place du Panthéon.

Forgive me but I am not going to give you the full history of it here. This place has a different feeling each time I look at its architecture. Especially the domes in the door entrances, the windows and the grills that somehow never really existed in UK archiecture. A feeling of openness may be.

Beyond doubt, I did also find there is a vacancy opening in McDonald, Paris. Please be enlightened to submerge yourself into the dungeons of fast food eatery.

Does it prove that mobile phones are the last thing on this planet to make humans inhuman – indeed ! My observations with  mobile phones are more like love hate relationship with an ex who keeps coming back. So is this weather.

I am going to carry on without a break 🙂 today. I just happen to have decided – I am going to make this weather work for me.

For those who want to see a larger drama in life, lets bring you something even bigger.
As wide as your eyes can see and not even the widest lens can capture – you see a view of Eiffel Tower in the distance between the rows of these buildings on your left and to the right.

Only if I was a drug dealer and can afford the widest of the lenses in the world this 6mm would have been sitting in my kit but no, I am not that rich yet. I do not even have my own slaves yet 😀 ha ha ha..

As I mentioned a little while back, this is a concrete jungle and we ants(humans) inhibit this place to perfect satisfaction of ours. We keep this place running and makes it the most expensive concrete jungles – that I would never be a part of. Never, I can imagine living in this concrete jungles.

Does it just appears that the blue skies suddenly tempted me. Yes indeed, I see no signs of green at all so has to be something natural still to give me a reason to be here enjoying this Purple contrasty umbrella under the blue skies.

A new lease to make this world look so exciting and colorful  As it tends to be – this is quite not what I generally do but I suppose I have not many other options left with me. so we walk the alleys and snap snap shoot shoot .. rain falls at its own pace.

But the pouring downpour isn’t over yet. It is plup plup plup at its own pace. I am able to keep myself dry but not wasting too much of my energy standing still in one place instead – keep the body moving 🙂

It is indeed Paris – Everyone calls it a city of love. For love is in the architecture, the love is in the windows and in the not so human context. It is just another city for those who live here and for the rest of the world this is a place of Love unless you know where Moulin Rouge is. No, I had not been that lucky this time but may be next time I will do a round up there too to lighten you all up again.

Towards the river – this piece of work surprises me – how it must have been in the ages when it was build. The sign of care, affection and the motherhood which stood ages but hey, where is this now ! No one really has time to look up beyond what stands on the top of this structure. Such are our lives – the mobile phones make you look down not up 😀 please be glued to them 24 x 7 x 365 may be it helps you earn a lot of money too 🙂 who knows.

For those who are like me would be glad to find the Autumn in this city. There does exists the sign of nature flying through the wet and windy nature. It does not surprise me but I quite love to sit down on this wet floor to see and admire these fallen leaves which soon will be crushed by the walking pedestrians as the next lot of rush breaks.

How mental does this look ! For the eyes – Yes, it is not a straight out of the camera or SOOC shot but something which took few layers and more than couple of editting touches. It is not all about shooting in this weather but trying to make out of what the nature and the light has to offer. For a change I do like this shot and quite impressed by how it turned out. Sometimes it does make me wonder if I have lost these gimmicks in my photos.

For the meanwhile, I leave you all here with this dose of Paris & rain. I will be back soon with the views in and on the other side of Notre Dame.
Till then Goodbyes and keep checking.

Paris : An Experience – Part III

To begin with, I must say that I am really sorry that I do not want to cut this experience short due to lack of time and lack of unavailability. I know I will have my cappuccino waiting for me somewhere once I finish this Paris experience. It sure is a little bit of a work but I hope this justifies to keep you coming back. I promise to finish it quickly once I have more time to myself.

Special thanks to a special friend, for the Cappuccino and the chocolate 🙂 experience.

Continuing from where we left in our last experience of Paris – Part II

Back in Paris from one station to next – the journey is a bit of fun in Metro. Just like other cities in Europe the fastest connection between the two ends is Tube(underground) and being a non speaking french person – my ability to pronounce any of the names is just about crap. Don’t either expect it to be anything else other than crap because I cannot – just cannot say the french names correctly – blame it all on the default language (english). So from the last hop on the train I was about to do few more hops.

Concorde – Not a plane, just a destination.

This journey is a beginning to the underworld of Paris – the world which has its own pace, defined through the past years in the way it takes people from A to B and B to D or anywhere of those destinations. So my journey from Concorde has started and finished in a corner called Abbesses. Sounds like a pretty horror place. Apologies but I cant stop thinking of darkness  – as is Abyss.

Metro in Paris – Underworld

And, to notice it is not very different to any other huge technological garage – people stuck on their screens – the slaves of modern age and life. There is no doubt we the humans are slaves of technology and it is not far that we will soon be idiots without our little screens as we pledge to lose our knowledge and identity in being virtualised – may be all should be codes on the Virtual clouds, jumping from one to another program. Who knows, but I am very angry to see how our lives are shaped by technology – becoming too much finger’y all the time.

Dark Abyss in ABBESSES

Not that is all but even the walls of our modern day existence reflects the mode of our moods. All tarnished and abandoned by the masterpieces of modern day advertisements. Ah, seriously who needs billboards or posters these days – we enjoy the visual experiences. Hence, to prove it all we frame to frame them for seriously nothing in it.

Frames of modern day framing.

Not all is lost yet, the age old architecture and hundred years old staircases still survives away from the technology. At least there are few things untouched and still preserved which make you feel like – may be there is a hope that something will be left for future generations to observe.  I think I am too old in this body to complaint so much but this all that I see – I can’t stop writing about it. Some of it does seems like parody but it actually isn’t – it is my heart felt apologies to say – we will soon be lost in our existence.

Sortie

On choosing my “Sortie” / Exit – I landed to find something quite interesting. The wall art of Paris. Something I really admired to see – that someone was creative here to explicitly agree to display something very interesting and artsy.

Walls of Spiral staircases

It does take more than few seconds to really see and understand art. It may sometimes be as simple as it seems and simply meaningless – you just need to enjoy it.

Takes time to see it with an artist eye.

It does becomes interesting but you need to put more than a quick look. It has something behind it – the feel of Paris – that rush and the busy streets and the same staircase which has no place to stand or shoot once it is in full rush.

For all is not lost yet.

I noticed a lot in this last one than other two but it is indeed very creative of someone. Unaware that more than half of city dwellers never have an eye on what lies in the city just like what happens with me when I am so engrossed in my daily routine of life. I still try sometimes 😉 there are even hidden corners in my City too 🙂 that I notice now.

Montmarte

Out of this little underworld, the life outside suddenly springs to life. It seems like a little ghost town down under. Have you really noticed how quiet it is indeed – wow – quite unlike any other rush and work day. I do love this silence and quiet feeling but then it does not fits for Paris. I was bit lost for the direction of where I was headed but I know the human radar of my real navigation is quite good with directions. The sense of direction and outside crowd makes me quickly figure out my directions. I was headed to the Basilic of Sacred Heart, Paris.

Before I reach there I have a direction hunt to do. Well, it is quite interesting that life is still active – mostly tourists and mostly couples.

Windows of Paris.

I like to see these windows, which are almost outdated but still stay in use across most older cities and towns of Europe. Observing how our life has little things we don’t notice.

Lonely Heart

Someone lonely left his or her heart here for me to capture and bring it to all of you. Enjoy the night life with the colours and Purple and greens. It is all that is there to life – little things that we miss as we grow old … or older or.. simply busier.

Hangout lane

If only I had spare time but I was on a mission with a timeline before it starts raining again and gets too late that I have no train left to go back – I must hunt Basilic. Something with a very special value to christianity -the firm belief of all those who live by its authority.

Pole Hugging

Atleast there is always something interesting to see from a different perspective “Pole Hugging” for motorheads. It is a good obsession to have keen interest in motorcycles otherwise you won’t know what a “Pole Hugging” would mean. My one generally doesn’t do it because she is kept away from poles.

Stairs to Basilic

It suddenly becomes quite crazy this place is full of people and lots of them “Americans” – The french suddenly disappears and no one really is keen on speaking french. All the way the stairs to the Basilic is uphill steep climb. As I walk along the stairs, the conversations of people become quite interesting around me. Most of the women – generally girls in groups – hmm… I better not wanna share it all. For some of the things must be left for diary notes only.

Night view of Basilic, Paris

After all this uphill climb and interesting conversations – the life springs back to England (Just joking), it springs to America – there is no one french up here. The rain is still falling in drizzle but the crowd up here is seriously in party mode. It is a first day of Wine tasting on the Basilic. A huge party and celebration feeling which I was completely unaware of till I climbed all the stairs. It appears now – where all the Paris is hidden. Busy Busy Busy…  wow…. and it has started to rain as we enjoy the views.

City views in night from the top of Basilic

It does makes it all looks so different from the top. Indeed, I am starting to enjoy it but not for long as the rain drops starts to come down heavy and the I must not forget to check in the times for my last train. But before, I go – there is a time for a night pano stitch shot still.

Busy night at Basilic, Paris

Something I quite like – making huge, huge stitch shots. Love it in the full resolution but for all this is just an idea of what it looks with your vision of eyes. I had to make my way down back to the train station and it won’t be easy since the rain started to push most of the crowd down from here.

A night view of Basilic from streets

This was seriously quite a challenge to make my way through the streets full of crowd. Something that happened for the first time since I have been in Paris. Also, not to forget that please take caution with your wallets, expensive phones and shining jewellery. In such places things don’t take long for them to disappear. Most of it was quite interesting and I was finally in a german speaking crowd where I could use my 2bits of basic understanding. Feels more like a known turf down here.

METRO in Paris

Time never really stops and I must also not stop unless I want to end myself on the streets of cold, wet and rainy Paris. I have found myself a train station and trains to tread back into my night shelter. Citylife wears a totally different colour in night as we can see it now.

Magenta – RER E line – Station.

Ah, I am not really going to stop this huge big wide views of Magenta. I am tired, bit cold and want to go get some sleep. Waiting for trains is really annoying ….

Finally, Train is here.. Pink Line.

Finally, the train is here and I am heading to my bed.  This brings an end of my first day(washed out in rain), and remaining evening in selected above few shots.

With much anxious return, I shall bring you the “Sunday” experience of Paris too. A very dull, rainy, cold and dark day washed in rain. I still managed to step out, shoot Notre Dame, capture the girls of Paris, the Paris Autoshow and finally the last of the goodbyes from Paris.

More in next part….Part IV