Paris Weekly

New and Improved Blog COMING SOON ....

2009-02-12T10:29:00.001-08:00

Sorry, no post this week ...

2009-01-25T20:48:00.001-08:00

Cheese Scandal, E-Babe and Free Museums

2009-01-18T17:52:00.000-08:00

I'm sure you've all heard the big news this week but just in case you missed it, a scandal of seismic proportions is brewing ... French government and food industry officials on Thursday denounced a US decision to triple import duties on Roquefort cheese, warning that it could spell the end of Roquefort exports to the US market.

"Incomprehensible and inadmissible" fumed Anne-Marie Idrac, secretary of state for state for foreign trade. "I am very shocked that one of the last moves by the outgoing Bush administration is this increase in customs duties." Roquefort cheese was among a number of European Union products to be hit with new US tariffs in retaliation for an EU ban on US hormone-treated beef.

Speaking of scandals, a student who is auctioning her virginity to pay for a masters degree in Family and Marriage therapy has seen bidding hit $3.7 million. Natalie Dylan, 22, is auctioning off her virginity to fund her master's degree and claims her offer of a one-night stand has persuaded 10,000 men to bid for sex with her. Last September, when her auction came to light, she had received bids up to $243,000 but since then interest in her has rocketed.

The student who has a degree in Women's Studies insisted she was not demeaning herself and was persuaded to offer herself to the highest bidder after her sister Avia, 23, paid for her own degree after working as a prostitute for three weeks.

And if that wasn't enough good news for this week, in a New Year's address to the arts world, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said under-25s and school teachers would be allowed in to all museums free of charge from April 4, in addition to under-18s who already enjoy free tickets. As part of a raft of announcements aimed at promoting French culture and the arts, Sarkozy said he planned to create a new national history museum, in a "symbolic" site, in a bid to reinforce France's identity.

France's annual national heritage budget will be boosted by 100 million euros, with priority given to preserving "emblematic great monuments, cathedrals, abbeys and small town monuments," he said.

I love the French reaction to a global financial meltdown!!

Some photos of the week:

Real Food at Cafe Lea
Light From My Neighbors Window
Credit Card Image I Submitted to Capital One (It Was Rejected)
Obama Carved in Elevator in Montmartre
Making Baguettes

Snow, Snow and Daniel Craig ...

2009-01-11T01:32:00.001-08:00

Snow was the talk of the town this week. It wasn't like Paris got hit by some huge snow storm (which unbelievably happened in Marseille along the Mediterranean coast this week) but for the first time in a long time, the snow fell and stayed ... and stayed ... and stayed.

It's very rare to see Paris covered in white and as you can imagine, it's very beautiful. I went up to Montmartre and photographed some almost dream-like images of Sacre Coeur.

It was pretty odd seeing Place du Tertre (the square in the center of Montmartre where all the artists paint each day) almost completely empty and covered in white (see image below). It looks like things are finally thawing out but along with the oppressively cold temperatures, it's been a memorable week.

Photographed actor Daniel Craig for the French premiere of his new film "Defiance". He seems like a nice enough man but he looks like he really could kill you at any moment if you do something wrong.

There were a couple of news stories this week that I found culturally interesting - one in England and the other in France. I think both articles highlight general differences in the mentality of Europeans and Americans. Have a read ...

CLICK HERE for the first article.

CLICK HERE for the second article.

(SNOW!) Photos of the week:

Notre Dame in Snow
Might be better to eat indoors
Street in Montmartre
View from Montmartre
Leaves in Snow

2009, Parties, Car Burning and Snow ...

2009-01-06T02:52:00.000-08:00

Since this is my first blog posting of 2009, let me first send out my best wishes to everyone for 2009. My visitors and I did a bit of partying starting on New Year's Eve and continuing for the next couple of days.

The New Year's Eve party that we went to had so much food left over that it forced a secondary party just to finish off the food. There were many noteworthy scenes that I witnessed, like this photo below.

But each of us has our own way of celebrating the new year. Each new year in France, one of my favorite January 1 rituals is to check how many cars were burnt the preceding night. According to figures from the French Interior Ministry, 1,147 cars went up in smoke on New Year's Eve — a 30% rise on the 879 autos torched the same night in 2007. I'm always stunned by the figure. I've tried to research why this happens and there are all sorts of theories but I don't find any of them completely satisfying. If you want to read more about this annual "event", click HERE to read a Time Magazine article about it.

This week also brought a pretty rare event to Paris ... snow that actually stayed on the ground for a while. I didn't get to shoot much that day but I expect to have some serious snow photos next week.

Some photos of the week:

Paris Street Gang
Parisian Partygoer
Muscle Car On My Street
Frozen Fountain with Rainbow - Palais Royal
One Chief

Visitors, Christmas and a Good Resto

2008-12-28T02:13:00.000-08:00

Visiting period has opened. For the next few weeks, 5 different visitors will be coming to hang out in Paris. First up were my cousins from New York. We've been having fun just tooling around the city, catching up and trying to survive the bitter cold.

Had a great night out with my 10-year old cousin. We hit the town together and spent an action-packed evening that included bowling, air hockey, pool, Elvis pinball and multiple crepes.

Took a break from the city and headed out to spend Christmas Day in Ivry-la-Bataille, about 50 miles from Paris.

Spent a night laughing, eating, drinking champagne and watching the ups and downs of gift giving.

Speaking of eating, went to an excellent restaurant this week. It's called Alcazar and is located at 62 rue Mazarine in the 6th. The food is modern French but it's generally a non-French experience. Located on a small street, the restaurant is large (by Paris standards) and chic, almost LA-like, and is own by a Brit (Terence Conran). I can attest that the fish and chips are absolutely delicious. Go for lunch if you can because they have a great specials.

Photos of the week:

A new mosque? No, a Bush press conference (thanks to Norman)
Individually-wrapped french fries
Large paintings at the Louvre
Nipple pinch at the Louvre

Compassion ...

2008-12-22T00:46:00.000-08:00

Not much happened this week but what did was a grand experience. Both good and bad. An elderly woman who I've been friends with for almost 7 years now needed to have a rather complicated form of cataract surgery performed on her this week. She's pretty much all alone in Paris and her relatives who live in the suburbs were out of town. So I picked her up at her apartment and brought her to the clinic for the procedure.

It's hard to explain the level of fear and anxiety she experienced, starting with the taxi from her apartment. By the time we arrived at the clinic, she was almost inconsolable. We checked in and sat for about 20 minutes in a waiting room. Every time the clerk would come in and call someone's name, she'd jump up and nervously say "was that my name ... I think it was my name". We eventually got called and admitted to a private room.

The room was absolutely perfect. Seemingly new, like a hotel room, with a touchscreen television that had an internet connection, telephone, cable, etc. I was relieved to see that the room was great, thinking that might help ease my friend's angst a little. Nope. She looked around for a few seconds and then launched into a tirade that maybe only a mother who's child throws a tantrum at the supermarket could understand. The bed was too high (of course we lowered it), she was used to taking baths and the room only had a shower, she's used to a bar of soap and here there was only liquid soap. But the topper was the heating system. The room and the whole clinic had a central heating system that would blow warm air into each room. It made noise but just above a whisper. Well, my friend convinced herself that there was no way she could sleep in a room that noisy. First she called the department administrator and said that she had specifically requested a quiet room. Of course the clinic had actually given her their best room, the most quiet and had even (I found out later) actually upgraded her to a VIP room. It had zero street noise and was at the end of the hall with only one adjacent room. She had the best room.

The administrator was quite kind and found a solution for my friend. They brought in a radiator heater which made no noise and turned off the fan in my friend's room. Perfect right? Wrong. My friend decided she didn't like the KIND of heat from a radiator heater so that wouldn't do. She demanded to be moved to another room. The administrator told her that all the rooms had the same heating system and besides that, the clinic was full. Well, over the next 2 hours(!) my friend called just about everyone involved with the clinic from the admitting officer, the janitor, the heating technician, the top person and a few people I didn't even know who they were.

At one point, there were 7 clinic people standing in our room trying to make the situation better. The were completely at their wits end but other than the heating technician, refused to give up. I tried to stay out of the situation the best I could because it was difficult for me to following everything in French and truly there wasn't really anything I could do. Finally, the top administrator, not knowing what else to do or who I was, tried to enlist my help but asking me "Monsieur, que-ce que vous pensez (Sir, what do you think)? Feeling a bit on the spot and having 8 French people staring at me and hanging on my response was quite a moment. I paused and then said "I think you've done everything humanly possible and that my friend has created a problem without a solution". Everyone looked around for a couple of seconds and then my friend seemed to realize that what I said might be true and quite unexpectedly calmed down a bit. She told the mob in her room that of course a clinic can not be like home and that she would just have to deal with the inconveniences, or something to that effect.

I ended up spending 7 hours there and another 3 hours when I went to pick her up two days later. My friend's behavior was outrageous and painful but what will stay with me the most was the compassion of the clinic staff. Can any of you out there imagine the employees of a clinic where you live being that compassionate? Seven people over two hours trying to solve an unsolvable situation. As often as I call the behavior of Parisians savage (and that's often), events like this happen and I gain a whole new respect for the people and the "humanness" of their culture.

Some photos of the week:

Metro scene

Metro scene

Boxing, The Spirit and Zimbabwean Dollars

2008-12-13T07:37:00.000-08:00

This week I had a splendid time photographing a night of French boxing at the beautiful Cirque d'Hiver in Paris. The tournament titled "Le Grand Tournoi" featured professional French boxers in various weight classes as well as one international bout. I was quite surprised at the talent level. The two main fights were excellent.

Being ringside is thrilling as well as disturbing. Things happen so quickly in the ring and before you know it, the boxers can be right on top of you. I only hope and pray that they're tested for AIDS because all the photographers catch a fair bit of fluids during the fight. Boxing is problematic because from a human standpoint, there's no reason for a sport to exist where the rules are to basically hit the other guy in the head so hard that he can't even stand up for 10 seconds - it's real savagery. Yet at the same time, I find the intensity of a good boxing match to be one of the most engaging and exciting events in the world of sport.

Somewhat less violent (and interesting) was the French premiere of the film "The Spirit" with Samuel Jackson, Scarlett Johansson and Eva Mendes (the women, at least based on this photo, arrived naked).

The most entertaining part of the evening happened when Samuel verbally smacked down one of the French photographers who kept ordering him to move around. Once you photograph Samuel on a red carpet you know that he's the one in charge and yelling requests really doesn't sit well with him. I loved it when Samuel stopped, pointed at the French photographer and said in his Pulp Fiction-like voice "You gonna keep on barkin' or take some damn pictures?" Not sure the Frenchman understood the words but he certainly understood the meaning.

In the "it could be much worse" category, Zimbabwe this week announced the minting of new 500 million dollar bank notes. Take a guess how much 500 MILLION Zimbabwean dollars is worth in terms of US dollars. The answer: $8 So if your desire to become a millionaire is strong, you know where to move. You'd need just under 2 US cents to be a millionaire in Zimbabwe.

Here is some very compelling and telling video shot by a photographer Robbie Cooper showing young people playing video games. CLICK HERE TO WATCH.

Photo of the week ...

Danger of death

P.S. - Don't miss the special holiday video just below - only good through January 15

I Dance, Therefore I Am

2008-12-13T02:23:00.001-08:00

Philosophy Cafe, Assemblee Nationale and Read After Burning

2008-12-07T04:06:00.000-08:00

This week I attended a "Cafe Philo", or Philosophy Cafe event at the famous Cafe de Flore in Saint Germain de Pres. The idea of the Cafe Philo is to have organized debate in a public place, establishing a philosophical exchange, and quite democratically giving the right to speak (and the microphone) to anyone who wants it.

These public philosophy debates in cafes have been taking place here officially since the early 90's but unofficially for much longer. But more recently, at the Cafe de Flore, these debates have been happening in English, hence my participation - if you can call sitting there and trying to figure out what some people are talking about participating. There were some very lively and entertaining moments. You can read more about these debates HERE.

I covered an unlikely event this week. Five mayors of American cities came to Paris as the first officials to visit since Obama's election.

The delegation included mayors from Cincinnati, Oklahoma City, West Palm Beach, Albuquerque, and Hialeah, Florida. They met with the president of the National Assembly and the son of a former French President (Louis Giscard D'Estaing). The most interesting part was seeing inside the private residence of the president of the National Assembly.

I'm guessing it is quite different than the official residence of the mayor of Oklahoma City.

On the entertainment front, I shot the French premiere of the Coen Brother's film "Burn After Reading". Unfortunately, neither Brad Pitt nor George Clooney were there but only Frances Mcdormond and Joel Coen. Catherine Deneuve made an unannounced appearance.

One of the more fascinating websites I've found in recent times is this one: www.midomi.com
This is a site where all you have to do is hum a few bars of a song you like and it will tell you what song it is. Even pretty obscure songs. I didn't believe it but I tried it and it really works. It's a great way to find out the names of songs you know but don't know the title of. The only disconcerting part is that you have to give them the right to record you, both with your webcam and microphone. I've never seen my webcam light turn on so I know they're not recording video. And I didn't care if they recorded me humming songs.

If you find yourself feeling a bit down, take 5 minutes and watch this old video of a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. I think it's more stunning that someone who not only did a soft porn movie (yes, he actually did) and starred in this clip could become governor of California than it is that a black man could become president.

Photo of the week ...

Peculiar flavor ...

Womens Kickboxing, Marrakech and My Birth Anniversary

2008-11-23T04:12:00.000-08:00

Had to miss last week's blog entry with my travels so must make up for it today. The week before last I shot the French Women's Kickboxing Championship.

I don't know enough to judge the talent but the ambiance was great. It was held in a local gymnasium but very professionally presented, something I rarely find at these kind of events in Paris.

Fans were really into it and the lighting in the ring made it look like a movie that Mickey Rourke should be in. To see some images from the event CLICK HERE. Or if you prefer, you can see a short video I put together HERE (give it a minute to load).

I just came back from Morocco photographing the Marrakech International Film Festival. It's a festival not like any other I've been to as you can probably tell from some of the images of the red carpet.

The festival was relatively calm and included tributes to Sigourney Weaver and Michelle Yeoh. The jury was headed by director Barry Levinson and one of the jury members is my new dream girl ... Italian actress Caterina Murino (anyway, my dream girl needed updating since Elle Macpherson 15 years ago).

Frankly the best part of the festival was that it was 75 degrees and sunny almost every day there and we had a bit of time to explore.

I find the people of Marrakech extremely warm and welcoming in general, but of all the places I've traveled to, Morocco is the most difficult for taking photos. This was my second trip to Marrakech and both times I experienced the same difficulties. The general population there has an acute sense of their surroundings. This sense seemed almost supernatural to me; I could hide behind a tree and as I was about to snap a photo, my subject, who could be busy doing 5 other things, inevitably would whip his head around and make it clear to me that he didn't want his photo taken. I truly have no idea how they knew that I was there each time.

Most of the images I was able to take of people were done on the sly, after waiting patiently to blend into the background. This contrasts so strongly from places like India, where many people there actually ask you to please take their photo.

The heart of the city is the Medina (walled inner city). It is surrounded by about 12 miles worth of walls dating back to the 13th century. The souk (market) there is one of the biggest in Africa and is a serious assault on all your senses. I found the only way to enjoy it was to periodically stop, find a relatively open space, and let the action come to me. It sounds like a cliche but as you walk through the souk, the smells and sounds seem to change every few yards, from delicious and beautiful to intolerable and disgusting. And although the guys trying to sell you things can be exceedingly annoying, it's hard not to like massive amount of life that takes place there everyday.

To see some images from in and around the Medina, CLICK HERE.

To see some festival and red carpet images, CLICK HERE.

And if you'd like a little taste of what it was like on the red carpet at the festival, you can see a short video clip by CLICKING HERE.

Thanks to everyone for sending birthday wishes from all around the world. It was a unique birthday experience this year spending it in Marrakech. I had my first ever birthday couscous!

Some images of the past two weeks:

Swans in love in front of the Louvre
Nap time
Menu from my "5-star" (out of 10?) hotel in Marrakech
Menu from my "5-star" (out of 10?) hotel in Marrakech
Menu from my "5-star" (out of 10?) hotel in Marrakech

Obama, Supercross, Gwyneth and Leo

2008-11-06T07:35:00.000-08:00

Ohhhhbama.

An aerial view of Barack Obama's face sculpted from gravel and sand by US artist Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada in Barcelona (Reuters photo).

I spent election night first shooting Gwyneth Paltrow and director James Gray at the French premiere of the film "Two Lovers" (tip to Gwyneth; not the best idea to wear see through lace with camera flashes close to you)

and then zoomed over to the Trocadero across from the Eiffel Tower to the official American election viewing party. The mood was good but visually it wasn't so interesting. Except for this lady.

I received around 10 text messages and emails from friends around the world congratulating me (as if I did something) about our election. The news was clearly the talk of the town here (like it was most places) and I know that there were many private election viewing parties in the city with people staying up all night, waiting for the official announcement that came quite early in the morning local time.

But my highlight of the election week (other than Obama winning) was a conversation I overheard in a cafe the day after the election. There was one older man eating some raw meat with a raw egg on it and he started a conversation with the waiter that I was thankful to hear. They started talking about the US election and I heard the dubiously black waiter say “il est un negre, comme mois” (he's a negro like me). Then I heard the word ‘N-word’ in English thrown around a couple of times. There were also a few references to Big Macs and McDonalds as well. It wasn't clear to me exactly what they were saying but it seemed to be good spirited.

On the photo front, I had a great time photographing the Supercross of Paris.

I dig how the camera takes me to places and experiences I would otherwise never know - like motocross. Who knew you could bring a chainsaw (granted, without the blade) into the stadium to make as much noise as possible during pauses in the show? It's pretty deafening.

To see more Supercross images CLICK HERE.

Leonardo DiCaprio was also in Paris this week for the French premier of the film "Body of Lies" ...

This is seriously one of the funniest and well-done political videos I've seen in a while. I literally laughed out loud:

Some photos of the week ...

Tricky
Inexplicable junk left in front of my door

Bond, Chocolate and Sculptures ...

2008-11-02T04:45:00.000-08:00

Along with the freezing cold, James Bond came to town this week.

It rarely happens during these kind of shoots but I got to speak with him (Daniel Craig) for a few seconds before the Quantum of Solace premiere. Between his sling (shoulder surgery) and my pseudo black eye (don't ask), I think we shared a moment of mutual sympathy. He's pretty damn cool ...

But the highlight of the week was the Salon du Chocolat, evidently the world's biggest gathering devoted entirely to chocolate.

The show brought together over 140 chocolatiers from around the world and I can tell you that walking around there with a press badge on scores you free samples - one woman gave me a chocolate shoe! The craziest thing I saw there was a fashion show with women wearing designer creations made at least in part with chocolate.

To see more images from the chocolate show, CLICK HERE.

The city hall of the 5th district (yes, each of the 20 districts (arrondissements) of Paris has its own city hall) is putting on an outdoor exhibition near the Pantheon.

Giant, beautiful sculptures from an Italian sculptrice named Rabarama are sitting out on the sidewalk for all to see. They're quiet impressive works of art, especially in that setting.

A few photos of the week ...

Another Rabarama sculpture
Another Rabarama sculpture
Contrast

Rome, Prejudice and LifeGem

2008-10-28T08:19:00.000-07:00

I spent this week in Italy, one of my favorite places in the world. I was in Rome shooting the Rome International Film Festival. It's quite a scene on the red carpet, with the attempt at organization being almost as entertaining as the festival itself.

The big names were men (Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen, Al Pacino) but it was the women on the red carpet that attracted most of the attention.

The low-light of the festival was seeing the zombie-like behavior of the hoards of children reacting to the premiere of High School Musical III. Evidently, many children in Italy (or maybe their parents) drank the same Disney Kool Aid as many American children have.

To see images from the festival, CLICK HERE.

Of course I ate well and enjoyed the fact that the same 1 liter bottle of sparkling water costs half of what it does in Paris. I had 1 full day to walk the city with my camera.

To see some images from my promenade, CLICK HERE.

One reason that I like traveling is that it forces me to become aware of and confront my own prejudices. For example, when I'm in places like Hungary and the Czech Republic, it takes me a couple of days before I realize that even though most of the men there look like the bad guys from 80's American action movies, they're fine and I can relax. And that not ALL the women there are for sale.

In Italy, it takes me a while to accept that people are not actually yelling at each other but that in their culture, screaming and arm waving with 9 inches of separation from another individual is not an act of aggression. I still struggle with the fact that our ears can be genetically the same and yet react in such different ways.

There's much to write about on this subject but I'd be curious to hear about some of your traveling prejudices ... good, bad or ugly.

Just when you thought maybe we as a society are not insane enough, have a look at what this company called LifeGem does. For anywhere from $3,500 up to $20,000, this company will take the carbon from the remaining ashes of a loved one and make a diamond out of it. I wish I was kidding. This is from their website:

What is a LifeGem®?

The LifeGem® is a certified, high-quality diamond created from the carbon of your loved one as a memorial to their unique life, or as a symbol of your personal and precious bond with another.

To learn (laugh) more, go HERE.

A couple of photos of the week:

Young and Happy
When it starts getting cold outside

Obama, Fall, Customer Service & Water Salad

2008-10-18T00:46:00.000-07:00

This week I attended a Barack Obama campaign event, held at the home of a long-time Democrats Abroad supporter.

The event was pretty much a cheerleading and organizing session and included a call-in by Democratic Senate candidate from North Carolina Kay Hagan (she's running against Elizabeth Dole).

Not much of substance really happened but what was most notable was the number of people in attendance and the enthusiasm of the group. In a recently-released survey here, 93%(!) of French people said they supported Obama in the upcoming election.

Fall has arrived in full force here ... the leaves are falling, the nights are cold and the big coats and scarves are coming out.

I've been going on morning walks in the Luxembourg Gardens and have been reminded how beautiful it is this time of year - especially how colorful it is (and that includes the characters hanging out there!)

This week also brought another less-expected change ... good customer service. In unprecedented fashion (at least for me), both my new banker and a random insurance guy were ridiculously nice, patient, efficient and even almost fun with me during my dreaded appointments with them this week. My banker, who looks a bit like a French version of one of the nerd characters from the movie "Porky's", took a meeting with me without a previous appointment, typed a letter that I needed from him real-time and made a reasonable attempt to explain French taxes to me. He spent over an hour with me, which was probably more than the cumulative time all my previous bankers had spent with me. The random insurance guy, who I went to for a quote, was hysterical, calling his company "communist" (it's a mutual), responding with "so you don't do anything really" when I told him I was a photographer, and saying "on s'en fout" (meaning, in a very familiar, casual way, "we don't give a damn) about me being covered when I travel in the US. I write a lot of negative stuff about French service in this blog so it's only fair that I mention it when miracles like this week happen.

Speaking of miracles, I may have discovered the latest miracle product. It's called Water Salad and can be described this way:

“Water Salad” is a “meal in a can” and belongs to the “near water” category. It is a light reddish colour, almost transparent and contains tomato extract as both a natural vegetable colorant and as a nutrient. “Water Salad” takes advantage of the marketing value of tomato extract by claiming on the bottle label that lycopene is “reported to control active oxygen.” Madness.

There's really not much I enjoy more than Japanese marketing, products and their commercials, like THIS ONE featuring our beloved governor.

Some photos of the week ...

Jardin Luxembourg
Parc Montsouris
I think he re-animated from the statue but only made it a few steps

NBA in Paris, Nobel Prizes and Chaos

2008-10-11T07:02:00.000-07:00

The NBA came to Paris this week and although preseason basketball is not normally a big deal, when the game is played in Paris, it gets more attention.

Celebrities such as Lenny Kravitz, Ahmad Rashad, Darryl Dawkins and several famous French athletes were in attendance. And although the game didn't count for much, it was fun watching Dwyane Wade and Vince Carter up close.

To see some images from the game, CLICK HERE.

The French had a good week on the Nobel prize front. Two French scientist were awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine and another Frenchman won the Nobel Prize for literature. I got to go to the Elysee Palace to photograph the winners meeting with President Sarkozy. They seemed pretty damn happy.

The main thing people keep asking me about here these days is "what the hell is going on the US financial markets?" Anyone have any idea what I can tell them?

Some photos of the week:

Dodger Nomar Garciaparra
Jail for bad leaves?
New form of English?
Things not often seen in supermarket lines

One more week without a posting ... I'll be back next week

2008-10-05T05:42:00.001-07:00

Yet another week without a posting ... hopefully be back next week!

2008-09-29T13:36:00.001-07:00

Sorry ... no post this week

2008-09-22T16:49:00.001-07:00

Deauville and Coldplay ...

2008-09-14T20:23:00.001-07:00

This week I spent a few days in Normandie in the city of Deauville to photograph the American Film Festival that takes place there every September.

This was the 34th year for the festival and compared to years past, it was pretty low key. I only stayed for a few days of the festival, which included appearances by Kevin Spacey, Samuel L. Jackson and Tom Arnold among various French personalities.

To see more photos from the festival, CLICK HERE.

But clearly the highlight of the week took place back in Paris ... Coldplay in concert. Truly spectacular.

Some photos of the week:

Chris Martin of Coldplay
New form of transportation
Amazing Thai spring rolls - Au Petit Thai

2008-09-06T04:04:00.000-07:00

The highlight of this week was my visit to a unique Italian restaurant recommended by a friend. The place is called L’Osteria del Gobo and it's located in the 9th arrondissement (district).

When you walk in, a nice older Italian man greets you and seats you and before you know what's happening, dishes start appearing on your table. Delicious dishes, mostly vegetarian, keep arriving and arriving. When you're done eating, the man kindly informs you of what pasta he's made that day and when it arrives, although you're pretty much full from all the veggies, you find a place in your stomach for it.

But what makes the place unique is the man himself. Every 30 minutes or so, he puts on some opera music and passionately belts out some Andrea Bocelli or Pavarotti. He grabbed a man dining by himself and together they sang. This is not one of those places with professional opera singers who perform some hourly routine - it's not dinner theatre. It's just an older Italian man who loves opera and from time to time during each evening, he busts out a few unchoreographed minutes worth of his favorites.

The place is beautifully decorated, comfortable and welcoming. Add in the fact that it's reasonably priced (16 euros for the antipasti and the pasta) and it makes my list of restaurants I'd recommend to friends visiting Paris.

On a whim of one of my friends, I visited the gold dome of Invalides for the first time. Built in the 17th century, the complex hosts a military museum, military hospital and cathedral.

But its claim to fame is that the tomb of Napoleon, along with those of his two brothers Joseph and Jerome, and his son (somehow named Napoleon Napoleon) are on display there. Frankly I didn't find it very exciting but my press pass got me in for free so it was almost worth it.

Now to politics; check out this article:

Associated Press
Sep 3, 10:48 PM (ET)

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told a group of students at his former mosque that Iran sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a "task that is from Allah."

In a recent address, the Iranian leader also urged the students to pray for a plan to build a $30 billion natural gas pipeline, calling it "Allah's will." Khamenei asked the students to pray for the troops in Iraq, and noted that his eldest son, Mohammed, was expected to go there.

"I am sending them out on a task that is from Allah," he said. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is Allah's plan."

Khamenei told graduating students of the mosque's religious school, "What I need to do is strike a deal with you guys." As they preached the love of Allah throughout Iran, he said, he'd work to implement Allah's will from the leader's office, including creating jobs by building a pipeline to bring natural gas to new markets. "Allah's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that," he said.

"I can do my job there in developing our natural resources and doing things like getting the roads paved and making sure our soldiers have their cars and their uniforms and their guns, and making sure our schools are funded," he added. "But really all of that stuff doesn't do any good if the people of Iran's heart isn't right with Allah."

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In fact, this article is real except that I changed a couple of words. It's not a speech from Khamenei but in fact a speech from a few months ago from Sarah Palin. I substituted Khamenei's name for hers, the word mosque for church, the word Allah for God and Mohammed for her son's name (Track!). The rest is the actual text from the Associated Press article. Just ask yourself how you would feel if you heard a speech like this from a politician from another country.

And for my favorite news story of the week:

Man Attempts To Amputate Own Arm In Denny's

MODESTO - Modesto police say a local man who tried to cut off his own arm at a Denny's restaurant thought he had injected air into one of his veins while shooting cocaine and would die unless he took drastic action.

The man, identified by police as Michael Lasiter, 33, rushed into the restaurant on Friday night and started stabbing himself in the right arm with a butter knife he grabbed from a customer's table, police say. When that knife didn't work, Lasiter allegedly took a butcher knife from the kitchen and dug it into his arm.

Lasiter, who was arrested and taken to a local hospital with severe cuts, told officers he thought he needed to amputate his arm to keep himself from dying from the cocaine injection, says Modesto police Sgt. Brian Findlen.

The Denny's closed for the night after the incident.

-----------------------------------

Finally, some photos of the week:

Custodian at Les Invalides
Woman works on the tiles surrounding Napoleon's tomb

La Rentrée, The Convention and France 24

2008-08-31T11:39:00.000-07:00

Even though I've enjoyed some of the calm that comes with August in Paris, I must admit I miss the usual sense that things are happening here in this city. Nothing has really happened here since July. The vibe of the city will slowly start to change over the next couple of weeks, as "la rentrée" (the return) to Paris is completed.

I can't help but comment on the recent Democratic convention. Imagine being here in Paris, sitting down in front of a TV, watching what should be an extremely important political event with important consequences for the whole world, and seeing grown men and women dressed up in wigs, wearing clown makeup, putting on Elton John-like sunglasses and reacting like they were at a Nuremberg rally. This is serious politics? I find it shameful.

I know it's a couple of years old but my friend recently sent me this video clip from The Daily Show and I found it damn funny:

And finally, some photos of the week:

"The square is mine!"
Interesting "A"
Metro turnstiles at an RATP building
My friend's baby

Tour Montparnasse, Tree IDs and a Blind Driver

2008-08-24T01:23:00.000-07:00

I had an assignment this week shooting on top of the Tour Montparnasse, the tallest building in France at about 700 feet (210 metres). The shoot was bizarre (don't ask) but it gave me the opportunity to shoot some images of Paris from above.

To see more images of Paris from above, CLICK HERE.

Paris has a lot of trees - approximately 95,000. They line most major boulevards and most public squares.

How does the city and their 108 lumberjacks keep track of them all? Starting in 2003, each tree had a Radio Frequency ID Tag (RFID) planted inside of it and the lumberjacks use graphic tablets to document the history and treatment of each one. Pretty impressive. If for some reason you're interested in learning more about this (not sure why you would be), CLICK HERE.
==========================================================================

I just loved this AFP story this week:

Blind Frenchman fined for drunk driving 22/08/2008

A blind Frenchman was given a month's suspended jail sentence and fined EUR 500 for driving while drunk and without a license.

NANCY-- A blind journalist was given a month's suspended jail sentence and fined EUR 500 by a French court Friday for driving while drunk and without a license.

The owner of the car, who was also drunk as he sat next to the blind man when he drove the vehicle, was given the same sentence and had his license suspended for five months by the court in the northeastern town of Nancy.

The pair was arrested on a country road in the early hours of July 25 by police who spotted their car zig-zagging suspiciously and moving at a very low speed.

The police were astounded when the 29-year-old driver informed them that he was blind. The police breathalysed the driver and his passenger, a 52-year-old photographer and found they had drunk twice the permitted level of alcohol.

"I really wanted to do it (drive the car)," the blind man told the court.

=========================================================================

I checked the statistics for my blog and found that at least one person in each of the following countries is reading my blog:

1 United States
2 France
3 Germany
4 United Kingdom
5 Israel
6 Italy
7 Australia
8 Argentina
9 Canada
10 Brazil
11 Serbia
12 Norway
13 Spain
14 Malaysia
15 Indonesia
16 Finland
17 Chile
18 Netherlands
19 Georgia
20 Moldova
21 Thailand
22 Austria
23 Iran
24 Vietnam
25 Hungary
26 India
27 Romania

This is particularly interesting because I don't know anyone in most of these countries.

Some photos of the week ...

Where I buy my veggies
Deep-fried spring roll filled with a banana chocolate hazelnut spread
Street artist

Olympics and Keziah

2008-08-16T05:41:00.000-07:00

There's nothing like the Olympics to stir up good ol' feelings of nationalism. It's entertaining how my friends and I, who normally consider ourselves more humanists than nationalists, run to opposing corners during the Olympics. Americans talk about how much they hate the French swimmers and the French think that Michael Phelps is on drugs.

photo from a UPI colleague
Watching the games outside of the US really magnifies the effect. I experienced this is Australia in 1992 and have noticed the same thing this year. The MOST painful thing about watching the Olympics here is that just when Kobe Bryant is about to do a helicopter dunk over some poor Angolan, the French TV coverage cuts away to watch a Frenchman go for that ever-elusive bronze medal in windsurfing or fencing. It's understandable but painful nonetheless. On the other hand, the best part is hearing what a different style the French commentators use compared to American commentators. Sure the American commentators focus on American athletes but the French commentators shriek, cry and completely lose it in support of their athletes ... as if they were family members.

My favorite moment of the Olympics so far came yesterday when a French boxer was beating a Chinese boxer but with about 10 seconds left in the match, the Chinese boxer landed a couple of clean, scoring punches. When after the match, the referee raised the hand of the Chinese boxer indicating that he had won, the French commentator yelled out "MERDE!" (shit in French). I couldn't believe my ears. Imagine Bob Costas or one of those guys yelling out SHIT! after the announcement of some result going against an American.

This is a good opportunity to relive one of my all-time favorite Olympic moments from the 2000 Games in Sydney. Check out the video below of NBA star Vince Carter and keep in mind that the French guy in the video is 7 feet 2 inches tall (2.19 metres):

A very talented guitarist/musician named Keziah Jones played a free concert at the closing night of the Paris Plages. The "beach" was completely jam-packed with people and now I understand why.

Jones, originally from Nigeria, is very talented and plays a unique style of guitar. Can any of you tell me if he's known in the US? He seems to be quite known here. Check out this video from French television to see what I mean about his guitar-playing style:

And finally, a few photos of the week:

Keziah working hard

"Chic" phone booth

Typical workspace

My nomination for car dashboard of the year

The countryside ...

2008-08-10T13:04:00.000-07:00

Other than watching the Olympics this week, the highlight of the week was a weekend getaway to my friend's home in the countryside. I took the train from Gare Montparnasse and headed to the town of La Loupe, about 1 hour and 25 minutes from Paris.

Spent the weekend cooking, eating and trying not to seem like too much of city boy on a field trip to the countryside (I don't think I fooled anyone). It was a good time, even with the occasional meal time taunting. Despite its high quality, no one can get me to eat a pile of raw meat with a raw egg and other colorful things swimming on top of it. Imagine my friends' exasperation when I insisted that they cook my ground beef.

The grounds of the home are beautiful and include an orchard and a dozen or so sheep running around.

I can assure you that despite it being a guys' weekend, nothing like this took place:

And on an unrelated note, ake a few minutes and watch this video. I love the spirit of it. Thanks to my friend "Go" for sending it to me:

Photo of the week:

Rain and sun at Place de la Bastille

Not Much Going On ...

2008-08-05T01:58:00.000-07:00

... and I didn't really feel like writing much this week, so the photos will do the talking.

Dancing on the Paris Plages

Dancing on the Paris Plages

Music on the Paris Plages

Starbucks virus spreads

Evildoers laugh as they spread the Starbucks virus

Wrong Wrong Wrong

Obamania, Paris Plages, Tom Waits and the Tour de France

2008-07-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Obamania came to Paris this week and all the hype that you're hearing about followed.

I arrived early at the Elysee Palace and already 2 hours before Obama's arrival there were crowds lining the streets yelling "Oh-Ba-Ma". There was tangible excitement in the whole area surrounding the presidential palace. This was in stark contrast to the vibe when Bush visited here a few weeks back.

With all the excitement generated by Obama's visit, we were reminded that he was still only just a U.S. Senator and not the head of state. Following protocol, the arrival ceremony was quick and without fanfare. President Sarkozy greeted Obama and seemed immediately quite chummy with him.

The swarm of journalists, photographers and cameramen (and I mean swarm, twice as many as were here for Bush's visit, including rock star journalists like Christiane Amanpour) had just a few seconds with the two leaders before they headed into the palace for a brief meeting. I got to go inside and photograph their subsequent joint press conference, during which Sarkozy's demeanor could best be understood by watching a young teenage boy show off his new hot girlfriend.

To see more images of our future president, CLICK HERE.

Tom Waits, the incredibly creative and energetic singer, played a sold-out concert at the Grand Rex Theatre.

I knew a bit of Waits' music but was not in any way prepared for what I witnessed on stage. The energy, theatrics and talent made for some kind of musical explosion. Have any of you ever seen him live? If you have, please tell me about it. I was completely blown away.

For more images from the show, CLICK HERE.

The 7th annual Paris Plages opened this week. This year there are actually 3 "beaches" in Paris as the event keeps growing annually.

People, many tourists but also a fair mix of locals, really seem to enjoy it. I had a new Paris Plages experience this year. I was walking along the "beach" watching people play petanque and saw a few people standing in front of what was essentially a hole in the wall along the Seine. They noticed I had a camera and asked if I wanted to go inside so of course you know my answer. Turns out that two (or possibly 3) people who live there have been there for 21 years.

The "apartment", dug out literally in the interior wall of the left bank of the Seine, was originally made for men who guided boats along the Seine. Today, the city owns it and for some reason I couldn't understand, lets the people who live there stay. The place has electricity but no running water and looked a bit like a shrine of some cult. The time of the Paris Plages is great for the people living in the wall because normally, the road along the Seine just outside their "door" is a mini-highway filled with cars. So large groups of people passing by must be a relief for them. Just another colorful piece in the Paris puzzle.

And if all this wasn't enough for one week, the final stage of the Tour de France took place along the Champs-Elysees.

Although it turned out to be the second closest race in the Tour's history, it still wasn't so exciting because the last stage of the race is largely ceremonial. Except for the scorching heat and the race organizers clearly using chaos theory as a guide, it's a fun afternoon, especially seeing how into it the race supporters get. For more photos of the Tour, CLICK HERE.

CLICK HERE to see my new hero.

Some photos of the week:

Living in the Wall
Living in the Wall
Playing Petanque on the Paris Plage (looks like the Matrix doesn't it?)

Bastille Day, Childhood Friends and a Feedbag

2008-07-20T09:04:00.000-07:00

The highlight of the week was the annual Bastille Day military parade. Every year it seems that unpredictable Paris weather cooperates on that day and this year was no exception.

Bastille Day is among the biggest public holidays here and commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille prison, the event that symbolizes the start of modern day France. Each year the military hardware is on full display and is quite impressive and as always, the president is on hand to lead the ceremony.

To see more Bastille Day images, CLICK HERE.

This week I entertained 2 different childhood friends on their visit to Paris. I hadn't seen either of them in over 10 years. It's always invigorating to re-see the city through the eyes of a visitor.

As your actuary, I'm compelled to recommend that you hear the latest Coldplay album (if you haven't already). They have real talent. And watch THIS ENTERTAINING VIDEO.

This made me laugh out loud:

Photo of the week:

Summer in Paris

Girl in the Metro ... finally

2008-07-12T14:38:00.000-07:00

After more than six years living here, I finally had my first "girl in the metro" experience so I'm going to celebrate by blogging about it. I had just finished shooting Alicia Keys in concert

and on my way home, got onto metro line 4 at Chatelet. There was this very attractive young woman sitting across from me on the metro who was rather obviously checking me out. She was doing it in a more open way than I've experienced in a long time. It wasn't threatening or psycho; I rather enjoyed it.

My stop was coming up so I stood up and moved towards the door. She stood up and also moved right towards the door, intentionally aligning herself squarely in front of me. Our eyes met in the reflection of the window, and I was determined not to turn away, just to see what she would do. She didn't turn away and our stare lasted maybe 10 seconds, broken only by the opening of the metro door at St Michel station.

We both exited and headed towards the escalator, my mind racing around trying to figure out what I should do. She walked slowly in front of me, peeking once over her shoulder to make sure I was behind her. We began going up the escalator; she positioned herself 3 steps in front of me so that her finely-formed derriere was precisely at my eye level. As we approached the top of the escalator, without warning, she spun around and lunged in my direction. My heart skipped. Especially when she starting running DOWN the up escalator, right past me.

Turns out the metro police where doing a spot check at the top of the escalator and she must not have had a ticket, so she ran. I turned my head to watch her as she ran past me and before I knew what was going on, I was in the clutches of the police, who politely asked me for my ticket. With a little more warning, or if I had seen the police and realized that's why she was running, who knows, I might have followed her and given her a ticket or something.

But it was not to be. She disappeared and took with her my most exciting metro experience to date. I'm sure I'll see her again, but probably on YouTube or France's Most Wanted or something like that.

Some photos of the week:

Alicia Keys

Wacked exhibition at the Palais de Tokyo

Everland Hotel (click to learn more)

Round flowers - Square des Poetes

Hostage, Eiffel in Blue, Lenny Kravitz and George Clooney

2008-07-06T04:42:00.000-07:00

I had a very non-traditional 4th of July his year. I had the privilege of being at the presidential/military airport for the arrival of Franco-Columbian Ingrid Betancourt following her release after being held captive for six years in the jungles of Columbia.

Betancourt, who was campaigning for president in Columbia when she was taken by FARC guerillas, was a well-respected journalist here in France and over the last six years, securing her release became an issue of national pride. While I have my doubts about the official story of the rescue mission that freed her, I have no doubt about the real excitement and emotion when she was greeted by President Sarkozy at the airport when she finally returned to France.

To see more images of the historic event, CLICK HERE.

This week also marked France's turn at having the presidency of the European Union and to celebrate, they decorated the Eiffel Tower in blue with yellow stars, symbolizing the EU flag.

In a system that seems bizarre to many, the EU presidency rotates between member countries every 6 months, not a lot of time to implement any agenda.

Musically, Lenny Kravitz put on the concert of the week. He certainly puts out a lot energy during his show and has a huge following here.

I got a great surprise this week. I met a few friends for dinner and one of them pulled a book out of her purse and asked me to sign it. I thought it was quite odd that someone would ask me to sign the cover of a George Clooney biography so when I asked her why, she told me because my photo was the front cover of the book.

I had no idea that my photo had been used and was quite amused by the surprise. You can see the book on Amazon by clicking HERE.

And finally, some photos of the week ...

Lenny rocks
Eiffel Tower in Blue
The best use of Evian
Hear No French, Speak No French, See No French

Bruce, American & European Football, Stolen Art and Gay Pride

2008-06-29T04:35:00.000-07:00

An action-packed week again in Paris as summer brings this city to life. Went to the Parc des Princes to photograph Bruce Springsteen's annual visit. He surprised me by speaking a bit of French and didn't surprise me by still being phenomenal on stage.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that there was an French league of American football. The league Championship, called the Diamond Helmet, was played this week between the Flash of La Courneuve and the Templiers of Elancourt.

What struck me was how small the players were, that there was no visible clock (the referee yelled out how much time was left) and how the players yelled in French but interspersed English expressions such as "one time!" (it took me hearing this a few times before I realized it was English!).

To find out who won (for all you betters) and to see my photo expose of the event, complete with captions describing the action, CLICK HERE. (click on the first photo to see the images in larger format)

Staying on the football theme, I went with some friends to watch the European football semi-final match between Germany and Turkey. We went to a Turkish hangout to watch the game with diehard Turkish fans, ready to support the underdog. Turkey lost but the match was really exciting. Through these videos I shot, you can witness the highs ...

and the lows ...

I shot the opening of a new exhibition at the Jewish Art & History museum in Paris which featured a collection of work that was stolen from Jewish families by the Nazis during the occupation of WW II.

The annual Gay Pride Parade winded its way through the city. I was able to take a fews shots on my way to the football championship but didn't spend very long watching the celebration. It's always an entertaining event but there are more and more parade-related problems each year.

You never know what you'll see while eating dinner in Paris: CLICK HERE

And finally, I came home last night to find a big group of models from Belgium in my courtyard, having a party by candlelight. A fashion designer lives in my building (which explains my post from a few weeks ago) and organized the soiree. They were really warm (as in friendly, not skin temperature) and invited me to join them drinking champagne. After some soul-searching and deep contemplation (1/2 of 1 second) I agreed and had a nice evening surrounded by an odd blend of beauty and Flemish sounds.

Some photos of the week:

Bruce rocks
Bruce and the crowd
Gay pride?
Stolen and returned Monet on display

Fete de la Musique, Hancock and INSEAD

2008-06-22T02:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a big day in Paris ... the annual Fete de la Musique. The Fete is a day and night where the streets of Paris are filled with music in all its forms, with only one guiding principle - all the concerts are free. The festival was originated in 1982 by the former French Cultural Minister Jack Lang, who we randomly saw walking around the Marais this night. The Fete is now celebrated in over 100 cities around the world, including New York, San Francisco and Pasadena.

On the night, you find an eclectic mix of sound, where you can find some stoner playing DJ by powering his iPod with a car battery and connecting it to speakers, and not far from him, a Brazilian orchestra playing with the Republican Guard band at the Elysee Palace. This year's Fete fell on a night that felt like there was harmonic convergence. It fell on a Saturday night (it's always on June 21st, the longest day of the year), with absolutely perfect weather, a full moon and a big soccer match (Russia v The Netherlands). You could feel the manic energy building in the city throughout the day.

In the afternoon, I met some friends for a drink at the famous Cafe de Flore - locals all hate this place but my friend's friend visiting from the US wanted to go there - and while riding my Velib bicycle there saw a big double-decker tourist bus up on the sidewalk next to the Pont des Arts with a big lamp post bent like a pretzel on the street below it. A few minutes later while at the cafe, I inexplicably saw a huge group of scooter delivery guys from the restaurant Planet Sushi taking over Boulevard Saint-Germain. It was that kind of day.

I spent the night walking various neighborhoods with a group of friends until about 2:30am. It was useless to go home earlier than that because the city was so electric throughout the night that your chances of sleeping before day break were pretty small. I really didn't feel like taking any photos so I have no documentary images but if you'd like to see some from years past, CLICK HERE (these are not my images).

This week also brought the French premiere of the film "Hancock" with a group of stars in attendance - Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Tony Parker, Eva Longoria and Kanye West.

I also had a shoot at INSEAD in Fontainebleau, about an hour South of Paris. A group of young business leaders from Dubai came to INSEAD, a top international business school, to learn the latest greatest thinking in business.

A few photos of the week ...

Charlize Theron
Eva Longoria
The cast of Hancock
Butcher's representation of the city of Paris
Dubai student at INSEAD

Bush, Afghanistan, Radiohead and Models

2008-06-15T01:07:00.000-07:00

This week had a political flavor to it, with President Bush coming for a visit as well as the opening of the Afghanistan Donor Conference. Bush's visit to Paris, part of his European farewell tour, came with mixed emotions for me.

I was in the interior courtyard of the Elysee Palace (the French "White House") for Bush's arrival and I couldn't help but feel a bit of excitement when the presidential limo pulled up and Bush got out amidst all the pomp and circumstance of the royal guards.

But honestly, as soon as I saw his little crooked smirk on his face and how awkward he was in that situation (and in his own skin), all I could think about was the shame, embarrassment and dishonor he's brought to the reputation of the USA. For me, it's impossible to watch him enjoying anything, almost like when you see your ex having fun just after she splits with you or something like that. You feel like they don't deserve it.

To see a few more images of the President's Paris visit, CLICK HERE.

Earlier this week I shot the opening of the Afghanistan Donor Conference, with leaders from over 80 countries in attendance.

The conference raised over $20 billion for the reconstruction of that country. World leaders that attended included French President Sarkozy, Afghan President Karzai, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as well as Condoleezza Rice and Laura Bush. There were also many rotund middle Eastern guys there that seemed to be used to the opulence that came with the conference.

This week also included shooting Radiohead in concert (who were, of course, very intense) as well as a Human Rights Watch conference on Chechnya. I volunteer as Human Rights Watch's photographer for events hosted by their Paris office.

The events are almost always very informative and cover topics I usually don't know much about.

And finally, my near heart attack of the week happened when I walked down the stairs from my apartment, turned left to exit the building but then heard a faint noise coming from the courtyard behind me.

I turned around and saw a dozen models, dressed all in white with their hair painted white, all staring right at me. I froze and then, in English, asked the only thing that came to my mind ..."Am I dead?".

Some photos of the week ...

Sarkozy blows
First Lady (let's hope it's jetlag)
Hamid and Sarko

Roland Garros, Zeitgeist and Mystery Dinner

2008-06-08T01:18:00.000-07:00

The French Open at Roland Garros came to a conclusion today with Rafael Nadal destroying Roger Federer in the Men's final. The final, being so one-sided, lacked the emotion that we saw in so many other matches in the tournament.

The women's final was more competitive with Ana Ivanovic fighting her way past Dinara Safina (Marat Safin's younger sister). Even though this year's weather was pretty miserable, the tournament was, like always, a treat to shoot. Even if you're not a tennis fan, sitting courtside and watching the skill and speed of the top players is really impressive.

I've put together a 4.5 minute video recap of the two weeks of the tournament. To view the video, CLICK HERE and wait a couple of minutes for it load. Make sure to have your sound on.

Although I may be late in discovering it, I recommend that you watch the movie "Zeitgeist" online. The movie comes in 3 parts (in which each part has multiple parts) - Religion, 9-11 & the Federal Reserve. There are plenty of people all over the internet that attempt to debunk (and de-debunk (rebunk?)) the claims in the movie, but even if each and every claim is not true, I find the movie quite fascinating to watch. My favorite part was Part I, about religion. If you'd like to watch that part, which lasts about 30 minutes, go to these three links:

Part 1 (10 mins)
Part 2 (10 mins)
Part 3 (8 mins)

I'd be very interested in hearing your opinion of the concept expressed in the movie so be sure to post a comment or email me directly.

My favorite moment of the week came last night while I was dining at a Lebanese restaurant on Ile Saint Louis. My friend ordered the special mezze plate which, according to the menu, was a mix of 7 different appetizers from a long list of appetizers that they have. The menu listed a few of the appetizers as an example of what might be among the 7 appetizers chosen for that particular day.

The waiter arrived and when my friend politely asked him which appetizers came with the mezze special that day, he replied "We're not sure. I don't even know." We assumed he was kidding so we laughed but in fact he wasn't. After my friend asked "How can I know what I'm ordering?" the waiter said "I'll give you a few more minutes" and left our table. One might have thought that he would go ask the chef (who I assume is the one deciding) but nope, when he came back, the mezze special was still a mystery.

We ordered it still and it was quite good but I think it was the first time that I've ordered something that the waiter couldn't tell me what I was ordering!

Tennis Time ...

2008-05-31T23:35:00.000-07:00

The French Open tennis (Roland Garros) is usually my favorite two weeks of shooting each year. For a tennis fan, it's hard to beat sitting in sun, on the court, and watching the world's best tennis players go at it. Things got off to a rough start this year, with raining spitting down the first couple of days. And although there has only been one day that didn't come with the threat of rain, delays have been minimal.

It's been a rough week for Americans playing there. All the women are out after the first week and only one man - unseeded Robby Ginepri - remains.

Ginepri is the first American man to reach the fourth round of Roland Garros in five years (Agassi in 2003). I shot Ginepri yesterday and he was playing like a man possessed. I can't remember seeing a match where a player hit shots that literally landed on the lines time after time after time. Not sure how far this former boyfriend of Minnie Driver will go in the tournament but he's quite entertaining to watch right now. Here's a photo of his latest opponent Frenchman Florent Serra after he had to endure yet another ball landing on the line:

I will post a compilation of Roland Garros photos when the tournament ends next Sunday but here are this week's photos of the week:

Strange combination
Why my back hurts
Bad luck parking there

The Can’t Film Festival

2008-05-26T15:25:00.000-07:00

I’ve been completely consumed by the Cannes (Can’t) Film Festival these past 2 weeks. Thankfully I’ve shot the festival before and having some experience really paid dividends but as a semi-conscious, self-respecting human being, it’s really hard to deal with the levels of incompetence seen in the organizing of this event.

Some of my favorite examples (from a massive pool of choices):
1) The wireless internet in the press room not working because “too many people are using it”. And they expected that each journalist would wait and one by one file their stories, video and images?
2) On the official daily sheet the press office distributes to the press, the one that all the journalists refer to to write stories, caption photos and file their reports, each (and I mean each) day there was a major typographical error. They spelt the name(s) of people incorrectly and my favorite was when they actually got the name of a movie wrong. I don’t know, maybe 3 minutes spent with Google before printing thousands of worthless sheets each day might have been a good idea. By around the 9th day of the festival, I became known as the festival’s spelling monitor since each day I felt absolutely compelled to shame the press office by highlighting each error and handing it to them face to face. On the last day, they asked me if I wanted to work for them next year.
3) After the final photocall where we photographed the award winners holding their trophies, the security guards refused to let the press into the press room for about 30 minutes. A revolt started and eventually, not unlike the Bastille prison a couple of hundreds years before, we just made a run for it and got in. I don’t have to tell you what the stress level in the place was like with hundreds of press people just learning the results of the awards ceremony but being incorrectly (security mix up) prevented from using the internet to file their reports/images

I really could go on and on about things like not enough chairs, or electrical plugs or running out of decaf coffee on the 4th day or no lockers, etc. etc. etc. But let’s just say that if given the choice between having the festival’s organizers there or having complete chaos, I might choose the latter.

There were many firsts that I experienced at this year’s festival:

• First time I’ve had a physical fight (albeit brief) with another photographer (my record is now 1-0 lifetime)
• First time I’ve had water split by a guy next to me onto the back of my computer without receiving even a “sorry” from him. (No damage to the computer luckily)
• First time someone (Chopard) has thrown a party exclusively for the photographers of Cannes
• First time I’ve had to send images from a 3G key (high speed internet via the cell phone network) due to the internet not working at the festival or my apartment.
• First time I’ve eaten at an Asian restaurant called, believe it or not, “Chinks”.
• First time I’ve spent a festival night in watching an electrical storm and a Manchester United-Chelsea soccer match.
• First time I (or anyone else) has seen a French film given the top festival award in 21 years.

Note: I would have included that it was the first time that I’ve had another photographer accidentally lock my stepladder with his lock but it’s actually the second time I’ve had that happen to me.

The good news from the festival is that there are plenty of fun photos to look at, if you’re into these kind of photos. The personal highlight for me was having Sean Penn and Bono arrive on the red carpet together. There are very few people in Hollywood that I respect but Sean Penn is one of them – even if being photographed clearly isn’t his idea of a good time. And Bono, I’m a lifelong fan.

The other big moment for me was seeing Mike Tyson on the red carpet. To me, it was about the logical equivalent of seeing a zebra underwater.

So, if you’re interested, CLICK HERE to see the 100 images of the festival that I've posted. Remember you can click on a photo to view it in larger format, and from the larger image, you can scroll through each image by clicking on the “next” at the top of the screen.

The night before I left for Cannes, I shot a premiere for the film “Made of Honor” starring Patrick Dempsey. I don’t know much about the guy but he was so kind and so handsome that even the men in room where swept up by him.

Photos of the Week:

Red Boot
Segway kook
Cowboy

No Posting This Week ...

2008-05-19T15:31:00.000-07:00

Check back next week ...

Madonna, Kylie, Caves and Me on TV

2008-05-10T05:43:00.000-07:00

I imagine it's rare that being interviewed on television isn't the highlight of your week. But I have to say that photographing Madonna giving a private concert (tickets were not available to the public) at a small concert hall here was quite a buzz.

The event itself had the ambiance of something special - hordes of people outside Olympia Hall, celebrities in the crowd (Lenny Kravitz for one) and excitement that even spilled out to the nearby cafes, where signs welcoming Madonna were posted everywhere. Whatever you may think about her music, it's hard to find anyone who is better at putting on a show and knowing how to entertain. She is to the stage what Jack Nicholson is to the screen; they may not be the best but you're compelled to watch them when they're on.

To see more of my Madonna images, CLICK HERE.

And of all things, that same night Kylie Minogue started her new European tour in Paris.

Kylie is huge here so I shot her concert and then whisked across the city in a taxi in time for the Madonna show.

Later in the week I went to help my historian friend photograph some 14th century caves located in Village Saint Paul in the Marais.

These caves have been meticulously preserved and are today a private restaurant that can be booked for groups of 10 or more. I used to live right next door to these caves and never knew they existed. To see more about them, CLICK HERE. (click on the American/British flag for English)

Finally, a French TV journalist that is friends with my brother came by to interview me on the subject of the crumbling US dollar. The angle was that everyone knows it's tough for tourists, but how about for those who live in France and spend euros but get paid in US dollars. It's rare that I'm on the other side of the camera but it was pretty fun, especially because I did the interview in French and with my accent surely entertained the viewing public here. See the new story here:

Some photos of the week:

Hailing a taxi
Headless accordion player on Ile Saint Louis
Two special videos of the week ...

This guy's accent in English HAS to be worse than mine in French.

No idea how to title this ...

Obama Posers, First Weekend and the Calm Before the Storm ...

2008-05-04T02:27:00.000-07:00

This week was a slow one, sort of the calm before the coming storm ... that being the Cannes Film Festival, which starts in 9 days.

My favorite moment of the week involved one of my favorite states of being ... mass confusion. I planned on meeting the parents of a friend who were visiting Paris, just to sit at a cafe together, chat and make fun of the passers-by. I had never met this couple before so we made very specific plans; we were to meet at the entrance to the courtyard of the Musee Carnavalet and I could identify them because they would both be wearing Obama supporter buttons. I arrived a bit early and decided to mail a letter at the post office just across the street from our meeting point and when I exited, I crossed the street and walked right into a couple matching the description of who I was meeting - about the right age group, at exactly our designated time and at our designated meeting place. And of course both sporting Obama buttons.

I introduced myself, we shook hands and we spoke for about 3 or 4 minutes, talking about the basics like how their stay has been and how the Parisians have been treating them. After a few minutes of exchanging niceties, I was about 10 seconds away from suggesting we sit down at a cafe as we had previously planned. But as I was waiting for the man to finish his sentence, he suddenly said "OK, bye" and took his wife's arm and headed off. I was stunned. Was it something I said? My hair? My boy purse? It wasn't until they had gotten halfway down the street that my mind first entertained the possibility that this wasn't the couple I was supposed to meet, which, it turned out, it wasn't.

After literally laughing out loud on the street corner where they left me and marveling at the odds of what had just taken place (exact time, exact place, same age, same description, Obama buttons), I couldn't help but wonder what those people must have been thinking about who (and maybe what) I was. I guess they were too polite to say anything like "who the hell are you?" or "WTF are you talking about?". I did end up meeting the right couple a bit later and thanked them for their part in creating my moment of the week.

This weekend was the first Spring-like weekend of the year here ... and it didn't go unnoticed.

It really seemed like every human in the city just ran out of their apartments and got to a cafe, a river bank or park. There's a tangible energy here when that happens and, if you can tolerate the lines everywhere, it's pretty good fun.

Some photos of the week:

Translation: Love provokes erection troubles

Tour Eiffel

Queen Mary

It's All About the Low Country ...

2008-04-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

Just got back from 4 days in the Low Country ... known also as the Netherlands, Holland and Pays-Bas. I was sponsored by the Netherlands Tourism Board to go photograph the tulips, which are in full bloom this week, as well as the surrounding areas. I spent only one day in Amsterdam and three in Haarlem (their's is a bit nicer than ours).

I wish I had the ability to capture in a photo what these massive fields of brilliant exploding colors really looked like. This time of year, many parts of that country look like a 3D painting.

Highlights of the trip included:

* exploring the picturesque town of Edam

* a private boat trip through canals surrounding the fields adjacent to the Keukenhof flower park

* a guided visit through the massive Bloemenveiling international flower market and auction

* outstanding Mexican food in Haarlem (most important)

(OK, I wish it was this good but it really was surprisingly good)

To see a mix of city and countryside images from the Low Country, CLICK HERE.

Overreaction, Hanging Meats and I Don't Know What

2008-04-20T02:13:00.000-07:00

This time of year, when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, where almost daily Paris gets intermittent rain followed by brilliant sunshine, people seem to overreact ... with what they wear and what how they act.

At the first sign of sunshine, people flock to the cafe terraces and public squares and then scamper back to shelter when the rain comes. It can almost seem manic sometimes. I suspect people are so tired of winter that they overreact to the first signs of Spring - trying to sit "en terasse" and wear t-shirts like when it's really Spring. We see this same overreaction when winter starts as well - one cold day in say October and many people bring out their big coats and scarfs when its really not at all necessary.

Had dinner at a nice restaurant near Saint Germain de Pres and had a new experience - hanging meat.

I ordered a brochette of beef and when it arrived at my table, they hung it vertically from a big hook. I'm not really sure what the purpose of this was. Anyone out there know? At first I thought it was to make it easier to take the meat off the skewer but the distance between the end of the skewer and my plate made it highly likely that the dislodged meat chunk would jettison off my plate before I could stop it. Maybe it was just to show off the meat.

And I don't really know what this is but I like it:

Some photos of the week:

Hope not many people ordered this
It's inevitable
Encouragement?
Mayor of Paris - Betrand Delanoe
More hanging meat

Olympic Torch, Marseilles and finally Paris

2008-04-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

The big news of this last week in Paris was the chaos related to the Olympic torch coming through the city. I was in city hall, with large groups of pro- and anti-China demonstrators outside,

waiting to take official photos of the planned ceremony that was scheduled but at the last minute, Chinese officials didn't allow the torch to stop there. Rumor has it that it was because the mayor of Paris put a pretty mild protest banner on city hall that read "Paris defends human rights everywhere in the world."

It was a pretty chaotic day, with the highlight being a demonstration by Reporters Without Borders that included unfurling a banner on Notre Dame with the Olympic rings portrayed as handcuffs.

Spent a few days down in Marseilles finishing up my project with the Port of Long Beach. It was my first time in this city which I found quite nice but with a bit more of an edge than most French cities.

Showed a couple of friends around Paris. It was quite nice re-connecting with some parts of Paris that I hadn't been to in a few months.

A few photos of the week:

A French supporter of Tibet
Geese (I think) doing a Notre Dame fly by
Free Wifi zone sign in the Place des Vosges

European Trade Mission ...

2008-04-06T08:52:00.000-07:00

This week I accompanied the Mayor of Long Beach and a few executives from the Port of Long Beach on their European Trade Mission.

It was a great learning experience given that I have never really thought about how ports work and how much has to happen for us to get all of our stuff. I learned about "cold ironing" and more than I ever wanted to know about low sulfur fuel and hydrogen-powered buses. We had a pretty hectic schedule including Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Hamburg (and Marseilles next week) but I managed to do a bit of exploring in each city. I had forgotten how nice of a city Amsterdam in particular is and how nice the people there are. Maybe there's something to letting people do drugs and have sex freely ...

To see some images from Amsterdam, click HERE

To see some images of Hamburg, click HERE

And finally, a few images of the week ...

The Port of Rotterdam
High Tech Command Center in Rotterdam

Back in Paris ...

2008-03-29T10:01:00.000-07:00

I'm back in Paris, just in time for Spring. And other than the fact that the high temperature was 36 degrees the day that I arrived, it's nice being back. My head's still a bit cloudy (more than normal) but slowly I'm stabilizing.

So, what's happened since I've been here? Let's see. When I arrived at the airport and attempted to get cash from the ATM after not having used my French bank card in a while, I entered the wrong pin code. My jetlagged mind was telling me it was the right code (in fact, it was the code of my last card!) and so I entered it again. I figured the third time would be the charm. And it was, if charm could be equated to inaneness. The machine ate my card and now 1 week later, I still don't have it. My bank is telling me that I should wait a couple of more weeks and "see what happens" and if it doesn't come back, I'll have to apply (and pay) for another one. Keep in mind this is not just an ATM card; it's also my credit card. Evidently the bank thinks a 3-4 week separation from my card and a 70 euro fee is a just penalty for temporarily forgetting my pin code.

What else? Oh yes ... the electricity in all the public areas of my building (both entry doors and stairwells) is out, confirmed by a handwritten sign that explains the problem. The problem is that there is no electricity. I'm not sure if it's related but just yesterday I saw a notice posted in my building that there was an unpaid water bill for ... 1,022 euros (more than $1,600).

Did a fairly uninteresting corporate photo shoot and caught up with some friends, including my best friend ... a hot baguette.

So, now that I'm back, I hope to get back to my regular blogging.

Some photos of the week - from Paris and LA:

a la cheese
The things you see on the freeway
The things you see on the freeway - Part II
What I already miss!

Oscar Weekend ...

2008-02-25T23:49:00.000-08:00

Well, this year was much less exciting than years past for me on Oscar weekend. I was originally scheduled to shoot the Oscar arrivals, then I was scheduled to shoot the big Vanity Fair party (which got canceled) and in the end, I shot the 18th annual Night of 100 Stars Oscar viewing party at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Truth be told, there was a touch of patheticness to the event. Many random stars from the past mixed in with wanna-be stars and those that were never stars. If you want to see what I'm talking about CLICK HERE to see some random images from the event.

I've been doing all sorts of other things like exploring uptown Whittier but honestly I'm really not motivated to blog about it!

Random Images ...

2008-02-15T07:41:00.000-08:00

Well, it turns out my blogging has been even less than sporadic. Here is a completely random grouping of images from the last month or so. Will be back to my "normal" blogging next month.

Dis-a-pier , Mussel Shoals, CA

Snow-covered Land Through the Clouds, near Lake Tahoe, NV

Ostrich?, Wetlands in Huntington Beach, CA

Sunset along Moonstone Beach, Cambria, CA

Mika in Concert, Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

Sunset along Moonstone Beach, Cambria, CA

Nitt Witt Ridge, Cambria, CA

Reno, NV

Rihanna at Grammy After-Party, West Hollywood, CA

Claimed for the U.S., Lompoc, CA

Janet Jackson at Grammy After-Party, West Hollywood, CA

愛 (Love), Rancho Mirage, CA

Meat, Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Alice Cooper Golfing, Palm Desert, CA

Alien Landscape, Wetlands in Huntington Beach, CA

B.B. King in Concert, Wiltern Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

Landing, Wetlands in Huntington Beach, CA

Celebrating Reno, Reno, NV

Rock Star, Paso Robles, CA

Sporadic Blogging

2008-01-08T22:41:00.000-08:00

I will be blogging only sporadically over the next few weeks. Hope to get back to "normal" as soon as possible.

Smith, Springsteen, SNCF, Snow and Salvador

2007-12-23T04:58:00.000-08:00

Finally, some action. Just when I was getting bored. Started the week with a 2-for-1 evening.

Photographed Will Smith who was here for the French premiere of “I Am Legend” and then zoomed across the city in time to photograph Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band in concert. It was my third time shooting Springsteen and he was, like always, brilliant.

Next was a special photo exhibition highlighting environmental issues related to the North and South poles. What made the exhibition special was that it took place on the first level of the Eiffel Tower, which had its walkways covered with artificial snow. Visitors wore snowshoes and trekked through the snow while taking in the views.

The week continued with another exhibition, this one at the Grand Palais, celebrating the 70th anniversary of the SNCF, France’s national railway company. The opening of the exhibition featured a full-scale train car outside the Palais (see photo) as well as ancient and future train cars inside.

Finally, the week ended with a concert of the legendary French singer Henri Salvador. The 90-year old (!) Salvador announced that this would be his last live performance but that he would continue to record music. You could see by the reaction of the crowd how well-respected Salvador is here. Salvador’s career has spanned over 60 years, including a period where he played with Gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt in the 1940’s.

I’d like to dedicate this blog entry to my good friend and “spiritual advisor” Bipul, who will be closing the doors of his store and leaving France next week after more than 20 years here. I will miss him a lot, as will the many others that spent countless hours with him, drinking chai, laughing and delving into the life’s mysteries.

Some photos of the week:

Clarence Clemons and Springsteen
Springsteen
Joking (I hope)

One Great Minute, Louis-Delluc & Barry Lyndon

2007-12-16T15:05:00.000-08:00

Each time I get off the number 86 bus coming from the Bastille, I get to experience one great minute. This minute comes when, while walking from the bus stop on rue des Ecoles to my apartment, I get a whiff of two moment-changing smells … freshly-cut wood and freshly-baked bread. On a small street called rue des Bernardins there is a little lumber store where workers are constantly cutting planks of wood for their customers. My route home from the bus stop takes me past the store’s side entrance which is invariably covered with wood shavings. And just when I pass the side door, I take in the smell of the recently-cut pine, ash, cedar and whatever else they’re working on. It’s a real treat considering what types of smells I usually get to experience of the streets of Paris.

But the fun doesn’t end there. I turn the corner onto rue Monge and pass not one but two boulangeries, one of them (Eric Keyser) being among the best in Paris. With two boulangeries on the same block there is always at least one of them in the process of baking something so as I head for home, after just getting over my experience with the lumber store, I’m treated to the smell of whatever fairy dust the French put into their baguettes to make them taste so good.

I don’t mind taking bus number 86.

Not so much exciting on the photo front this week. I photographed an award presentation called the Prix Louis-Delluc, which is given to the best French film of the year. It was held at the fancy Fouquet’s restaurant along the Champs-Elysees. I also shot a re-release of the Stanley Kubrick film “Barry Lyndon”. One of the stars of the film, Marisa Berenson attended the small premiere.

Some photos of the week:

Clothing store on rue des Rosiers
Sunday morning along the Champs-Elysees
Figurine store near my apartment
Lake in the Paris suburb of Orsay
Female sphinx at the Hotel de Sully

Boring Week ...

2007-12-09T05:19:00.000-08:00

Can’t say I have much to blog about this week. A lot of rain had me cooped up at home a lot the last few days. The main thing that got me out of the house was, believe it or not, a performance of specially trained horses.

The annual event is called La Nuit du Cheval (The Night of the Horse) and attracts pretty big crowds. While I enjoyed parts of the show, I couldn’t help but feel that something was wrong with training animals to do tricks for no particular reason other than to get applause at a show.

To see more images from the show, CLICK HERE.

I also shot a boring movie premiere with a bunch of children actors from the French film “Big City” along the Champs-Elysees. The only thing nice about it was the morning light.

A couple images of the week:

Snowman Cake
Spanish Cowboys

Bee Movie, iPhone and Christmas Lights

2007-12-02T04:08:00.000-08:00

Motivation and the weather are more related here in Paris than I remember them being in California. The majority of days here now are gray and while it's not freezing, it's cold enough so that going on an extended walk isn't so fun. Just like you can feel the surge of energy when spring arrives, you can feel the dearth of energy related to winter arriving in the city.

Made it out long enough to photograph the French premiere of Jerry Seinfeld's "Bee Movie" with Renee Zellweger. Unfortunately the weather was rainy and stormy the day of the premiere and they had to cancel a planned photo shoot under the Eiffel Tower. Those would have likely been some fun photos.

A huge number of techies braved the cold and lined up along the Champs-Elysees for the launch of Apple's iPhone in France. The first customer to purchase the iPhone in France had lined up at 5:00am for the 6:30pm opening. Just FYI, French law requires that customers be given an unlock code with their mobile phones so the French version of the iPhone will be unlocked (although it will be sold that way at a higher price).

And finally, the season of beautiful lights around Paris has started. I hope to photograph the most special light displays around the city this month.

Photos of the week:

Savagery at the butcher

Vendome, Rufus, AaRON and Monopoly

2007-11-25T03:02:00.000-08:00

I had a treat this week when I convinced the manager of the famous Ritz Hotel in Place Vendome to let me go to the rooftop of the hotel to take a few photos. I was really

surprised they let me but I’m glad they did. You don’t have to go very high in Paris for a spectacular view.

Shot two concerts – Rufus Wainwright (son of Loudon) and AaRON – both very well known here but not so much in the US (although I hear Rufus is finding a bit of a following there).

AaRON is a collaboration between two very talented men, one a Franco-American singer and the other a composer and arranger. They sing some songs in English, some in French. Their first album has gone double gold here but I doubt many in the US have heard of them. If you’re interested, have a listen to this song called “Lili” (⇐ click here to listen) and see why I think they’ve got a bright future.

The insane transportation strike has taken what most people think is just a pause. It’s been pretty horrible the last 2 weeks if you had to get on a metro, bus or train. For those of you that are confused as to why you can still take a train, bus or metro during a strike, the answer is because the strikers usually leave extremely limited service on certain lines. What this ends up translating to is that everyone on these limited service lines ends up wanting to kill each other because they are so packed together. A couple of days ago I was crushed like a sardine on a line 4 metro car and just before the doors closed, an idiot basically took a running start and smashed into us and wedged himself into the already extremely packed car. I learned some new French words from the others in our train and when the idiot turned around to me and tried to excuse himself by saying “c’est normal” (it’s normal), I responded with “sur quelle planete?” (on what planet?).

And finally, had dinner with my friend the Conquistadore and after we were done eating, a couple approached us and asked if we wanted to join them in a game of … Monopoly. It’s not everyday that I’m asked to play Monopoly so we agreed and spent the rest of the evening drinking wine and building houses on the Ave des Champs-Elysees.

Some photos of the week …

Cellist from the band AaRON
Proof of End Times
Black cat in the Pere Lachaise cemetery
Hotel de Ville in golden sunlight

Strike, Le Jean Burnt, Sinead and Beaujolais

2007-11-18T01:54:00.000-08:00

The big news of the week is the huge general strike in Paris that started (and continues as of this writing!) this week. It mostly involves the transportation workers but like most big strikes here, various other unions join the movement in solidarity.The train, bus and metro system were mostly shut down but a few of the lines were still running with very limited service; I love the term they use for this … “quasi-nul”. I wasn’t here for the last big daddy strike in 1995 but my impression is that people here are handling it pretty well. There are tons of bicycles on the streets and although I’m sure regular commuters are livid, those who take the metro from time to time actually seem in a better mood than normal, probably because of the ridiculousness of the situation. A few other unions are expected to join the strike this week so things could get worse before they get better. Every poll still shows that the majority of people here do not support the strike and want Sarkozy to continue to fight. This could get ugly.

Some terrible news this week … an iconic café (well, it’s only iconic to me and a few of my friends) burned this week. Le Jean Bart café along rue Saint Antoine in the Marais had its interior pretty badly charred.My first few years in Paris I lived just across from “The Bart” and spent many hours there people watching, wondering which government program the barely-functioning waiters were hired because of, and trying not to look too closely at my meals. “Le Jean Burnt” will be missed … by at least 3 or 4 people (5 max).

This week I shot the premiere of “My Blueberry Nights” starring Norah Jones (yes, the singer Norah Jones) as well as the return of Sinead O’Connor. Sinead looked quite different than the last time the world saw her but she still sounded terrific.I was also supposed to shoot Kanye West in concert so I took the massively cramped metro across Paris, walked a long way in the freezing cold and upon my arrival was told the management changed their minds and no photographers were allowed to shoot the show. You can imagine how happy I and the other photographers were. The only saving grace was I found the motivation to take an invigorating 35-minute bike ride on a Velib (the “free” city-wide bicycles) all the way home along the canal.

Beaujolais Day also happened this week in Paris. The annual event happens every third Thursday of November (the release date chosen by the French government) and wine stores, wine bars, and restaurants fete the arrival of Beaujolais nouveau, wine made of grapes that were still on the vine only three months earlier (thus the "nouveau"). I’m far from an expert but this year’s Beaujolais nouveau tastes better than past years, although it’s still far from great. For more on Beaujolais Day, check out this BBC article.

And for all of you that asked, yes, I’m feeling much better thank you.

A few photos of the week:

Bicyclists near Place St Michel during the strike
Beaujolais Day
Beaujolais Day

Doc, Joss and the Metro

2007-11-10T12:43:00.000-08:00

This week I got to experience the ease and simplicity of the French medical system. I’ve had a chest cold that I just haven’t been able to shake so Monday morning at 9am I called a British (read “English-speaking”) doctor in the Marais to see if I could come get checked out. He said how about 10:30am. I rode a Velib bike over to his office and he did an exam, gave me some anti-biotics and I was on my way. Stopped at the pharmacy next door and got the drugs and went home.

The office visit cost me 40 euros, of which 85% is fully reimbursable by my private health insurance, which costs 300 euros PER YEAR (not per month)! And by the way, the prescribed drugs are also reimbursable at 85%. But of course the best part was calling at 9am and getting an appointment at 10:30am that same day; that’s not always the case but it has been close to that each of the handful of times I’ve used the healthcare system here. It really makes me sad and embarrassed at the healthcare system in the U.S. – it’s disgraceful.

Photographically it was a slow week, but I did get to shoot Joss Stone performing at the Grand Rex Theatre. She put on a pretty good show I must say but maybe only because I didn’t have high expectations.

I’m posting a video I’d like to share with you. It’s nothing so special but I’m posting it because it’s typical of what you experience on the metro here in your day-to-day life moving around the city. Click HERE to see the video and be patient, the video might take a few minutes to load. {note: there is sound with the video}

I recently did some photo work for an international accounting firm here and they’ve posted a slideshow of my work on their website. You can see some of my Paris images (albeit a bit too small) by clicking HERE. {note: there is sound with the video}

And finally, a couple images of the week (of which I only took one):

Art or Vandalism? (view from my window)

God Bless America

World Conference, MTV Europe Music Awards and Pink Martini

2007-11-04T04:50:00.000-08:00

Did some highly-entertaining corporate work this week. A big, international accounting firm had their world conference in Paris and hired me to capture the special events they had planned: a private party at the Louvre, an afternoon on a yacht along the Seine and a private fashion show and dinner at the Chateau of Versailles.

The event at Versailles was exceptional, something that evidently doesn’t happen very often. I wish I could post more photos for you to see but I’m seriously restricted due to very strict rules regarding photographs of the Chateau (but I’ll post a few anyway).

Spent 3 days in Munich to photograph the MTV Europe Music Awards. The show was hosted by Snoop Dogg and I thought how strange it was that two homeboys from Long Beach end up in Germany together at an awards show! The show was typically crazy with a big jacuzzi filled with models in the middle of the audience.

I got out and about in Munich but I was a bit under the weather and didn’t get to explore the way I normally would. I have to say the peacefulness, organization and general good behavior of its residents make Munich a really nice break from more latin-blooded cities.

English Gardens
I was most impressed with the number of organic restaurants and stores as well as the wide variety of quality ethnic foods available. I ate tasty Afghanistan, Ethiopian, Thai, Mexican and of course some German food (schnitzel) while I was there. And I wasn’t too disturbed when the menu at the German restaurant included things like a beetroot margarita and tuna puree (not kidding).

This last Friday, the Portland-based music group Pink Martini was back in Paris for a show at the legendary Grand Rex Theatre. I’ve photographed them a half-dozen times now and I really enjoy their music. I’ve become friends with a few of the band members and now each time they pass through Paris, we get together and they graciously give me excellent tickets to their shows. I had dinner with one of the band members this time and we had a good laugh at the fact that he went to a rival high school in Long Beach and we graduated the same year! The show was entertaining as always but it was especially nice to be seated in the audience instead of taking photos.

And a few photos of the week:

Waiters at the Chateau de Versailles
Good news!
Not sure this store name would work in the US
Disturbing
Trader Vics in Munich - Who knew?

Rome, A Seizure and Autumn …

2007-10-29T03:43:00.000-07:00

I’m back in Paris after spending about a week in Rome shooting a film festival there.

For more images of the festival and of Rome, CLICK HERE.

The whole experience in Rome was great. I spent a lot of time thinking about the cultural differences between the French and the Italians, or more specifically, the Parisians and the Romans. Here’s an abbreviated list of immediately apparent differences:

In Paris, when there are 200 people on the metro platform, it sounds like there’s 1 person. In Rome, when there’s 1 person, it sounds like there’s 200.

In Paris, if you ask someone for something, everything is a problem even when it really isn’t. In Rome, nothing is a problem even when it really is.

In Paris, Chinese food tastes like a failed high school chemistry experiment. In Rome (like in every other village, town or city in the world!) it tastes like … Chinese food.

In Paris, people eat buttery croissants for breakfast. In Rome, the same croissants are sweet and topped with sugar (and sometimes cream-filled).

In Paris, the buildings vary between 3 colors: off-white, off-white and off-white. In Rome, they look like a party of pastels.

In Paris, acting foolish in public is closely associated with embarrassment (for the fool and the observers). In Rome, it is celebrated.

In Paris, everyone is competent but nobody cares. In Rome, nobody is competent but everybody cares.

I’m interested to hear what my Parisian and Roman friends think about these observations.

I had a terrifying experience this week in a non-descript brasserie in the Marais. A 30-something man sitting by himself in the booth next to me suddenly let out a deafeningly loud scream for about 5 or 6 seconds. It wasn’t a type of scream I had heard before. Not like a scream from anger or pain or frustration. Something from deep inside. It was the kind of scream that makes you think you’re about to die, like someone is going to pull out a gun and kill everyone in the cafe. A split-second later the man collapsed like a tree from his booth and lay unconscious on the floor – smashing his head against the bar and the floor as he landed. For added drama, his plate of eggs and his glass of wine fell with him, smashing into pieces next to him as he lay motionless.

I ran outside and found a policeman and asked him to call the paramedics immediately while the bartender pushed the man onto his side so that he could breathe. The man wasn’t doing well at all and started to turn blue. It turns out the man had an epileptic seizure, but while it was happening none of us could be sure. I always thought a seizure would involve more convulsions and foaming at the mouth but I later read that this isn’t always the case.

The paramedics came and just as they got there, the man made a pretty rapid recovery. He wasn’t at all stable but was able to walk out of the brasserie with the paramedics. So it looked like everything was going to be ok. It was a pretty terrifying and memorable experience and one that makes me want to re-learn all the first aid training I’ve forgotten.

The leaves in Paris are changing colors …

Some photos of the week:

Actors (I hope!) at Les Frigos
Giant sculpture on school building
37th and newest bridge in Paris - Simone de Beauvoir footbridge

Roma ...

2007-10-22T01:23:00.001-07:00

This week I was (and am) in Rome covering the Rome Film Festival. It’s really good to be back in Italy. So much about this country makes senses to me – the taste of the food, the warmth and informality of the people, the beauty and authenticity of the living history - just to name a few.

Sophia Loren
The festival itself has been fun although it goes without saying that the organization is … creative. One thing that stands out as unique compared to other film festivals I’ve shot is that each time we shoot a photocall or red carpet, the organizer makes a serious effort to tell us all what designer the star was wearing. He (Roberto) gets all of our attention and then in earnest says something like “Reese Whitherspoon was in Armani with Ferragammo shoes.” Only in Italy.

Here are a few experiences I’ve had during my visit so far:

I stumbled upon a nice looking hair salon and they said it would cost 35 euros for a mens cut and I agreed. Turns out I was there for almost 2 hours and I really loved the experience. First a lovely Romanian girl washed my hair for seriously 25 minutes. She gave me a message down my neck and on my head. I almost fell totally asleep. Next Marco went to work on my hair. Marco would cut for a few minutes, then talk loudly in Italian, then cut then talk. All I could understand was the word Viagra! It was really fun to watch. It turns out that he's a pretty famous haircutter. Last festival he did Richard Gere’s and Robert Deniro's hair and a few others. So I really got lucky getting him. There was even a French coiffure who worked there who would translate between Marco and me. It was really fun. Marco had great attention to detail. At one point, he put on a latex glove (which frightened me) and reached into my ear to pull out 1 hair and then said with a smile “Italian waxing”. And in the end, I sat with some fancy automatic MRI-like hair dryer surrounding my head for about 10 minutes. I really enjoyed the authenticity and the characters of the place.

One evening in a pizzeria I confused the Italian word for garlic with the word for anchovies - the words are quite similar. I was really hungry and looking forward to some good eating so imagine my disappointment when my pizza arrived topped with smelly anchovies. Just from my look of utter sadness the waitress asked me what was wrong and I explained the mistake I had made. Without hesitation she took the pizza away and brought me the garlic-filled one I had meant to order … and didn’t charge me for the first one even though it was clearly my mistake. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t charge me that impressed me but more her sensitivity to noticing I was disappointed without me even saying anything. I’m doubting this experience could have happened at Appleby’s.

Not many images that I can post this week since I don’t have a lot of time. More next week …

Human Rights Watch, Elite Models, Late Night Bike Riding

2007-10-13T16:34:00.000-07:00

It was a relatively calm week. Did a couple of shoots for Human Rights Watch - their press conference announcing the opening of their Paris office and also an event highlighting the horrors
of landmines and cluster munitions. I learned quite a bit listening to some top experts speak on this subject.

I also went to the Ritz Hotel in Place Vendome to photograph the Elite Model Look Competition. It was the national finalsand featured the top 13-16 year old models from France that will move on to compete against the winners from other countries. I found it all quite perverse; these girls were SO young and nervous and really didn't seem like they were enjoying what they were doing at all. To see more images from the competition, CLICK HERE.

My favorite 30 minutes of the week was riding a Velib (free city bicycle) home from a party at 3:00am. The city really feels like it yours at that hour. No cars, no noise ... just beautifully lit buildings and a feeling of tranquility. I really loved it ... more than the party!

Some photos of the week:

Long ATM transaction
I can't believe it's already been copied
Dogs drinking from fountain near Pompidou Center
Fall is coming - Musee Carnavelet

“Ah bon?”, Dweezil, Hats, Lynch and The Kingdom

2007-10-08T02:53:00.001-07:00

This week another theory about French culture crystallized in my head. It’s something I’ve noticed and have been thinking about for a few years and I am calling it the “Ah Bon?” theory. “Ah Bon?” is the expression the French use to express surprise about something they thought was one way but in fact, was actually another way. In English, the closest expression is probably something like “really?”

The “ah bon?” theory can best be described by example, which actually happened to me this week. Each time I photograph a concert, I am credentialed in advance by the record company who assure me they will put my name on a list at the door. Approximately one-third of the time when I show up, after confirming my credential the day before each concert, I am told that my name is not on the list. And I am told this with an air of confidence that one would normally have after an exhaustive check of all possible records, lists, files, etc. of who is credentialed for the concert. I feign disbelief and then tell them who I was credentialed by and produce an email confirmation that I always print out and take with me. That’s when it happens; I invariably get an “ah bon?”, another look down at the list and then a “go right ahead”. The “ah bon” theory does not speak about the incompetence of the individuals I encounter; it speaks about the confidence of their response in light of the fact that I know for a fact that they’re 100% totally wrong.

To continue … after getting past the front door, I am given my photo pass sticker clearly designating me as a photographer as well as a physical ticket (even though photographers are only allowed to be there for the first three songs and then are escorted out by security, they can’t let us enter without a ticket – “pour des raisons de comptabilite” (for accounting reasons)). I approach the man guarding the door on the stage level and show him my photo pass and he asks to see my ticket. I show him and then he tells me that he can’t allow me to enter here because my ticket is for a seat on the upper level. I calmly explain to him that I’m a photographer (looking subtly down at the giant orange neon sticker with the words “PHOTOGRAPHER” attached to my chest) and he says to me with the utmost confidence that he doesn’t care who I am but since my ticket says I’m on the upper level, that’s where I have to go. I continue that I have shot dozens of shows at this venue and photographers are always right next to the stage but once again, despite the fact that I can see a few photographers right next to the stage, he assures me, with firm confidence, that that is not the case this time and that I’d have to go to where my ticket says my seat is.

Knowing the drill, I went back to front desk and asked someone to come with me and explain to the automaton at the door that of course I was supposed to be next to the stage. The person accompanies me and explains to the confident fool at the door that of course photographers are supposed to be next to the stage. And the fool’s response? A hearty “ah bon?”

I really don’t know where this “ah bon?” mentality comes from in French culture but I’ve seen it from the highest professional ranks down to bouncers at clubs. I would be happy if anyone out there has an idea about why this happens here. It appears to me to be some sort of pre-emptive strike but I’m not exactly sure against what. Any ideas?

Shot four events this week, all quite different from each other – two of them particularly entertaining.

I went to go photograph the Frank Zappa concert (this is where the “ah bon?” experience crystallized) at the famous Grand Rex Theater and when the show started, I was very confused because I was told that there was no opening act and yet it wasn’t Frank Zappa on stage. Imagine my surprise to learn that Frank Zappa died 14 years ago and in fact, it was his son Dweezil Zappa playing his father’s songs.

Dweezil played a few songs “with” his father on a big video screen on the stage. But the night was memorable thanks to my complete confusion.

Also shot one of my favorite annual events in Paris – the hat contest held at the biggest horse race in Europe … Le Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. This race is basically the French Kentucky Derby. Each year women show up at the race wearing outrageous hats, for three reasons: (1) they get in free with a hat, (2) they try to win an associated “Best Hat” contest and (3) they adore the attention. It’s quite a scene.

To see more women in hats, CLICK HERE.

The director David Lynch was in town to receive the French Legion of Honor from President Sarkozy. I got to go to the Elysee Palace (the French White House) to photograph the event, which was attended by other well-known guests such as Roman Polanski.

Jennifer Garner and Jamie Foxx made a stop in Paris along the Champs-Elysees for the French premiere of their movie “The Kingdom”.
And finally, my cousin spent the week in Paris and I had a really good time with her playing a bit of tour guide and passing time the way it should be passed here – chatting about life in a café. We explored parts of town that tourists don’t normally get to but I believe are very interesting to see – rue Faubourg St Denis, Bellville, etc.

Some photos of the week …

Doorman at the Elysee Palace
Sarko checks out the babes
For those times when you really have the taste for ass
Clouds above Paris

A Bizarre Night, Saint Malo & The Police

2007-09-30T07:15:00.002-07:00

This week’s entry focuses on a memorable evening I had this week. I went to the Indiana Café near Odeon, a big chain, pseudo Tex-Mex restaurant with locations throughout Paris, to have a happy hour drink with my friend The Conquistadore. The Conquistadore goes to Indiana Café frequently because their happy hour deal offers drinks for 50% off the normal price, which is quite good for Paris. Our night started quite ordinarily but ended up quite memorably.

We arrived at Indiana at 7:50pm, specifically because we knew their happy hour deal ended at 8pm. We sat down and of course couldn’t find a waiter. About 1 minute before 8pm, we flagged down a waitress who looked at her cell phone and confirmed that we made it before 8pm. She took our order and when she returned with our drinks, she gave us a bill that had the full price on it. We were stunned. She said there was nothing she could do because when she put the order in the computer it was 8:02pm. We asked to talk to the manager who came over to us. We explained that we came here specifically for happy hour, waited 10 minutes for a waitress, ordered before 8pm and therefore we weren’t going to pay full price. One important thing to note in this whole drama is that the difference in price between happy hour and normal prices was 5 euros for me and 3 for the Conquistadore.

The manager basically didn’t want to hear anything we were saying and just rudely said that we had to pay full price. We laughed at how unbelievable the situation was and jokingly told him that he’d have to call the police to get us to pay full price. We continued chatting over our drink when about 5 minutes later, two police officers came to our table. The manager actually called the police on us. We asked the officers what they wanted with us since we hadn’t done anything wrong. We hadn’t tried to leave without paying or anything. We were having our drinks and had the bill on our table. The officers didn’t want to hear it and told us that we had a “litige commericale” and that he needed our IDs. We initially refused but then relented when he said we’d have to come with him to the police station if we didn’t show him ID. To end the long story, we paid the full price, asked the manager’s name (to which he replied “you don’t have the authority to ask me my name”) and decided that it was unfortunate for the manager that he decided to do this to two motivated individuals that have a lot of free time. The Conquistadore and I are going to the tribunal soon and with a little luck, can continue our case for 8 euros all the way to the highest court in the land. They’re going to be sorry.

From there, the evening continued its bizarreness. We went to have a bite to eat in at a popular falafel place St Michel. I ordered a falafel which came completely overstuffed with condiments. When I asked the lady working there for a plastic fork, she refused to give me one saying “we only give forks to those who order salads”. I of course thought she was kidding but true enough, she wouldn’t give me a fork. The next customer ordered a salad and was given a small plastic fork. I was stunned. Unfortunately for them, the people who have to clean the tables will learn what can happen if one tries to eat an overstuffed falafel without a fork. ☺

Made another trip to Saint Malo and walked along the beautiful beach and explored the inside of the walled city.

And finally, my happy hour incident wasn't my only run in with the police this week. I got to photograph the music group The Police at a private party along the Champs-Elysees after their big reunion concert here. It was quite a jet set crowd because it’s also the start of fashion week here so all the pretty people were out in force. Below, Sting arrives at the party with his wife.
A few more photos from Saint Malo:

A dog on the beach
Italian gelato inside the walled city
Interesting that the slogan at the bottom of the manhole cover in Saint Malo is the same as our Marines
Inside the walled city

15 Minutes of Insanity, Rugby and Human Rights Watch

2007-09-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

Three anecdotes this week … all taking place in a 15-minute interval along rue de Rivoli in the Marais. I was sitting having a drink with a friend when I heard police sirens coming towards us from the Bastille. Seconds later, I saw the following:

- two police motorcycles, followed by
- two weather-beaten Perrier delivery trucks, followed by
- a police car with its door wide open and an officer hanging out of it holding the largest automatic weapon I have ever seen in my life.

I’ve tried for days to come up with a hypothesis as to what that scene could have been. And other than the French transporting their nuclear warheads across town in Perrier trucks, I couldn’t come up with anything.

Two minutes later, I walked across the street to a boulangerie to get some chouquettes (see photo).

Imagine my surprise when the lady bundled my half-dozen chouquettes in a bag and then yelled something (of which I only understood “game”) and proceeded to launch the bag in the air, over the counter and into my disbelieving hands. At Jerry’s Deli or the Southwest Airlines ticket counter this would be normal – but at a French boulangerie, where variety usually means something like switching between using 83 and 84 grains of salt per baguette, this was shocking. It brought a big smile to my face.

And just when I thought I could return to the planet earth, I re-crossed the street, re-sat down at the café and then noticed a rolled up mattress strategically placed high up in a big tree along rue de Rivoli.

All this within a 15-minute period …

For all the things that drive me crazy about living here, it’s my appreciation for the unpredictable, inexplicable and purely comedic that keeps me sane here.

On the photo front, I got to photograph the France vs Ireland Rugby World Cup match at the Stade de France.

I can’t say I have developed almost any appreciation for that sport but the event itself was highly entertaining. For more rugby images, click here: RUGBY WORLD CUP

And finally, I was happy to find out that I will be assisting Human Rights Watch doing their photography here in Paris. If you’ve never heard of them, check out their website at www.hrw.org. They’re a great organization and are launching their Paris office in a few weeks. More about this soon.

Two photos and a video of the week:

Street dining at Fauchon in Place de la Madeleine

Rugby World Cup statue at Gare Montparnasse

Elton and Saint-Malo

2007-09-16T14:32:00.000-07:00

Spent the first part of the week in Paris and then headed back out to Saint-Malo. For those of you not familiar with Saint-Malo, it is the walled, port city on the Northwest coast of France, just below the English Channel and the islands of Jersey and Guernsey. It’s relatively small town (50,000 permanent residents) but can grow to about 200,000 with the summer visitors. I will be spending some time there and hope to share more of the city with you. It’s quite a nice place, with dramatic sunsets and crazy tides … sometimes the main beach there is 50 meters wide (close to 50 yards) and then within a short period of time the beach is completely swallowed by the sea.

When I was in Paris earlier in the week, I got to shoot one of my all-time favorites … Elton John. We got to shoot only 1 song, but luckily it was “Love Lies Bleeding/Funeral for a Friend” which lasts 12 minutes. It was the first time I sang all the lyrics and shot at the same time.

I am on a train right now heading back to Paris and a couple right in front of me seems to have eaten too many oysters during their stay here in Saint-Malo … they’re putting on a little show for the whole car. I love train travel.

Two photos of the week …

Clearly Chucky Cheese inspired
One of my favorite cafes in Paris - Cafe Lea

American Film Festival of Deauville - Part 2

2007-09-09T07:21:00.000-07:00

Apart from the goings-on of the Festival, not much to blog about this week. I did manage to see two excellent documentaries. The first was "When the Levees Broke", a Spike Lee documentary about the lead up to, during and after Katrina. I saw a lot of footage I had never seen and stories I had never heard before. The other documentary was called "Brando" and was all about the life of Marlon Brando. It had great interviews with people who knew him best, some of them famous, some not. Both worthwhile films.

Hanging out with French photographers for 9 days really improved my street French. I can now say things in French that I can't legally put in this blog! It was quite a good time here in Deauville, personally and professionally.

Since it's too soon (legally) for me to publish my festival photos on my blog, feel free to send me an email and I can send you a private link to see the images.

Two photos of the week:

Savage Butcher
Cabbage in the Marais

American Film Festival of Deauville

2007-09-02T04:49:00.000-07:00

This week I'm blogging from Deauville, France, a small but chic town along the coast in Normandie. I'm here photographing the 33rd American Film Festival. Deauville is a great festival because unlike Cannes, it's cosy and not too hectic.This year there are some big stars attending the festival like Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Michael Douglas, Catherine Deneuve, Brian DePalma, Monica Bellucci and a few others.The festival is, in addition to the real competition, showing classic American films 24 hours a day in various theatres throughout the city.
Some photos of the week:

Blurry building
Blurry building closeup
Jewish Mexicans?

Venice, Cesena, Cattolica and Tony Parker

2007-08-27T06:55:00.000-07:00

Missed last week’s blog entry due to my travels in Italy.

Three of my cousins and my aunt flew from Los Angeles to Venice, Italy to begin a 12-day cruise around the Mediterranean. Thanks to some prodding and subsequent covert planning with one of my cousins, I went to Venice and gave my aunt and other cousins quite a surprise when I showed up and knocked on their door at their hotel. Although the first time one sees Venice it’s unforgettable, it’s probably my least favorite Italian city given how expensive it is, its lack of good food and the density of tourists. But this trip I quite enjoyed the city – probably because I stayed on the more quiet island just across the Grand Canal from St Marco’s Square. And we even found a superb restaurant that only a local (or a tourist that got really good directions from a local) could find (seriously ask me for the name of the place if you’re going to Venice).

To see more images of Venice, CLICK HERE.

Guided by its ridiculously tasty gelato stands, we passed a couple of nice days exploring Venice before saying our goodbyes. I took the boat back to the airport, rented a miniscule Smart Car and headed down the Adriatic coast to meet some of my Italian friends who happened to be vacationing there (they normally live in Paris). Passed an enormous roadside pumpkin/squash/gourd stand (see photo) and had some dramatic views of the coast in between the passing storm clouds. Met my friends in Cesena, where we spent a wonderful evening eating local food (I wish I could remember the name of the pizza/calzone-related dish we all shared for dinner - pictured above) and having a drink at an out-of-the-way villa that my friend from Cesena knew about.

Spent the night and the next day at my friend’s aunt’s house in Cattolica. The house was quite large and situated on a huge plot of land covered with various fruit trees. Attached to the house was a 12th century chapel that was included on the Italian heritage registry. It was beautiful but the highlight was the homemade pasta and peach tart lunch made from the garden veggies and fruits that my friend’s aunt prepared for us – a real treat.
Before I left Paris for Italy, I got to photograph the French national basketball team compete in a mini-tournament on the outskirts of Paris. Normally this event would be almost as interesting as watching a tree grow but since NBA star point guard Tony Parker (yes, the one who was recently married to the Desperate Housewives woman) was playing, I went to go shoot it. The game included a few other known players such as Lakers reserve Ronny Turiaf and Frederick Weiss, the guy known only as the seven-footer that Vince Carter jumped completely over and dunked on during the Olympics.
Some photos of the week:

Unbelievable Toy
Anti-pollution police
This is just wrong in France (or anywhere really)

Sorry, No Post This Week ...

2007-08-20T00:27:00.001-07:00

Tour de France, Bretagne and Tov

2007-08-12T15:00:00.000-07:00

After my ranting and raving in my last blog entry, this week will be more tame, reflecting the tameness of Paris in the middle of August. Getting caught up on the news here, the Tour de Drugs/France arrived in Paris 2 weeks ago.

The finish lacked the excitement of past Tours, and personally, my favorite story of the Tour was the fact that due to poor crowd organization (how strange?), the wife of Tour winner Alberto Contador was unable to get to her husband and missed seeing him accept the trophy at the winner’s ceremony.

I spent a few days in and around Saint Malo, a town about 250 miles from Paris on the Brittany (Bretagne) coast just below the Channel Islands. Other than getting a speeding ticket for going 7 miles per hour over the speed limit while I was the slowest car on the highway, the highlight was a very dramatic sunset, evidently not so uncommon there.

And finally, and old friend came back into my life. I got to take care of a tiny toy Yorkshire terrier named Tov.

Tov and I have a history together - we have been all over France together, whizzing around the South and the North of France in our Smart Car on vacation in 2002 and 2003. Tov’s owner would travel a lot and left the dog with me frequently a few years ago and we had a ball together (at least I did!). Well he’s back this week so I dug up a few old photos from his last visit.
A few photos of the week ...

Cat Roar

Harp Player in Dinan

Diners Watching Sunset in St Malo

Mayor of Paris ... Smoking

15 Things I Hate About Paris ...

2007-08-05T11:09:00.000-07:00

I’ve had some bad breaks and have been a bit frustrated in Paris the last couple of weeks so I thought I’d vent a little. Here goes:

15 Things I Hate About Paris (in no particular order) …

1) Escalators

If I was in Cameroon and each time I approached an escalator it wasn’t working, I wouldn’t find it difficult to accept. But in a country that has nuclear technology and develops satellites, I would expect that they would have worked out how to keep an escalator running more than just a few times a month. From the airport (those long people movers) to metro stations, escalators are out of order a significant percentage of time. And I didn’t even mention the cruel lack of escalators at the metro stations that connect to the big train stations where travelers have to carry their heavy bags upstairs.

2) The temperature on Metro line 4

The temperature on this Metro line is independent of the outside temperature; the air inside each cabin is completely still and without ventilation; it usually takes between 1 and 2 stops before everyone in the cabin is sweating. I’m not sure why this happens even during the winter, perhaps because the metro itself generates heat throughout the day. I’m working on sending a letter to the RATP (the people in charge of the metro) asking for an explanation. I’m holding my breath for a response.

2) Supermarket Supplies

It’s a very common occurrence that as soon as I find a product in the supermarket that I like, when I go back to buy it again, it’s gone; sometimes permanently, but more frequently, temporarily. It can make it difficult to plan a meal. Speaking of which, to plan a semi-elaborate meal can mean going to 3 or even 4 different markets to get the necessary supplies.

4) Lowlifes

I live in a nice area of Paris. But even here, like everywhere I’ve lived in Paris, a few nights a week there is some drunk lowlife that thinks yelling unintelligible sounds at high decibel levels is a good idea. Sometimes it’s a group of 19-year old Americans celebrating after having their first legal beer.

5) Fermeture Exceptionelle

Two words that I dread. You travel across the city to get to that one store that sells a “R” key for your 18th century typewriter and when you arrive, there is a handwritten sign on the door saying “Fermeture Exceptionelle”, meaning that they are closed exceptionally on this day. I often see stores that keep a permanent “Fermeture Exceptionelle” sign on the back of their front door to use on those “exceptional” occasions. And I didn’t even mention those frequent times when you arrive at 4:40pm at a store that closes at 5pm and they’re already closed.

6) The Look

One of my favorites … the now-familiar look of store employees when I ask them for a common item like, say a towel. The best way I can describe it is to imagine walking into a big store like a Target and asking the first employee that you see if they have a giraffe made of cotton candy. The look that you would get from that employee is probably about the same as the look I get when I ask a towel store employee for a towel. As if I was the first person in history to ask for this item. And it’s not because of my accent; I’ve seen it consistently happen to native French speakers as well.

7) Good Ideas, Bad Implementation

So common here. Someone will come up with a great, creative idea to save time or really help people but the implementation of the idea is done so poorly that it would have been better to not have the idea in the first place. Perfect example is the new bicycle program in Paris. Great idea, but … frequently the electronic station doesn’t work (I’ve actually seen a Windows XP error screen on the kiosk), it doesn’t take foreign credit cards (really good considering this program was also meant for tourists), the instructions on how to take a bike are ridiculously confusing (you have to enter a pin code 3 times!) and my favorite one … to sign up for a yearly membership you are required to go online; great, until you come to the last step which tells you that you must now print out the form and mail it in to them.

8) People Flow & Lines

For those of you who have been to Paris, this one is no surprise. There seems to be something inherent in the French character that hates to stand in a line. Or even to do something to control the flow of how people move. If you see a ticket window at a movie theatre, it’s not uncommon to see 4 or 5 different lines all funneling into that window. And I won’t even mention the number of times that the person behind me in line disrespected my personal space so seriously that I had to wonder if I may be legally wed to them. At big events like say the French Open Tennis, the organizers will never use those dividers that make people move one direction on one side and the opposite direction on the other. So moving around the grounds is not so unlike those war scenes in Ben Hur with 10,000 people charging full steam ahead into 10,000 others.

9) Weekly Metro Tickets

If you’re going to be moving around a lot during 1 week in Paris, you’re in luck because you can buy a 1 week metro pass that can save you money. That is, you’re in luck if your week goes from Monday to Sunday. You can’t buy a weekly pass that goes from say Wednesday to Tuesday. If you buy a weekly pass on a Wednesday, it still expires the following Sunday. Good thinking…

10) Reverse Economies of Scale

This is a phenomenon that I’ve been observing for more than 5 years and I must say I find it less now than I did 5 years ago but it still pops up from time to time. You go to the store and look at the price of one box of tissues; it costs say 1 euro. Right next to that box is a 3-pack of the same tissues that costs … 3.50 euros. If this happened once or twice, or only in a mama and papa kind of store where maybe their math skills we’re not so good, I could understand it. But I’ve seen this happen in the largest of large department stores in Paris and across a wide variety of product types. At one time I theorized that this was, in effect, a “convenience” charge for having the products all nicely bundled together so they were easier to carry home; but I really have no idea why this happens.

11) Street Smashing

This is a hotly debated one among me, myself and I. If you walk on a sidewalk anywhere in Paris, no matter the width of the sidewalk, no matter how many people are walking the opposite direction as you on the sidewalk, someone will smash into you. I swear to you that even if only one person is walking towards me and the sidewalk is as wide as the ones on the Champs Elysees, that person will find a way to smash into me. And it’s not just me; I’ve discussed this phenomenon at length with many of my friends. No one disagrees that this happens, the debate is only about WHY it happens. In Marrakech you can have 450 people moving towards 450 other people on the same sidewalk and not one person will bump into the other. Why does this happen?

12) Vacations

French society is so unbelievably square. By square, I mean that there is a right way to do EVERYTHING. Even a right time to do everything. Every year people do the same thing (go to some beachy place) virtually on the same day (July 15) and then come back and talk about their vacation for approximately 3 weeks. I didn’t mention the 3 weeks before the vacation that is spent asking each person they see when they are going to take their vacation.

13) Chinese Food

Have you ever been to the Slovenia? Or Turkey? Or Luxembourg? If yes, have you eaten Chinese food in any of these places? It tastes like … Chinese food! God bless the Chinese immigrants who bring their delicious food to other countries and manage to exactly reproduce the flavor in their new country. I find this true in EVERY country except … France. Chinese food tastes like crap here. I must have tried dozens of Chinese restaurants and take-away places throughout the city and cannot say that even 1 time I’ve had a really good meal that tastes like … Chinese food.

14) Smells

I don’t have much to say on this subject except that in most narrow passages or alleyways throughout the city, whether between two apartment buildings or in a corridor leading out of the metro, there is frequently a distinct smell of either piss, puke or crap. Not that there’s anything wrong with those things but it does get a little annoying if you’re, say, breathing.

15) Pay to Pay

By far and away my favorite thing to complain about in France. And this is one that most of you probably won’t be aware of because it doesn’t really affect visitors. In France, you have to pay to pay. What I mean is that if I want to rent a car, or make airlines reservations or even call the damn cell phone company from my cell phone (!), I have to pay anywhere from 10 to 34 cents per minute. Yes, you read this correctly. It’s exactly the OPPOSITE of a toll-free telephone number that virtually all businesses in the civilized world have. And to top it off, if I have a technical problem with, for example, my internet and I have to call my provider to tell them that there is something wrong with their system, I have to pay them 34 cents a minute to tell them that.

I feel much better now ☺

Sometime in the future I’ll do a “15 Things I Love About Paris” entry.

And continuing with the different blog style this week, here are two videos of the week (remember to give them a few minutes to load):

Video #1 Riding through Paris

and

Video #2 Man I saw on Pont St Louis this week

Sly, Swan Lake, La Defense and Peeing

2007-07-27T04:01:00.000-07:00

We’re in late July so things here in Paris start to really slow down … and will be dead once we get into August. It seems like the majority of Parisians are away somewhere for their summer vacation and many restaurants, boulangeries and small stores are beginning to close – sometimes for an entire month.

I had the honor this week of photographing Sly and the Family Stone, the Hall of Fame funk band that made their mark during Woodstock and in the early 70’s. I was a bit surprised at how many songs of theirs I knew. The band’s leader, Sly Stone, has basically been a recluse for many years now and this tour is only his second in the last twenty years so it felt special to see him.

In stark contrast to Sly, I also got to photograph the English National Ballet performing a special presentation of Swan Lake at the Chateau of Versailles. They performed on a stage set in the middle of small lake in the garden called the Bassin de Neptune. I can’t claim to have much experience with ballets but once I got over the guys running around the stage with skin color tights, I found the show quite beautiful, especially with the surroundings. You can see more images of the performance by clicking HERE.

Earlier this week I woke up before dawn and went to shoot an area just outside Paris (but still reachable by the metro) called La Defense. La Defense is a futuristic, large-scale business district with its main draw being the Grande Arche, a huge open-centered cube that is more than a football field high, wide and deep. The Arche is the end of the famed “Historical Axis” which starts at the pyramids of the Louvre, continues through the Tuileries Gardens to the monolith in the Place de la Concorde, goes up the Champs-Elysees and right through the Arc de Triomphe. If you stand in the right spot, and if the day is clear enough, the alignment of this Axis is so precise that you can actually see all the monuments along this approximately 5-mile alley. You can see a few more images of morning in La Defense by clicking HERE.

And finally, I experienced shock and awe this week in Paris. On my way back from La Defense, while I was reading my newspaper waiting for the metro at Chatelet station, I heard an unusual sound coming from the platform on the other side of the tracks. I looked up and saw something that really shocked me – an older man, drunk and disheveled, with his penis out FACING the tracks and the people (like me) directly across from him, peeing a solid stream of urine down onto the metro tracks. Public peeing is not so uncommon here but the boldness of this man to face everyone, including children, was unprecedented for me. After an initial moment of disbelief, my photographic instinct took over and I got my camera out in time to get a shot of the man; thankfully the photo is not so clear.

A few photos of the week ...

Violin Couple on the Bridge

Monument in the Clouds at Place de la Bastille

Cafe Panis at Night

Hotel de Ville and the Moon

Hotel de Ville at Night

Sur'veil'ance

Man Playing Petanque

Bikes, Johnny’s Place, Paris Plages and a Hot Shower

2007-07-21T03:41:00.000-07:00

The big news this week in Paris was the launch of the mayor’s new public bicycle program, called Velib (‘ve’lo = bicycle, ‘lib’erte = freedom). It’s intended to help fundamentally change the city by putting 200,000 cyclists and over 20,000 bicycles on the streets of Paris by the end of the year.

The system allows people to grab a bike at one of what will eventually be 1,450 automatic stations throughout the city and drop it off at any other station. The first 30 minutes of use are free of charge and then each subsequent half-hour gets increasingly more expensive; the system is designed to keep the bikes in frequent circulation. Judging from the first few days it seems that people here are quite excited by the program. I, however, failed in my first attempt to use a bike; the 4, 5 & 6 keys on the first automatic station I went to weren’t functioning (after just 3 days of use!) and when I went to a second station, the system told me that they had a temporary technical problem. Let’s hope it’s just growing pains but I’m not sure.

Had lunch this week at a restaurant called Rue Balzac which is owned by legendary French rocker Johnny Hallyday, not far from the Champs-Elysees. The food was tasty and the place was quite stylish … although I did note quite a few people speaking English. You can check out the restaurant and the menu (although it’s in French) here.

This week also brought the start of the 6th annual Paris Plage (Paris Beach), which this year is actually called Paris Plages (plural) since it’s taking place at 3 different locations around the city. Each year, the city brings in sand, lays out lounge chairs and sets up beach-related activities along the Seine river so that Parisians not able to go to the real beach can still experience something like a beach close to home. It’s pretty packed with locals and tourists but can be a nice place to sit and people-watch.

And finally, victory is mine. The gas in my apartment is back on. After 3 weeks, hours on the phone and a visit to the Gaz de France boutique, a man arrived at my door exactly on time (Miracle #1) on Friday. However, although he had my name and address on his work order, the apartment number was incorrect (Expected Event #1) so he told me that he couldn’t turn my gas on (Expected Event #2) without risking a fine of $15,000 euros. He said that he had to leave (Expected Event #3) and suggested I call the emergency service to get them to come out and turn on the gas. I refused to let him leave and forced him to wait with me while I called the emergency service. The emergency service representative asked me to hand the phone to the service guy so that he could scold him for suggesting I call the emergency service (Miracle #2). This prompted the service guy to make a couple of phone calls and suddenly he announced that everything was fine, opened a panel in the hallway and used a simple tool to open the spigot and turn my gas back on (Miracle #3). It’s been a long time since a hot shower felt so good …

Why wasn’t this group around when I was in university?!? Read more about them here.

A couple photos of the week ...

When pigeons attack ...

Small street on Ile de la Cite

50 Cent, Gas, Bastille Day and Poker

2007-07-15T16:00:00.000-07:00

Musically speaking this week began with rapper 50 Cent in concert at the famed Olympia Hall.
He’s pretty much nuts and other than having a guy in his entourage spray water on the crowd (and consequently on the photographers), he put on an entertaining show. My favorite part was seeing all the French pseudo-gangsters in attendance. Comical.

But basically this week was all about gas. For no particular reason, the gas in my apartment was cut off last weekend. Gas heats the water in my apartment, particularly in my shower. After repeated calls to the gas company, I learned that there really isn’t a gas company anymore per se. As of July 1, France “liberalized” their gas market, making the gas company just a distributor of gas. If you need service, the gas company now has to contact another organization to ask for service. But I’m free to choose whichever gas company I’d like to have now. What a ridiculously fraudulent concept – as if people where clamoring for more gas choices. Those of us from the US should remember the whole Enron fiasco where the government said they were doing us a favor by giving a choice of electricity. We know how well that worked out.

So after 7 days without hot water, I went to the gas company boutique in the Marais. I was extremely lucky to find an old-timer who was willing to try and help me. He called the service department and was told someone could come out in 3 weeks to turn on my gas again. Mercifully he found that unacceptable and decided to call an old buddy of his who happened to be the chief of the gas company in Paris. After about an hour of sparring, I got an appointment … for next Friday. Turns out that the day after the July 1 “liberalization” the gas company received 140,000 service complaints and has been receiving about 50,000 per day since. So I guess next Friday is not so bad.

Robin Wright Penn made an appearance in Paris in conjunction with Paris Cinema, a local international film festival where they have screenings in 20 different movie theatres in every arrondissement (district) of Paris, with free access to some showings or a reduced price of 4 € per ticket to others.

After talking about it for about 5 years, I finally organized my first French poker night. There were six of us – two Frenchman, two Italians and two Americans. It was good fun and despite having to teach the rules to a couple of the guys, I managed to lose 10 euros.

And finally, this last weekend was Bastille Day, the closest French of equivalent of our Fourth of July. I managed to get onto the Champs-Elysees to photograph the big military parade. The President of France is always at the head of the parade and just through good fortune, Sarkozy made an unplanned stop to get out of the jeep and shake a few hands … right next to me. So I managed to get a few nice shots of Monsieur Le President.

To see more Bastille Day images, click on this link:

Bastille Day Parade - Favorites

A few photos of the week ...

New rickshaw-style taxis on the streets of Paris

Olives on rue Mouffetard

Concert crowd at Olympia Hall

Rainbow over a factory

Iggy, Smokey, Al, George, Harry & the 4th

2007-07-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

This was a week of “legends” concerts in Paris. The list included 60-year old Iggy Pop (more later), 64-year old George Benson (who I would swear is actually George Foreman) together with 67-year old Al Jarreau, and the legendary 67-year old Smokey Robinson. I can only wish that I am as energetic as these performers are when I reach their age. I’ve never particularly been a fan of Al Jarreau or George Benson but after seeing them on stage, I really appreciate what good performers and musicians they are.
Each concert was notable but for me, Iggy Pop was most memorable. I learned why to many he’s known as the Godfather of Punk; he’s out of his damn mind. I witnessed him do 3 fully-airborne stage dives into the crowd … and that was only during the FIRST song.
But the main reason that it was notable for me was that after the conclusion of the 3rd song (photographers normally only get to shoot the first 3 songs of a concert), when I tried to exit, I was led by security INTO the crowd instead of out the back door. There was near chaos in the crowd and I seriously feared for my safety for a few moments when fans started jumping down from the upper levels of the theatre to get down to the floor level (about a 20-foot drop). Security tried to stop these fans (one security guard actually caught a jumping fan by his long ponytail!) but the dam was crumbling. I eventually got out of there by climbing over a metal fence with all my photo gear in tow. It was just a little bit different than last week’s Streisand concert. ;-)

The specially-decorated Harry Potter III train greeted some of the cast of the film at Gare de Bercy before the French premiere. It was fairly unexciting. The most amusing part was that I almost didn’t photograph one of the stars of the film because I thought I was waiting for Emily Watson and not Emma Watson. As the French say, I’m “null” knowing who’s who in these films.
No luck finding a BBQ but I celebrated the 4th of July by having breakfast at a place I’ve been avoiding for a number of years. It’s called “Breakfast in America” and is a Johnny Rockets-like diner that seemed like the perfect tourist trap. But it was all decked out with American flags so it seemed appropriate on the 4th of July. It wasn’t half bad but I wouldn’t add it to the list of “musts” in Paris.
I had a really nice, unexpected experience this week at an event I ultimately wasn’t allowed to photograph. A fellow photographer tipped me off to an exclusive private party given by Karl Lagerfield and sponsored by Dom Perignon (they had an open bar with Dom Perignon!) coinciding with Haute Couture Fashion week this week. I wasn’t credentialed to photograph the event but since Claudia Schiffer, Karl Lagerfield and other celebrities were expected to attend, I thought I’d try to talk my way in. My press pass got me past the first level of security and I was well positioned on the red carpet when at the last minute, a hell-bitch event organizer re-checked everyone’s event credential and I was caught. I tried using every tactic I learned from the film “Fletch” (“Mr. Underhill must have forgotten to add me to the list”) but had no luck. As I was packing up to leave, a handful of French photographers left their position on the red carpet and together approached the event organizer and told her that they all knew me and that I was legit. It didn’t help but I was quite touched that they took it upon themselves to try to help me. I knew a few of the photographers but others I had only seen a few times but had never spoken to. It was a special moment in my own personal Franco-American relations.

And finally, I had my first firsthand experience with a French hospital. An elderly friend of mine had cataract surgery and I went to go visit her just after the procedure. I have to say that I was quite impressed with the level of cleanliness and professionalism that I witnessed. You hear many stories of the problems with socialized health care systems but I can tell you that after what I witnessed, I would feel quite comfortable if I never needed their services. My friend however disagreed; the bread roll she was served with her meal must have been more than 4 hours old!

A few photos of the week ...

Need a gargoyle?

Summer green
Ecole Polytechnique

Fountain at Chateau de Versailles

Fireworks at Chateau de Versailles

Fountain at Chateau de Versailles

Wish I took this photo ...

Old Singers, Fashion and Shitty Sand

2007-07-01T15:12:00.000-07:00

The active summer season in Paris continued this week. Shot the concerts of a couple of singers who have been around a while … Julio Iglesias and Barbra Streisand. It was Streisand’s first ever performance in France. She told the audience that she was inspired by French actress Sarah Bernhardt; she said she was feeling too tired to come to Europe for a concert at this stage of her career but that if Bernhardt could come to America and act after having a leg amputated, then she figured she could at least find the energy to come to Paris and do a show.

She played in front of a packed house. Those in attendance included the First Lady of France Cecilia Sarkozy and French singing legend Charles Aznavour just to name a few. The day after the concert, Streisand went to the presidential palace and received the French Legion of Honor medal from President Sarkozy. "You are the America that we love," Mr. Sarkozy said.

Men’s Fashion Week started this week. I have to say the men’s fashion doesn’t have near the ambience or excitement (personal or professional!) as the women’s shows. But on the plus side, I receive less bruises since there are fewer large Italian photographers battling for position along the catwalk than during the women’s shows.

One photo I missed this week was of a poster on the metro advertising a family amusement park called “La Mer de Sable” or “The Sea of Sand”. In either an act of marketing genius or complete inanity (I know which I think it is), their website address for the park drops the “La” and is www.merdesable.fr The word “merde” means “shit” in French … so basically their website address translates to www.ShitSand.com. Not since General Motors tried to sell the Chevy Nova in Mexico (No Va means “does not go” in Spanish) without changing the name have I seen such a marketing blunder.

One photo of the week ...

A Fashion Show Attendee

Air Show, Volleyball & George

2007-06-24T05:25:00.000-07:00

The highlight of this week was the big Paris Air Show held just outside Paris in Le Bourget. It’s a grand spectacle (worthy of a visit from John Travolta), basically a massive showing off of what aircrafts are capable of. It did make me feel good knowing that airplanes, even commercial ones like the new giant Airbus A380, can do FAR more than they ever do when we’re on them. And of course the military jets – the F-16s, Superhornets, Mirages, MiGs, etc (I just learned most of these names this week!) are a testament to human technological skill. Too bad they just help us kill.

On the other end of the scale, I had the privilege of photographing women’s professional beach volleyball just next to the Eiffel Tower. Each year, the city sets up a dozen or so temporary sand courts along the Champs de Mars for one of the stops on the women’s professional beach volleyball circuit. I don’t think I need to comment on this very much but let’s just say it wasn’t boring.

Musically, this week I shot George Michael in concert at the Stade de France just outside Paris. I was shocked he could still fill a stadium as big as the Stade de France after so many years but he pretty much did. Hard to say how many people were there but it had to be around 40,000 or so. He still used some of his Wham dance moves but at least didn’t wear those orange Dolphin shorts.

Had dinner this week with a small group of Americans in Paris. That’s a pretty rare occurrence for me – I don’t know many Americans here. Had fun chatting about life in the US, skewering Bush & Company and espousing theories about why the French behave the way they do.

And finally, a small but satisfying victory against my French cell phone operator. After spending 28 euros and probably a couple of hours calling their customer service line (yes, in France YOU pay THEM when you call, the opposite of an 800 number in the US) to report that they made a mistake on my bill, and after going with a friend into one of their stores with the same fury I used to have when dealing with the cable company in LA, they offered me a free month of service – 50 euros worth! And oh yeah, they damn well reimbursed the 28 euros they charged me for calling them. Vive la France!

A couple of photos of the week (including a link to a composite of more images from this week) ...

A rainbow over the French countryside

Two teenage "streakers" attempt to disrupt the women's volleyball match

For more photos of the week - CLICK HERE

Monte Carlo, Ventimiglia & Father's Day

2007-06-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Spent most of this week in Monte Carlo, Monaco photographing an international TV festival. It was very civilized and organized … quite different than what I’m used to in Paris! There were many American TV stars but the highlight for me was shooting Robert Duval, especially this photo.

Another highlight was meeting the Prince of Monaco. Albert looks pretty much like most people’s accountant but is very friendly and rather informal for royalty. I was so tempted to ask him why Monaco has no king but just a series of princes. Does anyone know the answer to this? Is that why it’s a principality or is that term just a coincidence? I have no idea. You can see some of my favorite images from the Festival here:

Monte Carlo TV Festival - Favorites

After the festival was over, I had an extra day before I had to head back to Paris. Since we were only 15 minutes by train from the border of Italy, I decided to spent half a day in Ventimiglia, an Italian border town that is only really known for it’s Friday morning market … and lucky for me that’s when I was there. The market was filled with mostly low-end counterfeit stuff and wasn’t really so impressive. But even though the town was just a few minutes from France, it had a distinctly Italian feel to it. I had a delicious pizza and of course a gelato and then made my way back to Paris via Nice. You can see a few Ventimiglia photos here:

Ventimiglia

Happy Father's Day to everyone it applies to!

Just one photo from the week this week ...

Strange Promotion? Free pizza cutter when you buy fabric softener

Nadal, Henin and Who

2007-06-11T14:50:00.000-07:00

Well 15 straight days of shooting the French Open tennis at Roland Garros is over. It was really great and I’m sure I’ll miss the action soon but right now I could use the rest. Both of this year’s winners – Rafael Nadal & Justine Henin - have won the tournament three times in a row now. I doubt that’s ever happened before.

You can see some of my favorite Roland Garros images from the past two weeks here:

Roland Garros - Favorites

My musical highlight of the week was photographing The Who in concert at Bercy. The do look a bit old but they can still make great music (although Pete Townshend doesn't get quite as high with his jumps as he used to).

A friend of mine visited me from Australia this weekend. She had quite an eventful time in Paris. First, we were able to sneak her into the Women’s Final at Roland Garros so she got to watch the whole match. The next day she was walking around the Marais when a drunk woman approached her and proceeded to hit/slap her upside the head. She was fine but pretty stunned. And finally, the next day on her way out to the airport, her taxi got into a traffic accident (luckily only a small one). Her stay in Paris was short but memorable.

And now a couple of photos from the week ...

Temporary Experimental Garden in front of the Hotel de Ville

Doctor Fister - Internal Medicine

Tennis, Tennis and More Tennis ...

2007-06-03T15:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a week of tennis, tennis and more tennis. I've been shooting the French Open at Roland Garros the better part of each day this week.

Even if you're not a tennis fan, there is much to appreciate at the tournament ... from the people in the stands to the food that is served. You can see some of my favorite images from week 1 of the tournament here:

Roland Garros - Week 1

Not much else to write about - not even Photos of the Week!