(Not) April in Paris

Frank Sinatra may have sung the praises of April in Paris, but I'm inclined to prefer the autumn. The trees along the Seine are turning russet and gold, the sun still breaks through the cloud with a glorious warmth, and the majority of tourists have returned home, leaving the locals some space. 

Whereas on previous trips to Paris I tended to gallery-crawl, immersing myself in Degas, Rodin and the like, this time I took advantage of the weather to see the city itself, tromping instead along the tree-lined boulevards and through picturesque squares. A photographic book of Parisian sites provided ample inspiration, and tracking down each monument or view felt like a grownups' treasure hunt.Wielding a tripod at the Arc de Triomphe incurred the displeasure of the local police, but otherwise we were able to take photos undisturbed.

Our hotel, the Waldorf Arc de Triomphe (sadly not as glamorous as its namesake though pleasant nonetheless), was a 10 minute walk from the real Arc de Triomphe, so we started our walking tour there. This grand archway is impressive from all directions but surprisingly tricky to photograph: you have to stand a fair way back to get enough of it in the picture, and then the cars, lamp posts and other city debris tend to get in the way. We tried a few different angles but then changed tack and instead focused on the arc's many relief carvings.

The Champs Elysee is busy day and night with tourists and locals alike. You can easily spot the Parisians: they're the well-dressed ones. If you're interested in fashion or people watching in general, this is the place to catch the beautiful people strutting their stuff and to take in some window shopping as you do it.

Moving further down the street, we passed by the Palais des Beaux-Arts, the Place des Concords and the Orangery which houses Monet's superb waterlily paintings. The Tuilerie gardens, a vast open space in the city centre, is stuffed with sculptures historic and modern. A grass labyrinth was under construction as we walked by, as was a multi-coloured fibre-glass structure. The Rodin bronzes were, sadly, in shadow and so not looking their best, but the classical sculptures were looking very fine indeed.

The pyramid at the Louvre must be Paris's most famous site after the Eiffel Tower. Already well-known when it shot further to stardom in The Da Vinci Code, this once controversial structure is now one of Paris's gems. The contrast with its surroundings is indeed stark, but this stands only to emphasise the beauty of both kinds of architecture: in my mind at least they are entirely complimentary. We spent an hour or so towards the end of the day trying to capture the space from new angles, quite a feat in a place so often photographed. I was, however, quite happy with the results.  

Disinclined to take photos as it drew dark and began to drizzle, we retreated home via the funky Tea at Thé tea shop in a square behind the Louvre, where we experimented with their tea sangria and raspberry macaroons. Both, I can firmly say, are a culinary success and definitely to be repeated. 

Our intention to rise early and photograph the balance of city received a set-back from the weather. The previous evening's drizzle had developed into a full-on downpour, and it was not until lunchtime that the sun broke through the clouds. We dodged the showers and made half-hearted attempts to capture the Opera and Place Vendome.

Things picked up when we reached Place des Concords. The spray from the fountains posed a bit of a challenge for the cameras (even the mighty Nikon D3 doesn't care to get wet) but the statues of mermaids and mermen look good from almost any angle and their green and gold colouring stands out even against the most grey of skies. We at first attempted to replicate a shot in our inspiration book, but then decided that our own versions of the scene had the edge after all. 

France is, of course, known first and foremost for its foods and it would be sacrilege to stay in Paris without sampling as much as possible of the cuisine. Other than eating our own weight in glorious, calorie-laden patisserie, we tried out a few bistros spread out across the town. We didn't get as far off the beaten track as we would normally, but enjoyed a reasonably good meal at Le Hanger, a small place a few minutes walk from the Pompidou Centre.

This meal would not have earned mention here if it weren't for the accompanying haul. Max is a natural scavenger. Almost everything is hoarded, whether or not it has an obvious use, and a fully laden skip is an overwhelming temptation, even when he's wearing a suit. Normally I try to dissuade such behaviour - our house is stacked with enough 'useful' pallets, dog-eared cardboard boxes and old newspapers as it is - but on this occasion the finds were almost worth having: half a dozen lengths of unused coving, and two giant pop art artworks on metal boards. 

Taxi drivers anywhere in the world are not keen on transporting outsize luggage, especially late at night, and even more so when it has come out of the rubbish. Few of the taxis would, in any case, have had the requisite boot space and so I trooped back across the city to retrieve the car, leaving Max on the street corner to defend his hoard. Several other well-dressed men took interest in the pile, implying binning is a more widespread leisure pursuit than I thought, so it is just as well he stayed. Range Rover to the rescue, everything fitted in with an inch to spare. Thank God we don't drive a Smart car!

An encounter with Alexander of Macedon

After the British Museum, the Louvre must be one of the world's greatest collections of art and artefacts. The British Museum retains its edge on account of its free entry and general lack of queues, but the Louvre scores bonus points for its spectacular architecture.

There are currently two major exhibitions running at the Louvre, one on the Chinese Emperors, and a second on Macedonian art. As luck would have it, I am dipping into a book on the strategies of Alexander the Great, and so the latter exhibition was the obvious choice given the limited amount of time available and the museum's unwillingness to part with free tickets even after I'd asked for a press pass.

The exhibition, which displays nearly 500 artefacts, is extensive but organised in an accessible fashion. A large mosaic fills the entrance room, and this is followed by an area explaining the key excavations of Macedonia and exhibiting some of the works that they unearthed. Unlike in Greece, professional digs in Macedonia began relatively late, and significant discoveries have been made even within the last decade.

Perhaps because of their recent discovery, the large-format photographs on the walls show sites that are not only well-preserved over time but appear to have been little damaged by their excavation. Tombs belonging to close family members of Alexander the Great appear simply to have been shut up and left: the painting remains clear on the wall and many of the funereal goods look untouched.

In this early part of the exhibition, my favourite artefacts are the bronze helmets found, I think, amongst the tombs. Perhaps never worn in life, these helmets are perfectly preserved and scarcely event dented: one could be forgiven for thinking they are reconstructions. Some of the helmets are decorated with gold, revered for its purity and the belief it could preserve a body even after death, though others are more simple in design.

Elsewhere in the exhibition are a large number of stone sculptures (including busts), some wonderful coloured glassware (always a favourite of mine) and, of course, gold jewellery and other precious items. There is a notable similarity between the items displayed here and those in the recent Afghan exhibition, Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World, at the British Museum, including wonderful gold headdresses. This is a further reminder that the influence Greece (or, specifically in this case, Macedon) had on the art, culture and everyday life of the territories it conquered infiltrated all areas of society and continued to be felt even centuries after the invaders had gone.

I was not allowed to take photos whilst inside the exhibition. Images and more information about the exhibition can, however, be found by following this link to the Louvre´s own website:

http://www.louvre.fr/llv/exposition/detail_exposition.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198674214326&CURRENT_LLV_EXPO%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198674214326&pageId=0&bmLocale=en