Another flâneur in Paris#
Posted 2025-03-05
One of the Bastille Metro entries
From The Art Story: "the concept of the flâneur developed in Paris in the mid nineteenth century and later spread to other European cities ... First and foremost a leisurely observer of urban life, a flâneur was someone that walked through a city, watching, but not participating in the things they saw. This allowed the viewer to experience and analyze city life from a detached, or external viewpoint."
This is the perfect calling for an introvert whose circumstances bring him to Paris about once a year. It combines outdoor time, a good bit of moderate-impact exercise, and a feast for one's curiosity and wonder. I thank Paris and several other cities I've flaneured for permitting me to fade into the crowd and to learn from and be inspired by it and the cityscape.
What follows is a mix of photos from my strolling -- see caption below each. I don't get credit as a flâneur in all cases, as I was in some of them enjoying the pleasant company of my daughter.
One of the Rue des Boulets Metro entries -- evening view
The prominence of the French Republic motto
The motto that prevailed through several iterations of revolution -- Liberté, égalité, fraternité -- is especially important and poignant to me, a U.S. citizen, at the time I am writing this. Observant visitors to France will have noted that this fine motto crowns the facade of literally every public education institution. I salute this practice and hope it enables France to remain true to its core enlightenment values through many generations to come.
The motto atop the Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University law school faculty building
The motto adorning a Paris kindergarten-age school
A few facets of city life
Vive le marché!: I love the abundance of outdoor markets throughout the city (throughout all of France really); they're the optimal source of fresh ingredients for stocking one's kitchen and improvising a tasty meal.
One of the scores of neighborhood outdoor market days
Keeping history alive via sculpture, monuments, and integrated archaeology: Paris has been cultivating this habit through the ages, so there seem to be inspiring elements at every turn; the following pictures capture the assortment to be encountered in the span of a walking adventure.
Triumph of the Republic sculpture at the Paris Nation square
Colonne de Juillet at the Bastille intersection
Lion sculptures guard each entrance to the statue-festooned Hôtel de Ville
The Arènes de Lutèce -- Roman amphitheater ruins -- serve as the unique courtyard for a city block
The "Marianne" statue at the Place de la République square (apologies for the camera angle)
Homage to train-oriented culture
I salute France and western Europe in general for keeping passenger train transport -- inner and inter city -- vibrant as the automobile alternative emerged. I'm always intrigued by the speed and convenience, and I notice incremental improvements have been made from one visit to the next.
I devoted a couple hours to a caffè crema-fueled traveller-watching session at Gare de Lyon; below are a few highlights.
The Gare de Lyon facade
The waiting and boarding area from a stairway vantage point
These modern, fast trains await passengers in the same spot their steam-train predecessors did in bygone times
A regal clock that has marked off generations of travel
Merci Paris for the spring-anticipating refresh
This minor flâneur intends to be back again.
A lovely afternoon at Place de la Nation