The inexperienced mother mangabey became too rough with her baby and broke its arm. Wearing a cast is a hard way to start off life for a newborn. Coumba, the female Mangabey was born in February 2011 and by the age of one and a half months was wearing an arm cast. Coumba’s arm repaired quickly as you will see in the Paris Mayor’s video.

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Although the curves of the building are merely derivative, what makes it really noticeable are the sculptured human forms jutting out from the balconies on the top floor. Sometimes labelled caryatids in descriptions of the building, these are actually telamons or atlantes, as the figure is most definitely male! In fact, the figure is based on Michelangelo’s dying slave sculpture, which can be found today in the Louvre.

Manolo Nunez-Yanowski is very much a postmodern architect and, unsurprisingly, worked with Ricardo Bofill on several projects. Indeed, two of their most well-known creations can be seen alongside each other in the town of Noisy le Grand to the east of Paris. The Arènes de Picasso for Nunez-Yanowski  (sometimes known as “The Camembert), and Le Palacio for Bofill.

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The other stories of this large church refer to the “kept women” of the surrounding neighborhood. Many wealthy men of this period had mistresses as well as wives, many of whom attended the same Sunday services.

When a friend of mine first told me about the Musée, I’d imagined a large, bland warehouse space displaying all of these pieces. Boy was I in for a shock! The space is colorful, ornately decorated, and exquisitely lit; it’s a place I would totally love to live in.

I’d also been told at the time that the Musée des Arts Forains was closed to the public and could only be visited by appointment; presumably for journalists, private events, and the like. But then around November a couple years ago I learned that the Musée would be open to the public throughout the month of December! This was a huge deal, and I visited as soon as I could. The next year I hoped they’d open up again for December, and they did, so I visited a second time. The pictures on this page are from my two visits, in 2009 and 2010. The Musée is open to the plubic once again this December (2011), and I hope they continue this tradition forever.

The range of dates that the Musée is open changes from year to year, so be sure to check their website for exact dates and times.
My favorite exhibit: “La Course de Garçons de Café” — “The Race of Café Waiters,” featuring Parisian café waiters delivering wine!

53 Avenue des Terroirs de France, 75012, Phone: 01 43 40 16 22, Métro: Cour Saint-Émilion

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Last month, architects Anne Lacaton, Jean-Philippe Vassal, and Frédéric Druot picked up the Equerre d’argent 2011, an annual architecture prize awarded by the Moniteur press group. The judges saluted the way that the team had reimagined a structure that was originally built in the 1960s, transforming it from a banal concrete block to a sustainable building that is open to its surroundings and filled with natural light.

The architects’ leitmotif is ‘détruire, c’est gaspiller’ (destruction is waste). For this project, nothing was removed, but 3500m² of space was added to the 100 apartments, mostly by adding ‘winter gardens’ and balconies. For the people living in the tower block – none of whom needed to be rehoused during the work – an additional 20 to 60m was added to their homes. On top of this, heating costs will be drastically reduced and noise pollution from the neighbouring motorway will almost completely disappear.

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In this unseasonably warm winter, faux snow and Christmas trees add a welcome holiday feel. Within, it’s a white, light, bright winter wonderland. Fake fur throws cover ample sofas and warming rugs are tucked beneath each table in case you need something extra cozy under which to snuggle.

For this type of operation, I appreciate the simplicity of the one and only drinking option: Champagne. There are three choices: Tattinger Brut Reserve (20 euros per glass), Tattinger Rose (21 euros) or Tattinger Brut Millesime (28 euros). For a few euros extra, add on the bulle fraicheur (barsnack in a ball). On my visit the bulle was a bread stick wrapped in a thin slice of duck breast on a generous mound of mascarpone dip.

The bar holds a maximum of 35 guests at a time and has a no-reservations policy. Going at opening (6pm) means you’ll enjoy the place in relative peace. Later it gets livelier with larger groups. The acoustics of the bubble are those of a whispering gallery: every conversation is amplified and sounds moves about the space in strange ways. Friendly doormen carefully monitor entries and exits via the two-door system to make sure one door remains closed at all times. Apparently if both doors are open at once, the dome deflates!

51 rue de Courcelles, 75008

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Why that piece in particular? I think there is a reason. Only a few visitors know the story behind this particular sculpture. And most guidebooks give the barest outline. Essentially, it is this:

In the early part of the Hundred Years’ War, Edward III of England conducted a siege of Calais that lasted close to a year. Eventually, in August 1347, the inhabitants of Calais surrendered to the English forces. Edward III demanded that six of the most prominent citizens (burghers) leave the city with nooses around their necks, carrying the keys to the city. Six Calais citizens walked out to meet the king barefoot, in rags, gaunt from a year of near-starvation. Edward ordered that they be beheaded. His wife, however, intervened. According to the medieval chronicler Jean Froissart, the heavily pregnant Queen Philippa threw herself at her husband’s feet and said:

“Gentle sir, since I have crossed the sea from my home in great peril to be with you, I have desired nothing of you. Now therefore I humbly beg you, in honour of God and for the love of me, that ye will have mercy on these six citizens.”

The king looked sullenly at the queen and then said: “Ah, dame, I would you had been elsewhere, for if ye make such request to me, I cannot deny you. Wherefore I give them to you, to do your pleasure with them.”

The queen caused the six citizens to be brought to her apartment, had them clothed in garments suitable to their station, and gave them dinner. Finally she had each of them brought out of the English host under safe guard and set at liberty.

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The Metro Why I miss it: Despite its ingenuity, the London Tube is something all Londoners love to complain about. The Paris metro may be no less hectic, but it somehow manages to achieve a ‘romantic icon’ status in the city (at least to non-residents). What gives the Paris Metro that certain ‘je ne sais quoi’? The way Hector Guimard’s sculpted Art Nouveau entrances, also known as a ‘bouche de metro’, swallow you from the hustle and bustle of the street into the gleaming white underbelly of the city? Or the quaint little door handles on the carriages, that make you feel as though you’re on an old train? Whatever it is, I just couldn’t imagine a young girl called Amelie stumbling across the love of her life in any other setting. My Top Tips: If you’re visiting Paris, make sure you travel on the Metro at least once, as it’s a tourist attraction in its own right. The Palais Royal – Musée du Louvre station is famous for its epic station art and the entrance on Place Colette was redesigned by Jean-Michel Othoniel in 2000 to celebrate the new Millennium.

Flea Markets Why I miss it: Flea markets originated in France when ‘fishermen of the moon’ scoured rubbish, to see if they could find anything to sell on for a profit. In the UK ‘vintage’ has become very fashionable, and the ladies of Portobello Road can drive high prices because of popular demand, but French Flea Markets still hold some of the quirky authenticity of their humble beginnings. There are endless treasures to be discovered weather you’re trying to barter at one of the 300 stalls in The Porte de Vanves, or getting lost among one of the thousands in Porte de Clignancourt. You can people watch here and be entertained for hours, or browse and browse without ever buying anything. Ultimately, the thing I enjoy most is exercising my very dubious language skills to barter with the sellers. My Top Tips: As with any market, get there early to eye up the really good stuff before it gets too crowded. Watch your belongings throughout the day (tourists are vulnerable to pickpockets) and don’t be frightened to haggle the price down. Don’t leave before you’ve tasted some market food either – delicious!

Good Food 24/7 Why I miss it: London has a thriving gastronomic scene which rivals any other in the world, but if you’re ravenously hungry past 12pm then there are usually only two options available to you – cook something yourself, or go to the only restaurant still serving: McDonald’s. Meanwhile, in Paris, they are so dedicated to cooking and eating that one baker has actually created a vending machine that bakes fresh baguettes for you any time of the day and night. It works by storing the fresh dough inside, then when you put your money in and make a request, it quickly bakes the dough – et voila! My Top Tips: Food 24 hours a day is really what it’s all about at Au Pied De Cochon (6 Rue Coquilliѐre – 750001) – which serves traditional French fare literally 24 hours a day. Make a reservation for the busy lunchtime period and tuck into some wonderfully comforting French onion soup, their cheesy specialty. Or, if you’re feeling decadent, drop in for oysters and champagne at 3am in the morning!
Amy Heritage writes about luxury travel for holidaychic.co.uk