Thursday 30 August 2007

Rue Joseph Vernet

My current fascination for reflections quickly shows itself in the photos I'm taking around town. Strolling along rue Joseph Vernet I found many interesting shop windows. This old street is locally renown for its upmarket shopping. Look carefully at the photos, there's a lot to see.

Here's an antiques shop, interesting mix of ancient objects inside the shop and reflections in the window of the old building across the street.

Further along, an upholsterer ('tapissier' in French) advertises with his tools of trade, cisors and hammer, engraved in his shop window reflecting the façade nd arcades across.

Still closed at this early hour, a shop selling upmarket bathroom accessories, large mirror reflecting the street and the building across. Here in Avignon and throughout most of France, shops open at 9:00 am, close at midday and reopen between 2 and 7 pm.
The sun hasn't hit the street yet, hence the grey facades you see. Later in the day, the tones turn to blinding white at midday and golden hot in the afternoon - but that you will see another day.
Last but not least, this bookshop specialising in old and rare editions.
Look at the dog in the shop window, next to a book whose title is "Congress of the Learned Societies of Provence" (not sure which year?) - is this a learned dog too, has he read all the books?
On a personal note: this weekend marks the end of the summer holidays in France. Tomorrow Monday 3rd September, my daughter goes back to school, her first day back in the French system after six and a half years of english-speaking schooling in Australia. I hope she adjusts well to the big change. This will be this year's challenge.
Also please be kind if I don't visit your blogs as often as I would like to. I don't have an internet connection in my little studio apartment and I depend on friends or cyber cafes for web access. A very frustrating state of affairs for someone who is used to web-based work and having all-day connection. Please bear with me during this uncomfortable month of September...


23 comments:

Chuckeroon said...

.....naturally I will bear with you. Well done with the reflections. You have been lucky not have nothing but cars and street clutter, which is the what I usually get with "reflections". Loved the doggy! Now that you are on my Bloglines feed I'll catch your next without having to hunt!!!

Greetings from Richmond upon Thames CDP

isa said...

I am strolling with you, Nathalie!
So much to see, on just one street...

Best of luck to your lovely daughter!

rauf said...

oh delightful reflections Nathalie.
i loved the antique shop and the old book store, everything is so stylish.
Been away on forest treks Nathalie.
Hope you are doing fine
Your daughter will adapt well and make new friends, children adjust very quickly Nathalie.

Anonymous said...

Lovely photos , wishing your daugher the very best of luck adjusting to her new school.

CaBaCuRl said...

That bookshop looks divinely inviting...I can almost smell the books.Yes, of course we will bear with you....moving to a new location brings many challenges.Hope your daughter settles well in her new school.

claude said...

Belles et intéresantes photos ! Bon courage à la petite pour sa nouvelle école.

Cergie said...

Lorsque je suis arrivée du vietnam pour la première fois en France, j'avais trois ans et ne parlait pas le français
Et puis j'ai appris, peu après je chantais tout le temps cette chanson de Line Renaut
Combien pour ce chien dans la vitrine ?
J'aimais surtout faire "Ouah ouah ouah !"
Je m'étais mise dansle coup !

Qd plus tard à l'age de ta fille je sui revenue d'Afrique, il lm'a fallu trois mois pour rattrapper les tics de langage et les références
Mais en tout cas, le plus d'avoir été à l'étranger je le garde encore en moi...
Ca va aller, Nathalie...

Tes photos sont à l'image de cet automne qui vous vient et de cette rentrée, un peu brouillée, comme à travers d'un rideau de nostalgie.
Elles nous renvoient une idée des deux mondes auxquels vous appartenez et auxquels il ne vous faut pas renoncer...

Anonymous said...

Reflection, thinking and meditation are very closed.
I loved the title of a book "Les miroirs feraient bien de réfléchir". ( by Français Bot if I remember).

Olivier said...

belle serie de reflet, avec une tres belle enseigne de tapissier. J'aime beaucoup aussi la librairie, elle me fait rever.
Et oui, demain deja la rentrée des enfants, tu vas enfin pouvoir respirer ;o))) Le retour a une ecole française ne va pas etre facile pour ta fille, mais elle aura l'avantage d'etre totalement bi-langue...

Anonymous said...

It`s nice to have a look now and then your city!
With good wishes to you and your daughter!

Pod said...

bonjour madame! best of luck with it all. i can see a reflection of you, non? aah! and look at the learned doggie's little mouth! cuteness!
bisous!

Peter said...

I suppose your daughter is completely bi-lingual? But, even so, of course, with different schools systems it may not be easy the first couple of weeks. At the end, once she has adapted, I guess her experience from abroad should rather be an advantage. Which class?

Nice with all these reflexions. Obviously all the sop windows were quite clean? That helps to get nice photos.

I hope the connectivity problems I have had our now at the end. A guy from the provider just left and now it seems to work fine (touch wood). I hope you can soon get to the network in an easier way.

julia said...

Everywhere you turn is waiting a delightful photo opportunity, what a bonus!

Anonymous said...

J'aime les livres anciens, et leur odeur qui raconte toujours une histoire. Belle série de photos. Quant à la rentrée, les enfants s'acclimatent vite non?
Bon courage

Anonymous said...

Bravo pour la jolie transition d'un pont à l'autre...

Talk to you soon. Busy busy for now. Not even some time available for my blog, which is a shame. I know.

Hope everything is going fine for you.
Good luck to In. Ad started yesterday. So far so good.

Nice shots, you're doing pretty well ;-)

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous, clean windows that show such nice reflections. The warm colors of the bookstore are inviting, as is the doggie. You have excellent taste in photo choices.

How has your daughter liked her first days of French school this week? The first day is the hardest, don't you think? All the unknowns. Best of everything to her.

Of course I will be patient. I hope you can be too :)

Olivier said...

alors comment c'est passe la rentree des petits australiens ?

Anonymous said...

I really like the photo of the bookshop - but I love bookshops anyway. The nice, cozy, armchair feeling with all that reading at your fingertips. I've been comparing these photos with your reflections from Sydney, and the effect is like chalk and cheese. I have to admit that I prefer the Sydney ones - I think it's got something to do with modern city vs. old city. Seems to work differently. Maybe it's that modern city life echoes these dis-orienting mix-ups and juxtapositions

DS2944 said...

Superbe série avec une préférence pour le première et la quatrième. Belle maitrise des réflexions ! Encore, encore ...

sonia a. mascaro said...

Wonderful photos with all these reflexions!

Fabrizio Zanelli said...

Well I don't know from where to start. **Each** your photo is a piece of art and I'm so sorry not to have all the time I would to link daily each DP I love.

In all these images I like the reflection predominat. The unique, the only thing able to let us "touch" rhose window shop you were seeing strolling there

Anonymous said...

This is a wonderful window series, ending with such a classic. Well done!

Anonymous said...

Good for people to know.

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