Museum Stop: Journey Through Lost Civilizations

Wed, 29 Dec 2010 09:47:00 +0100

The Percy Fawcett of our time are lost in a cloud of internet and technology. The i generation. And I’m part of it. Although, like the great explorers of the ancient times, I also share a lust for defunct civilizations.

The exploration of massive preindustrial cities is an experience hardly describable. In November 2009, i ended up visiting archaeological sites throughout Mexico. The most vivid memories are from Cobá, an undeveloped site located deep in the Yucatan jungle. Drifting through unspoiled nature and one thousand year-old ruins, I stumble on the second largest pyramid of the Mayan world “Nohoc Mul”, “Big Mound” in English. Reach the top of the 42 meters pyramid implied climbing the steep irregular stairs with the help of a rope hanging all along the structure. Worth every penny as a stunning panorama revealed itself.

I paused for a while. Neither from the exhaustion nor the heat nor the long walk among temples, hieroglyphs, fantastically complex carved panels and sculpture of gods and warriors. The utterly peaceful top of the pyramid was propitious for absorbing the strangeness of the site. Were the roots of the Mayan civilization hidden in the ruins? I was at the end of my trip in Mexico. For three weeks, i had been surrounded by the magic of an empire so staggeringly beautiful and intense to grasp.

Last September, I literally ran with enormous expectations to the Cernuschi Museum (7 avenue Velasquez) for the opening of French archaeologists in Angkor. For one more week, the museum located next to the Parc Monceau displays an astonishing photography exhibit about the centenary action of the French School of Asian Studies in Angkor, a UN World Heritage Site in Cambodia. Through 108 photographs, visitors discover the restoration process of the capital of the Khmer Empire led by french archaeologists between 1907 and 1970. They genuinely depict the chaotic state of the site therefore the monumental task the french were facing. The exhibition also emphasizes the evolution of archaeological photography with a series of sketches by Henri Mouhot and pictures of the temples by John Thomson dating respectively from 1860 and 1866.

Since I’ve been to the Cernuschi Museum, my legs are itchy. I’ll definitely stop by for a second look at those photos. I’ve been compensating my thirst for a trip to Angkor by filling my stomach with cambodian/vietnamese food lately. Colline d’Asie (21 rue André del Sarte) serves a sublime, supremely addictive Bô Bun — vermicelli noodles combined with fresh mint, crisp bean sprouts, wok tossed beef and pork spring rolls, finished with peanuts and fried shallots. Highly popular among the neighborhood, most nights you can see through the window door people queuing for take-aways. On both sides of the counter, drawings of Angkor greet the customers.

French archaeologists in Angkor, Cernuschi Museum, 7 avenue Velasquez. Tuesday through Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm until January 2nd 2011. Metro Villiers or Monceau – line 2 and 3.

Colline d’Asie, 21 rue André del Sarte in the 18th (01 55 79 16 82).

Latte Stop: Kooka Boora Café-Shop

Wed, 24 Nov 2010 20:27:00 +0100

Leaving in Montmartre, i systematically avoid the metro. From the top of the 130 meters hill where lays the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur, it takes me 20 to 25 minutes to reach the Louvre. I learnt which street to take depending on where i’m going. I very often go through Rue des Martys. The street is cluttered with numerous bakeries and delis displaying boards on the footpath. Most of them are worth giving a try. About fifteen days ago, i was surprised when i noticed an ad for different kinds of take away coffee by the Kooka Boora Café-Shop. Find a decent take away coffee in this town is a challenge except if you like the starbucks crappuccinos.

One exception though, Merce & the Muse (1 bis rue Dupuis; Metro Temple; www.merceandthemuse.com). Since a review was published in the New York Times (http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/12/in-paris-where-coffee-is-king/), the place attracts a substancial crowd of of english-speaking expats.

Kooka Boora became a regular stop after i had a go at its coffee and cakes. My latte (3,5€ take away, 4€ in) was sweet, creamy, fluffy. It fulfilled my expectations of how my first coffee of the day must taste. Various freshly baked cakes were available with flavors such as beef & sun-dried tomato, artichoke, boletus, amarena cherry, banana bread. Lemon madeleines, financiers and chocolate muffins were also on display with samples welcoming the customers. Prices range from 2€ to 4€ to eat in or take home. I had two slices of the amarena cherry (4€). It was so tender, moist and tasty that i gulped it down in no time.

Kooka Boora Café-Shop, 62 Rue des Martyrs, Metro Pigalle

Parisology

Museum Stop: Journey Through Lost Civilizations

Latte Stop: Kooka Boora Café-Shop