Nuit Blanche

Another weekend, another trip to Paris.  I almost tire of it.  (Just kidding, as if!)  This trip was going to be a quick one - 12 hours in Paris to be precise - as we were only there for Nuit Blanche.  With my crappy French on hand, I made the literal translation of 'Night White' and had incorrectly assumed that Nuit Blanche was an annual event whereby all the museums in Paris would be open for visitors from dusk until dawn.  Smee and I got quite happy at the thought of running through the Lourve at 2am.

It was only about 2-3 weeks prior to the trip that I was informed that Nuit Blanche in fact translated into 'sleepless night' and no museums were open.  This was a night to enjoy light and art installations which are placed at random locations around the city.  Hmmm not quite what I expected but Paris is Paris and it will be fun nonetheless.

Smee, Temzy and PF and I boarded our Eurostar and arrived just before the crack of 8pm.  Hungry, we roamed the streets of arrondisement 11 and after being rejected at a few full houses, we stumbled into the bohemian and cosy surroundings of L'Oga, a restaurant whose specialty was exotic meats.  The menu was entirely in French but our skinny, effeminate, funky and patient waiter happily translated any of our queries.

My foie gras de canard and pain d'espice toaste.  Toasted spice cake was so nummy!!  Smee's antelope steak - nummy too!  My cafe delice dessert, a selection of three mini desserts and an espresso.  

We could have very easily resorted to a kebabs so it was a nice surprise to have bumped into L'Oga.  Onwards and upwards to the Nuit Blanche displays!

We were all caught out by the surprisingly warm night and bit by bit we had to peel off off our hats, scarves and jackets.  We had managed to get our hands on an English press pack which detailed each piece and their location which was the reason why we were in arrondisement 11.

Kaleidescope.  Iconic images of contemporary China.  Hypnotic.  (Very stuffy room.)

Comfort #4.  Inflated tubes coming out of the windows.  Looks like worms!  A good time for PF and Smee to participate in a tug-of-war game.  They didn't win :(

Mon Repos Aux Tuileries.  A burnt out van lit from inside by a chandelier.  Naice! 

I can't remember what this is because I can't find it in the guide.  These carvings are actually also musical instruments.  I'm enjoying stroking this block because it sounded like a soft harp!

Harmonichaos.  This was a room filled with vacuum cleaners with harmonicas attached to the head.  Every so often the vacuum cleaners would turn on and make the harmonica sound.  Cool in a creepy way.  Klub Europa.  A decapitated dinosaur.  

Snooze.  Ok this photo was taken with a flash, but the room was actually pitch black and only lit by the LED lights of the alarm clocks.  By this time, it was about 5am and it seemed to be a refuge for people wanting a quick nap.  

Other pieces of note were the Offrez Moi Votre Silence, Lucioles and Metroscope.  Two didn't photographed well because of our lack of skill and the other was a visual installation on the Metro .

Offrez Moi Votre Silence had all the lights in and around the Notre Dame switched off.  This emphasised the natural illumination of the church's stained glass windows.  It was also the place where we had a little break and watched some freestyle French rapping and beat-boxing.  So cool woaaaarr.

Lucioles was a pretty display of little green lights suspended over a hospital courtyard and with the warm night with us, it was very relaxing to lie down and stare at the green little electric fireflies.

Metroscope was on Metro line 9 between Republique and Strasbourg St. Denis stations.  The line ran all night and slowed down between the two stations to show performers posing in giant batwing-like cloaks to resemble certain letters of the alphabet.

The Metro crowd was most pleased.

After walking around all night long we returned to Gare du Nord for our 8am Eurostar.  This was the first time I had stayed up all night in a looooooooooong time and yes we were all beat and grumpy.  

Outside the Gare du Nord McDonalds, Smee and I found this 'bonus' art installation.  I couldn't find him listed in the official Nuit Blanche guide.  

Nuit Blanche - would I return?  It was a lovely night and there was a definite vibe in the city but I wouldn't make a special trip for it again.  I would only go if it happened to coincide with my Paris visit and if I had a hotel room.  I can't pull all-nighters anymore.  I'm too old for that shit!  

Fino

Smee couldn't wait for me to come back to London so that we could eat at Fino together.  It is a sister restaurant to Barrafina and unlike the latter, they accept reservations (yay) so there is no need to queue for 40 minutes.  Smee had his first taste at a friend's birthday and was especially impressed with the suckling pig.  Despite all the dreams about eating more piglets, he managed to resist returning to the restaurant in my absence.

Tonight was the night and with the bucketing of rain outdoors, it was sure nice to walk into the cosy restaurant den.  We began with a nice bottle of Rioja and then waited for our food to arrive.

Pimientos de Padron.  Seasonal seafood is available daily.  We settled on squid in it's own ink, wrapped in panchetta and razor clams.  Num nums. 

Tuna tartar with guacamole.  Food blogging comes with it's risks and because I am such a duh-brain, I dropped my camera into the guacamole :-S  Grilled octopus with capers drizzled in paprika olive oil.  (I think). Mixed tomato salad.  Num nums again. 

Chorizo and aioli tortilla.  Same as the Barrafina one - nothing impressive.  The piece de resistance - suckling pig with crispy skin.  These little oink-oinks must be ordered 48 hours in advance.  We were not a big enough party to warrant ordering an entire Segovian piglet but this quarter hind was quite enough.  The little pot of piggy juice to eat with your succulent piggy meat.  NUM NUMS!!!!! 

We were full but hey, why not go all the way and have dessert too?

Leche Frita - literally, Fried Milk/Custard.  I could not resist.  My mouth waters looking at this picture.  Spanish donuts.  Well, they're just normal cinnamon/sugar dusted donuts, but when they're fresh they are so yummy.  Yummy I tells ya!  

Yep, I'll come back here.  Priced towards the moderate end of the market, I would say that the cost of each dish is still fair without feeling entirely ripped-off.  Our dinner was a little bit more than the average meal because of the piglet.  I guess I'll always have a more expensive dinner bill because when I return, I'll be having more piglet-goodness!

Bottled Boat

Those familiar with Trafalgar Square will know that Nelson's column sits in the centre with the famous four lions at it's base.  Four plinths are placed at each corner and while statues adorn three of the plinths, the fourth one has remained empty since the 1800s.  (They ran out of money hehe.)

For some years now, they have kept the plinth as a site for temporary pieces of modern art.  Recently, they allowed members of the public to climb on top of it and perform whatever they wanted.  That was pretty cool.

Something just as cool is the latest piece of art - a giant ship in a bottle.

You don't think it's cool?  Well, I think it's pretty cool.