OCLA's Molly gives us an update on all the best stuff to see and do in Paris, en ce moment.
Little did I know while unwrapping a piece of luggage on my birthday in October that two months later I would be stuffing it full of dresses for Paris! On account of business, my boyfriend Matt found himself in need of a trip to France, and in a spontaneous, romantic gesture, decided to bring me along for Christmas. Suddenly, a Paris vacation was conceived along with an ambitious list of to-dos that somehow managed to surpass even my idealized expectations.
For an entire week, we set up residence in the most charming apartment in all of Paris, my dream apartment realized. Located in a 19th century building in the Marais, our little home was equipped with antique furniture, beautiful herringbone hardwood floors, and a library of wall-to-wall books. Best of all, we had a Christmas tree! On the first night, a rainy one, we stayed in to cook dinner, drink wine, read books, and create the aforementioned to-do list for the upcoming week.
Our week was the perfect combination of obligatory sightseeing (the Paris Flea Market, ice skating at the Hotel Deville, the Champs-Élysées Christmas Market, a kiss in front of the Eiffel Tower) and a more intimate glimpse into Parisian culture as we explored our neighborhood. We soon began to feel like locals and fell into patterns of cafés and bakeries to frequent— we even became regulars at David Lynch’s Club Silencio. Here is a list of my favorite nightclubs and gallery exhibitions from the trip. Check out everything else we got up to on my blog HERE.
David Lynch’s Club Silencio
Introduced by a friend as “mes amis d’Hollywood”, we waltzed through the velvet ropes of David Lynch's members-only Club Silencio entirely unscathed. Still to go was a winding six-flight stairwell to a cave-like setting that no one on rue Montmartre above could ever imagine was beneath. Inspired by Lynch’s Mulholland Drive, the space is at once eerie and intriguing and invites the eye to explore every strange nook. Long corridors separate tunnel like rooms, each with their own mood, such as a mirrored forest, or a library of books. Any form of photography is highly eschewed, so naturally the giant flash of my hardly discreet Fuji Instax resulted in a less than thrilled bartender. (The same bartender later offered his condolences by way of a beautifully crafted cocktail of basil and vodka. I found this to be a fair offer and thus the matter was solved amicably.)
Le Pompon
Le Pompon is set in an old synagogue in the 10th arrondissement and houses a downstairs club, with an understated interior, aside from a large, neon letter ‘P’. This evening, however, I cared much less about the décor of the interior as I was too busy enjoying the music provided by my boyfriend, the guest DJ! After hours, we sipped champagne on ice or piscine, and just when I thought it was time to go home, I learned that still to come were Silencio, Le Baron, and a search for an end of eve bowl of French onion soup.
Diane Arbus at the Jeu de Paume
The Diane Arbus exhibition entirely lived up to my expectations. Located at the Jeau de Paum, a modern art gallery in the Tuileries Gardens, the show spans nearly 200 images including a combination of her most iconic works and many lesser known, never before exhibited pieces. Though Arbus is known for her square format, black and white images that offer an uncensored celebration for marginal characters i
Little did I know while unwrapping a piece of luggage on my birthday in October that two months later I would be stuffing it full of dresses for Paris! On account of business, my boyfriend Matt found himself in need of a trip to France, and in a spontaneous, romantic gesture, decided to bring me along for Christmas. Suddenly, a Paris vacation was conceived along with an ambitious list of to-dos that somehow managed to surpass even my idealized expectations.
For an entire week, we set up residence in the most charming apartment in all of Paris, my dream apartment realized. Located in a 19th century building in the Marais, our little home was equipped with antique furniture, beautiful herringbone hardwood floors, and a library of wall-to-wall books. Best of all, we had a Christmas tree! On the first night, a rainy one, we stayed in to cook dinner, drink wine, read books, and create the aforementioned to-do list for the upcoming week.
Our week was the perfect combination of obligatory sightseeing (the Paris Flea Market, ice skating at the Hotel Deville, the Champs-Élysées Christmas Market, a kiss in front of the Eiffel Tower) and a more intimate glimpse into Parisian culture as we explored our neighborhood. We soon began to feel like locals and fell into patterns of cafés and bakeries to frequent— we even became regulars at David Lynch’s Club Silencio. Here is a list of my favorite nightclubs and gallery exhibitions from the trip. Check out everything else we got up to on my blog HERE.
David Lynch’s Club Silencio
Introduced by a friend as “mes amis d’Hollywood”, we waltzed through the velvet ropes of David Lynch's members-only Club Silencio entirely unscathed. Still to go was a winding six-flight stairwell to a cave-like setting that no one on rue Montmartre above could ever imagine was beneath. Inspired by Lynch’s Mulholland Drive, the space is at once eerie and intriguing and invites the eye to explore every strange nook. Long corridors separate tunnel like rooms, each with their own mood, such as a mirrored forest, or a library of books. Any form of photography is highly eschewed, so naturally the giant flash of my hardly discreet Fuji Instax resulted in a less than thrilled bartender. (The same bartender later offered his condolences by way of a beautifully crafted cocktail of basil and vodka. I found this to be a fair offer and thus the matter was solved amicably.)
Le Pompon
Le Pompon is set in an old synagogue in the 10th arrondissement and houses a downstairs club, with an understated interior, aside from a large, neon letter ‘P’. This evening, however, I cared much less about the décor of the interior as I was too busy enjoying the music provided by my boyfriend, the guest DJ! After hours, we sipped champagne on ice or piscine, and just when I thought it was time to go home, I learned that still to come were Silencio, Le Baron, and a search for an end of eve bowl of French onion soup.
Diane Arbus at the Jeu de Paume
The Diane Arbus exhibition entirely lived up to my expectations. Located at the Jeau de Paum, a modern art gallery in the Tuileries Gardens, the show spans nearly 200 images including a combination of her most iconic works and many lesser known, never before exhibited pieces. Though Arbus is known for her square format, black and white images that offer an uncensored celebration for marginal characters i