"The Delights of Spring: Flowers on the Rooftops, at the Window, and on the Ground"
Flowers are my favorite part of Spring. I just love their beautiful colors and fragrances.
Although only a minority of Parisians can say that they have un jardin sur le toit (a garden on the rooftop), it's still Parisian-and quite dreamy might I add! Marie Claire Maison did a small article over this garden which overlooks the City of Love. Interestingly there is also a children's playhouse up there! See the article for more pics and details; however, on doit le lire en francais. (You must read it in French!) From what I read, his strategy was to pull off of the problems with the rooftop - too many chimneys- and create small, separate gardens.
An interesting thing about the French, is there love for dining outdoors during the summers; they have the perfect climate and in mid-summer the sun doesn't set before 9:30pm. Honestly, I am not sure of the exact hour of sunset. (I will look into the exact hour.) This rooftop garden also has an outdoor salle à manger -"diningroom," and these plants serve as a barrier from the wind. Do they take out-of -country reservations for two?? Can you imagine celebrating an anniversary here? Ça sera romantique, n'est-ce pas? (Translation- That would be romantic wouldn't it?)
I snapped this photo from a tour bus! Yeah, touristy!
Provided that only a fraction of Parisians have a rooftop garden, only a minority could boast of having such a beautifully sculptured window. The first time I visited Paris (about 8 years ag0) was at the end of May, and one of my first memories is that of looking up at all of the apartment windows (fancy or plain) and seeing them peppered with window boxes loaded with bright magenta and red Geraniums! These window boxes were their only personal slices of earth-of nature. (Now we understand why Paris has so many public gardens)! Can you imagine owning only a couple of square feet for your own outdoor plants? We should all be so thankful for any space we have.
One interesting thing I learned while touring Paris was that these window boxes, while beautiful, actually serve a functional purpose- the scent of Geraniums actually deter mosquitos from entering through an open window. And most Parisians rely on that open window for air current during those hot summer months- pas de climatisation (no air-conditioning)!
I took this picture in the gardens of the Château de Chenonceau. Here's another prime picnic place-only in our dreams- one is not allowed to walk on the grass - pelouse interdite!
Flowers from my garden last summer
If you are not from Texas, this is what we look forward to seeing along the highways here- a blanket of bluebonnets! When I was a French teacher, I passed by this beautiful field on the way to work every April! One day I finally trespassed and got a few quick pictures!
I included these last two pictures just for fun. As I was discussing our unpredictable Texas weather in my last post over Picnics, I remembered when it snowed in April a couple of years ago. It was surreal. It rarely snows in this part of Texas and too have more than an inch of snow after most of the trees had leafed out and while flowers were blooming-that was incroyable!
A Violet Iris Topped with Snow - What a contrast!
Neige en avril (2007)