A Foretaste of Easter: le Train du Chocolat is in Paris

You are fond of chocolate? You are counting the days until Easter? If you are in Paris this week I suggest you to visit the ‘Train du Chocolat’. It is a real train made of four carriages which goes from station to station in Paris and offers a free exhibition to learn more about the history, the production and the tasting of cocoa and chocolate.

Who were the first eaters of cocoa before men? What is the xocoatl? Who brought cocoa and chocolate from Central America to Spain in 1528? When was built the first chocolate factory in Spain? How did chocolate arrive to France? Who are the top five producers of cocoa? Who are the top five consumers of chocolate? etc

You will get the answers to all those questions in the very interesting exhibition offered by Yves Thuriès in the ‘Train du Chocolat’. The train will stop at the Gare du Nord on Thursday 19 March, at the Gare de l’Est on Saturday 21, and at the Gare Saint Lazare on Sunday 22. And if you miss it, you can either wait until next year… or visit Chocostory, the Parisian Museum of Chocolate, open all year.

#trainduchocolat – Free – Open from 10am till 7pm – Until 22 March

Christine Bokobza – Good Morning Paris B&B – www.goodmorningparis.fr

 

Visit the Exhibition Paris Magnum before 25 April : it’s free

The Hotel de Ville organizes regularly free exhibitions on the theme of Paris. Those exhibitions take place in one of the main halls of the building and are the opportunity at once to see a quality exhibition for free and to enter the beautiful town hall of Paris.

After Doisneau in 2012 or Brassai in 2014 the current exhibition is called Paris Magnum and presents photographies taken in Paris by the photographers of the prestigious agency. It shows the history of Paris through pictures from the Popular Front in 1936 until today, all taken by famous artists as Robert Capa, Herbert List, Marc Riboud, Raymond Depardon, … The liberation of Paris in 1944 or the demonstrations in May 1968 are beautifully and copiously illustrated. In addition to that black and white portaits of André Malraux, Gérard Philippe, Serge Gainsbourg, … are really not to be missed.

The exhibition has just been extended until 25 April ; all the more reason for visiting it !

Practical information : Monday to Saturday – from 10.00 till 18.30 – 5 rue Lobau 75004 Paris – Metro Hôtel de Ville (lines 1, 11) – free admission

Christine Bokobza – Good Morning Paris B&B – www.goodmorningparis.fr

Last Days for Ice Skating in Front of the City Hall in Paris

Until 1st March 2015 it is still possible to go skating on the huge rink in front of the Hotel de Ville in Paris. It is the most popular and the largest ice skating rink temporarily set up every winter in Paris. The location is quite simply magical especially when the sun goes down and the city lights go on : the floodlit facade of the Hotel de Ville, beautiful building from the 19th century, is amazing at night. And in the background one can see the towers of Notre Dame.

The admission is free if you bring your own skates. Otherwise it is 6€, skate rental included. Until 1st March : Monday and Thursday : 12.00 till 22.00 – Friday and Saturday : 9.30 till midnight – Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday : 9.30 till 22.00. More information (in French…)

And if you miss it, do not worry. For sure the ice skating rink will be there again next winter from mid December 2015 !

Christine Bokobza – Good Morning Paris B&B – www.goodmorningparis.fr