Searching For Kiki De Montparnasse

 I am leaving for Paris at the end of this week

but will also be exploring the beautiful city of Lyon and

the Rhone/Alps area as well.  But honestly for me, 

it's always all about Paris.

I found a cute little artist cottage to rent just off the major

streets of Montparnasse.  I have only stayed in this area of Paris

once many, many years ago but I thought it would be fun to walk

in the footsteps of some the Parisian greats.

While looking through photographs of Montparnasse, I

was intrigued by the mention of a most 

famous woman  of the 1920's.

Her name was Kiki De Montparnasse.

She was a French artist model, a nightclub singer, an

actress and a painter.  Kiki was considered to be one of

the century's first independent women.

 Montparnasse was well known for it's cafe society

where all the intellectuals and artisans would gather to drink

and exchange ideas.  On the Boulevard Montparnasse sits some of

the most famous spots in Paris where the cultural elite would meet.

Le Select was one of the most popular.

 And of course, La Rotonde just down the street.

Today, this is a very popular place for Sunday brunch.

 And my favorite ... Le Dome.

So beautiful and the food is wonderful.

An old boyfriend met me in Paris years ago and took me to 

Le Dome for my birthday.  In May, the oysters are

flown in from all over the world and if you are an

oyster lover, you think you might have died 

and gone to heaven.

I love the Art Deco decor and you can imagine seeing 

F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein 

and Henri Matisse sitting there enjoying

 a wonderful lunch or dinner.

 But it will be Kiki De Montparnasse that I will

be thinking about when I walk through the streets of Montparnasse.

How could you not be interested in a woman who said....

"All I need is an onion, a piece of bread and a bottle of red wine

and I will always find someone to offer me that."

She sounds like a delightful character and a good

subject for one of my painted pillows.

I will be searching for books and photos

of this most interesting Parisian femme.

Not sure I will be writing my blog while I am away

but I will be taking lots of photos and being inspired

by all the wonderful stories of this beautiful city.