Cooling and calming it down a notch

Paris is trying to lower the temperature and quiet the noise in some interesting ways.

Changing the pavement is one of those ways.  Three pilot projects are underway in Paris where a new type of asphalt -- called Life Cool & Low Noise Asphalt -- has been used to pave the road.  This new asphalt looks like ordinary asphalt, but it is something new that doesn't heat up in the sunlight as much as the typical blacktop does.  The new stuff also is quieter when tires hit its surface.

Place Salvador Allende on the Avenues de la Motte Picquet and de la
Tour Maubourg.  The lovely fountain had water in it, for a change.

Two of the three pilot project sites are in the 15th arrondissement.  One of those is just a block away from us, on the Rue Fremicourt, a wider-than-average street.  Rue Fremicourt had sidewalks that were too narrow to comfortably accommodate pedestrians, so a major part of the reconfiguration of the street was to give more space to the sidewalks and less to the lanes of traffic.  Of course, a generous bike lane is also included.

We now walk the Rue Fremicourt when we are headed to Place Cambronne because it is the most direct way, and now it is the easiest way to walk there, with the spacious sidewalks and tamed traffic.

A few days ago, I noticed this sign about the recently completed project involving Life Cool & Low Noise Asphalt.

Sign on the refurbished Rue Fremicourt.

The new material heats up 2 degrees C less than traditional asphalt, partly because the new system uses gray water sprinklers.  Because of the radiant heat feel, this 2 degrees C feels like a reduction of about 3 degrees C, which is almost 6 degrees F.  That's significant.  (Sensors in the asphalt record the temperatures.)

The noise reduction where the tires hit the pavement is 3 decibels.  As you walk along the sidewalk next to the buildings, this sounds like a reduction of about 2 decibels.  That's also significant.

Cities heat up during heat waves, and they don't cool down at night as much as the countryside because all the stone, pavement, and metal in the city hold the heat.  The cooler pavement temperatures during the day will mean cooler nights, too, in the city, because of this heat retention factor.

Pretty shop that sells expensive Russian caviar and more.
There is also a fancy Russian restaurant across the street,
on the Avenue de la Tour Maubourg.

Think of all the asphalt pavement in all the cities in the world; if we change to Life Cool & Low Noise Asphalt in cities everywhere, perhaps we can have a significant effect on the rate of global warming.

This exciting pilot project in Paris is funded by a European Union program called LIFE.  The project is the result of a partnership between the City, the Colas companies (public works contractors), and Eurovia (a company that refurbishes roads and railways).  The European Commission has provided 1.3 million euros for the project.

In addition to Rue Fremicourt, Rue Lecourbe in the 15th arrondissement is one of the three project sites, as well as Rue de Courcelles in the 8th arrondissement.

Near the Fluctuart gallery on the bank of the Seine
were numerous street art projects involving crochet work.

Also involved in the project is Bruitparif, a center for the technical evaluation of environmental noise.

According to the project description, 11% of Parisians are exposed to sound levels above the regulatory limit of 68 decibels.  The source of the noise is mainly road traffic.  The problem is acute in the summertime when Parisians, who generally do not have air conditioning, have their windows open at night and in the morning.

Quality of life is important to the City of Paris, and it shows in the projects that the City undertakes.

Street art on an electric utility box.

We enjoyed that quality of life after working at the computers yesterday.  We walked up the Avenues de la Motte Picquet and de la Tour Maubourg to the banks of the Seine to visit the new floating art gallery, Fluctuart.  The current exhibition of work by street artists who advanced to become regular artists was mildly interesting, but the boat/gallery was of more interest.

Fluctuart has two large bars -- one on each level -- and we think that is the true business model of the place.  We doubt that the gallery is selling much art.  Admission is free, and this floating gallery is something to see.

After the gallery visit, we dined at Au Petit Tonneau, where we'd had dinner just two nights before.  The tiny bistrot is generous in giving both a mis en bouche (thin slices of saucisson, tiny gherkins, and chunks of fresh radishes) and an amuse bouche (a small ramekin of gazpacho).  With all that, and with the ordering of substantial main plates, there was no need for a starter course.

Blanquette de veau at Au Petit Tonneau bistrot on the Rue Surcouf.

Tom ordered the rack of lamb, which was replaced by the saddle of lamb (even better!).  The saddle is like the rack, except that there are no bones, and the meat is even more tender and juicy.  Tom liked the lamb much better than the steak he'd ordered at this bistrot on Tuesday.  The lamb was superb, and the accompanying green beans were fine.

The reason we returned to the Petit Tonneau so soon was that I read about this bistrot's excellent blanquette de veau and I just had to try it.  It was all I had hoped for and more.  This classic dish can best be described as a white veal stew served on rice.  Done wrong, it can be mushy and bland.  Done right, it is the ultimate comfort food.  The Petit Tonneau's blanquette is perfect; vegetables had been added at the right moment, so that the carrots, mushrooms and onions were still recognizable and tasty.  The veal was tender and delicious, and the sauce was a creamy, light, and heavenly concoction.  The rice was perfect, too.

Lamb saddle and green beans at Au Petit Tonneau in the 7th arrondissement.

We could not eat it all, and we could not order dessert.  Happily, I pulled a zippered plastic bag out of my handbag and handed it to Tom under the table.  He put some of his lamb and some of my veal in the bag, so today we'll have that along with our typical lunchtime salad.  Or maybe that will be dinner.

Tom stashed the zippered bag into the fabric shopping bag that I also had stored away in the handbag.  The servers saw none of this; the taking home of leftovers has still not caught on in Paris, in spite of lip service paid to concern about food waste (gaspillage).

Our server was excellent; she was attentive and polite, yet not obtrusive, and she spoke precise French with us even though she was speaking English with the other English speaking customers.

The staff turned away a number of people who casually popped in the door without a reservation.  The restaurant filled up, so I was happy that I'd reserved in advance this time.

Walk, reserve, stay cool, eat well, be happy -- easy to do, in Paris.