This episode in the film Paris je t'aime, filmed by the cinematographer and occasional director Christopher Doyle takes place in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, often described as the Asian quarter of Paris, in the emblematic 1970s housing project of Les Olympiades, designed to be a village within the city. Each of the eleven buildings that make up the complex are named after cities that have hosted the Olympic games in the past, including Mexico, Athens, Grenoble, London and Helsinki. Monsieur Henni is sent to the Buddhist temple behind the Antwerp tower to wait while Madame Li is preparing to receive him.
The principal Asian district of Paris includes the Olympiades complex, along with a triangle formed by avenue de Choisy, avenue d'Ivry and boulevard Masséna. In total, there is estimated to be an Asian population of 50,000 people in the area, mainly of Chinese, Laotian and Vietnamese descent.
While the bemused Monsieur Henni visits Madame Li's extraordinary and imaginary beauty salon named La Tigresse, the specialist supermarket chains of Tang Frères and Paristore have their real-life flagship stores in the area and are popular with shoppers from all over the city. Since 2007, Les Olympiades has its own métro station named after it on Line 14 of the Paris underground, the most recently built automated métro line.
The principal Asian district of Paris includes the Olympiades complex, along with a triangle formed by avenue de Choisy, avenue d'Ivry and boulevard Masséna. In total, there is estimated to be an Asian population of 50,000 people in the area, mainly of Chinese, Laotian and Vietnamese descent.
While the bemused Monsieur Henni visits Madame Li's extraordinary and imaginary beauty salon named La Tigresse, the specialist supermarket chains of Tang Frères and Paristore have their real-life flagship stores in the area and are popular with shoppers from all over the city. Since 2007, Les Olympiades has its own métro station named after it on Line 14 of the Paris underground, the most recently built automated métro line.