Cheerio! Arrivederci! Au Revoir!

Wednesday, October 23, 2013 Road Junkies 0 Comments

EUROPEAN ADVENTURE, Days 19-21:

Paris to Atlanta

space

After four hectic days of non-stop sightseeing, we decided to slow our pace on Monday and explore the area around our apartment. In addition to identifying the district where we're staying, Montmartre was originally the name of the large hill (pictured above) topped by the Sacre Coeur Church.

space

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Montmartre attracted many noted artists who set up studios and lived in the area, including Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, and Picasso. The district still attracts creative types, as Jeanne and I discovered in a neighborhood shopping stroll.

space

A tiny shop full of many off-beat treasures

Without doubt our favorite shop was Pylones, a showcase of brightly colored everyday objects reinvented with a maximum of whimsy and a lot of character.

space

Cheese Graters

Spray Bottles

Ken opted to sit out the window shopping but joined us as we finally rode the funicular to the top of Montmartre and visited the Basilica of Sacre Coeur, which we had been viewing up the hill for six days.

space

Shopping Sisters

On Tuesday, we finally thought to track down a gluten-free bakery for Jeanne. Since we don't seek out vegetarian restaurants, we hadn't thought to search for a place that caters to those with Celiac. Though the best-known GF bakery in the city was closed on Tuesdays, we were all on board when we discovered Biosphere, a gluten-free creperie. No, that's not an oxymoron. The food was delicious and Jeanne could eat with abandon, knowing all was safe for her diet.
space
As we were making our way to the restaurant, we received notice from Air France that we'd been bumped from our flight back to Atlanta. Perhaps because we booked through Delta? So we sped back to the apartment after lunch and scrambled to find a new flight back the next day. Thank you, Delta, for making it happen, even if we were on an Air France flight. Set to leave early afternoon, we spent the remainder of the day relaxing and packing, and enjoyed our last dinner in one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants.

space

Au revoir, Paris!

Jeanne seemed a little sad to bid Paris au revoir on Wednesday as we boarded the train that would take us back to Charles De Gaulle Airport for our return flight home.

space

The final leg

After the usual security screenings, we put in our waiting time before an uneventful flight back to Atlanta and home. Though Jeanne enjoyed our adventure, it was the first time she had gone three weeks without seeing any of her children or grandchildren. She was eager to reconnect with them, and soon we were all back to our normal routine, our European adventure but a memory.

space

MONDAY, 21 OCTOBER - WEDNESDAY, 23 OCTOBER 2013

Another Day, Another Musee

Sunday, October 20, 2013 Road Junkies 0 Comments

EUROPEAN ADVENTURE, Day 18:

Paris

space
The world's most visited museum was our agenda for today. With more than 35,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century on exhibit in an area of more than 652,000 square feet, the Louvre seemed sufficient to fill our day. It has been said that it would take a person nine months to just glance at every object on display there.

space

When we arrived, we took our place at the end of a very long line. Before long, the rain that had been threatening began to fall, totally unconcerned that we were all queued up for an indefinite wait. The line moved steadily and fairly quickly but we were very glad to be prepared with umbrellas to protect us from the weather.

space

The entrance hall flooded with natural light from I.M. Pei's pyramid

An interesting conversation with some fellow tourists in the queue helped pass the time, and soon we had reached the entrance. Once we were indoors, we joined another line to purchase tickets. But at least we were in a dry environment. Though we were protected from the weather, there were other threats inside the Louvre.

space

A large sign where visitors board the escalator that sweeps you up to the exhibit areas minced no words about the city's problem with pickpockets. A guard at the Eiffel Tower last week warned us specifically despite the multitude of signs posted there as well.

space

A glimpse at the original walls of the fortress

The Louvre Museum is housed in a former palace originally built as a fortress in the late 12th century. Walking through what would have been the moat around the palace, visitors catch a glimpse of its ancient walls.

space

She needs no introduction, but here's the Mona Lisa.

Many additions were made over the years by various monarchs. The museum opened in 1793 and within four years, its most famous work of art had been hung in the Louvre's galleries. Painted by Leonardo da Vinci in the early 1500s, Mona Lisa has been on permanent exhibit at the Louvre since 1797. Like so many of her visitors, we were surprised when we first saw the dimensions of the painting—only 2' 6" x 1' 9".

space

Mona Lisa is constantly mobbed by hundreds of admirers.

Size isn't everything, as this popular lady proves, and we admired the painting as much as all the others who were crowded around to pay their homage. The immeasurably valuable painting is enclosed in a glass case, and visitors are not permitted to approach near the lady.

space

Crypt of the Sphnx.

Throughout the exhibit halls, signage constantly reminds visitors to mind their possessions while perusing works of art such as the Crypt of the Sphinx. Even the Venus de Milo, one of the most famous works of ancient Greek sculpture, was not immune from sharing her exhibit space with one of the thievery alert banners.

space

Venus de Milo

Artemis

One of the first ancient statues to arrive in France, a sculpture of Artemis, goddess of the hunt, was a gift from Pope Paul IV to French king Henri II in 1556. It adorned numerous royal residences before finding a permanent home in the Louvre.

space

Grande Salon

Some rooms in the Louvre are still decorated and furnished as they were in the early 19th century when this building was connected to Tuileries Palace. The sumptuous grande salon outshone anything we have seen on this trip—even at Versailles. Opulence was certainly the order of the day in the Salon Theatre as well.

space

These curved three-seaters were certainly conducive to stimulating conversation.

Seating for the entire family!

With seating for forty and an unmistakable air of elegance, the grand dining room is on the short list for our next family reunion. Hopefully, the Louvre management will be willing to negotiate an appropriate fee.

space

Bedroom of Charles X

Furnishings from the bedroom of Charles X would not make it on Design on a Dime. In its original room in the palace, this was a ceremonial bed where the king usually did not sleep. What types of ceremonies he held there were not specified.

space

Storm clouds hover over Tuileries Gardens

When we departed the Louvre, we walked through Tuileries Gardens as storm clouds gathered. The rain held off until we boarded the Metro at Concorde but was pouring down when we exited the train back at Montmarte. On our way back to the apartment, we were unable to resist the refuge of La Marmite, offering a dry haven and food to slake our hunger. Unsure what to expect as we didn't bother to consult any reviews, we were pleasantly surprised with the generous portions of good food. Ken and I had (huge) vegetarian salads, while Jeanne tried out a French version of barbecue chicken—half a roasted chicken with a barbecue sauce on the side. She rated it quite good.

space

French drivers are exceptionally skilled at parallel parking.

On our walk from the restaurant back to the apartment, we marveled at the ability of the French to parallel park—and wondered why so many cars here have dings and dents on all four corners.
space
Ms. Magnolia's Manners Tip of the Day:
"When parking your car on the street in Paris, try to leave a few inches in front or behind your car. You may save another driver from a new dent."

space

SUNDAY, 20 OCTOBER 2013

Ken gets photobombed in front of the Louvre.

Wet streets of Montmarte

Orsay, Can You See?

Saturday, October 19, 2013 Road Junkies 0 Comments

EUROPEAN ADVENTURE, Day 17:

Paris

space
Our mission today was visiting Musée d'Orsay (pictured above), home to one of the world's best collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. Of course, our real first stop was the lengthy queue at the museum's entrance to purchase tickets. The line moved pretty quickly, and soon we had passed through the metal detector and bag search, purchased our tickets and were inside this former railway station turned art museum.

space

The Orsay houses France's national collection from the Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, and Art Nouveau periods. Many of the artists represented lived and worked in Paris at some point in their careers.

space

Pont Solferino

After a few hours there, we strolled across the Seine on the Pont Solferino footbridge. Standing next to the bridge is a statue of Thomas Jefferson, once ambassador to France. When he lived in the city, Jefferson often walked along the River Seine. In his strolls, he followed the progress of construction on the Hotel de Salm (now home to the Musee National de la Legion d’Honneur). He admired the design so much that when Jefferson returned home to Virginia, he had the original roof of his Monticello home removed and a dome installed, just like that of the Hotel Salm.

space

Dedicated on US Independence Day in 2006, the sculpture depicts Jefferson holding a quill in his right hand. In his left is a drawing showing the original appearance of Monticello. And, of course, the monument is placed so that he is looking to the Hotel de Salm that inspired Monticello's transformation.

space

Love locks on the Pont Solferino

As we strolled across the bridge, we checked out some of the thousands of love locks attached to the railings. Legend says you seal your love when you write your names on the lock, attach it to a fixed object like a bridge and throw away the key.

space
From the bridge we took one last look at the glorious Orsay museum before entering Tuileries Gardens, the park that extends from the Louvre Museum to Place de la Concorde. Created by Catherine de' Medici as the garden of the Tuileries Palace in 1564, it was eventually opened to the public in 1667 and became a public park after the French Revolution, evolving into a popular place for Parisians and visitors to meet, celebrate, stroll and relax.

After exploring the park for a while, we decided to call it a day. Back at the Concorde Metro station, we caught a ride on the excellent Paris subway system for the trip back to Montmartre.

space

Thousands while away Saturday afternoon around Tuileries Gardens' octagonal basin.

At the Concorde Metro station

Pouvez-vous lire le français?

After another excellent meal at Le Coryllis, we were fortified to attempt laundry French style. All three of us struggled to get the 'heat pump' dryer to take the moisture out of our laundry (which it purports to do without heat). Finally Jeanne found the interpretation of the flashing light online. Its condenser is overloaded with water and needs to be serviced. Line dry it is, then.

Tomorrow, the Louvre!

space

SATURDAY, 19 OCTOBER 2013

Jeanne with the Orsay behind her

Musée d'Orsay

Monuments and Cathedrals, Ooh La La!

Friday, October 18, 2013 Road Junkies 0 Comments

EUROPEAN ADVENTURE, Day 16:

Paris

space
What a day of visiting iconic Parisian locations! We began the day at the Arc du Triomphe (pictured above), the monument ordered by Napoleon to glorify the Army of France. A couple of beautiful cathedrals later, we ended the day at the Eiffel Tower.

space
Our day started a bit later as we decided to avoid the rush hour trains after yesterday's mishap. First stop was the iconic Arc du Triomphe, Napoleon's monument to his army's victories in battle.

space

We were huffing and puffing a bit by the time we climbed the 284 steps up the winding staircase to the mezzanine at the top of the arch. What could have been a great view was obscured by fog so we ditched our plan to go to the Eiffel Tower next and headed for another Parisian landmark.

space

Notre Dame

Norte Dame cathedral, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture, is celebrating its 850th anniversary this year. Almost destroyed in the French Revolution, the church was slated for demolition until Victor Hugo's Hunchback novel generated renewed support.

space

Smoke from thousands of votive candles in Notre Dame have created a coat of soot on its ceiling.

Reliquary containing the leg bone of St. Vincent the Martyr of of Saragossa

The treasury of Notre Dame contains numerous gold and silver religious objects. Its reliquary includes the purported Crown of Thorns, a fragment of the True Cross, and one of the Holy Nails, which are displayed only occasionally, but not today.

space

Lighting and massive fabric swags ennoble the Pietà at Notre Dame's high altar.

Notre Dame's famous gargoyles drain rain water away from the building.

A view of the spire and east side of the cathedral shows the flying buttresses (arched exterior supports). Notre Dame was one of the first buildings to incorporate this type of design.

A retreat away from the maddening tourist crowds

From Notre Dame, we walked just a few yards around the corner, away from the tourist-jammed cafés across the street from the cathedral, and found a delicious lunch in a quiet salon de thé (like a coffee shop). Thanks again, Trip Advisor!
space
After lunch, we headed over to another renowned Parisian church. Sainte-Chapelle was built between 1242 and 1248 on the orders of King Louis IX to house the purported crown of thorns worn by Christ. The king paid more for the crown than the cost of building this chapel at his palace on Ile de la Cité in the Seine.

space
The chapel's 40-ft rose window illustrates the Apocalypse of St John. Sainte-Chapelle is in the fifth year of a major restoration project that involves removing every piece of glass for cleaning and repair.

space
From Sainte-Chapelle, we crossed the Seine River and caught an RER train for Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower. This morning's fog was nothing but a memory by the time we arrived at the Eiffel Tower a little after 4:30. We stood in line, had our bags checked, stood in another line, bought our tickets for an elevator ride to the top, then stood in yet another line for a security scan.

space

View from the Eiffel Tower viewing platform

Even though Ms Magnolia had some trepidation about riding the elevator to the top of the 1,063 ft tower, she decided she had to go big or go home and conquered her fear. In an incredible stroke of luck, we were on the tower as the sun set and the moon rose. And we watched in awe as the City of Light illuminated itself.

space

Dusk settling over Paris

Sainte-Chapelle

Rose window at Sainte-Chapelle

When we left, the tower was beautifully lit in her nighttime attire.

Tomorrow we'll begin exploring some of the legendary French art collections in Paris.

space

FRIDAY, 18 OCTOBER 2013

Visiting the Arc du Triomphe

The Size of Versailles

Thursday, October 17, 2013 Road Junkies 0 Comments

EUROPEAN ADVENTURE, Days 14-15:

Paris

space

We arrived in Paris Wednesday on an EasyJet flight from Venice. A bit of a panic ensued just before we boarded when the gate agent told Jeanne and me we would need to put our (large and overstuffed) purses in our suitcases because EasyJet allows only one carry-on bag. With seams splitting and various and sundry items hanging out the zipper closings, we managed to get the job done just in time to board.
space
Rain greeted us upon our arrival at Orly airport, continuing as we rode the train into the central city and caught the Metro to the Montmarte neighborhood just below Sacre Coeur. There we met the OneFineStay agent at the apartment on Rue Tardieu that we're renting for the week we're here. Near the apartment, we found a Carrefour supermarket, stocked up on groceries, and walked back to the apartment in pouring rain. As we settled into our new place and began planning some outings in Paris, we watched passersby in the rain outside our window and toasted arriving in the City of Light and being sheltered in the (dry) refuge of our apartment.

space

On Thursday we set out to visit the Palace of Versailles (pictured above) some 12 miles southwest of the city. Unfortunately, we hit rush hour on the Paris Metro this morning. Trains were packed, even the outbound RER train from Paris out to the village of Versailles.

space

The palace is in easy walking distance of the train station, and we were thankful for blue skies as we stood in line to purchase admission tickets. Looking at its majesty, it was easy to picture the palace as the seat of political power in the kingdom of France from 1682 to 1789.

space

The entrance to this former base of monarchical power is graced with a replica of the original wrought iron and gold leaf gate which was torn down during the French Revolution in the late 18th century.

space

First built as a hunting lodge by King Louis XIII in 1624, Versailles was enlarged into a palace by his son Louis XIV. Originally intended to be only an occasional residence for the king, the palace expanded in size and prominence, eventually serving as the epicenter of royal power. As it continued to grow, Versailles became a showcase of France. This required that all materials and decorations used in the palace had to be manufactured in France.
space space
The most famous room in the palace is the Hall of Mirrors, a 230-ft. long gallery with 17 wide arcaded mirrors and two dozen chandeliers. Constructed in the late 1600s, the room's decoration with mirrors was chosen as a symbol of opulence, as the glass was quite costly.

space
As the center of glass manufacturing in that day, Venice had a monopoly on the manufacture of mirrors. To stay true to the French showcase policy, the finance minister charged with construction persuaded some Venetian craftsmen to come to France and produce mirrors for the palace locally. According to legend, the Venetian government sent agents to France to assassinate these artisans in order to preserve Venice's monopoly.

space
Such an opulent palace needed an appropriately lush garden, of course, and the Gardens of Versailles expanded and evolved along with the chateau. After a stroll through just part of them, we returned to the train station to catch a ride back to our apartment.

space

Calling on the spirits of Montmarte artists

Back in Pars after spending most of the day at Versailles, we found a great restaurant around the corner from our Montmartre apartment. Waiting for it to open, Ken & Jeanne called on the spirits of the many artists who've painted in this area.

space

Le Coryllis

Thanks to a tip from Trip Advisor, we had an excellent dinner a at Le Coryllis, a cozy little Italian restaurant a couple of blocks away from our Montmarte apartment. After dinner we walked a few hundred yards from our apartment to the funicular for Sacre Coeur and rode up to the church, resplendent in its nighttime lighting. All in all, a great first day in Paris...except for one little detail.

space
Remember the earlier comment about how crowded the train was this morning? When we arrived at Versailles, Ken reached into his pants pocket for his phone and found nothing. A pickpocket at the crowded RER station had taken the phone when his partner bumped into Ken to create a diversion.
space