Sailboats in Paris

We always enjoy visiting the large fountain in the northern end of Luxembourg Gardens when in Paris.  On April 14th we arrived mid-day and were rewarded with the children sailing their boats that they rented from the vendor.  They control the boat using a long pole to push it out and the fountain in the center continues to push it back to various areas of the fountain as the children run to follow their boats.  It was a cool day with welcome sunshine and this was a good reason to pull up the ever present green chairs and rest our feet while we watched the children.

The Metro Late at Night

On  Sunday evening, April 15th, we dressed in our best outfits and rode the Metro to Notre Dame for an evening mass.  Then we caught the Metro over to the Lourve area and enjoyed a special treat:  drinks at the five star Hotel Le Meurice on rue de Rivoli.  We were greeted graciously by the doorman and entered the Bar 228, a favorite of Hemingway when he was in Paris.  We each enjoyed a kir served with a dish of several different snacks while we enjoyed the jazz musicians that play in the bar nightly.   On our way home by Metro that evening...probably about 10 pm...we heard music but no musicians...only a photographer and a ballet dancer.  We stayed and watched his performance; we applauded at the end and he turned and thanked us.   Paris continues to surprise us....

Art-Nouveau Building

 On April 12th, Jim and I went searching for this building near the Eiffel Tower in the 7th arrondissement at 29 Avuene Rapp.  It was built by Lavirotte & Bigot in 1901 during the Art-Nouveau Period (1890-1914).

During the late 1800s, many European artists, graphic designers, and architects rebelled against formal, classical approaches to design. They believed that the greatest beauty could be found in nature. Organic (living creatures and plants) were used to decorate the outsides of buildings.  You'll find the "cows" under the center balcony.  The "woman" is over the front door.
Art Nouveau (French for "New Style") flourished in major European cities between 1890 and 1914.  In the United States, Art Nouveau ideas were expressed in the work of Louis Comfort Tiffany, Louis Sullivan, and Frank Lloyd Wright.


In the later half of the twentieth century, Modernist architects took the concept of organic architecture to new heights. By using new forms of concrete and cantilever trusses, architects could create swooping arches without visible beams or pillars.

Hummingbirds

These are baby hummingbirds...not in Paris...but here in our yard in California!  They are hours from taking their first flight and as you can see ... scared to death!  They've outgrown their nest and mom is sure to push them out to fend for themselves soon!  They are giving me the evil eye as I snap these photos...wondering where in the "h...." is mama when we need her!  Enjoy this slice of life.

Paris Opera Garnier

Feast your eyes on this magnificent ceiling that was painted by Marc Chagall in 1964.  We found this in Pari's Opera Garnier that was opened in 1875; designed by Charles Garnier and built by Haussmann for the Opera Company started by King Louis XIV in 1669.  There was seating for 2,000 people.  On April 19th we toured the inside of the building; what a thrill to actually sit in a seat under this ceiling.  Originally used for both opera and ballet performances; the building has been used for ballet performances primarily since the new Opera Bastille was completed in 1989.  Add this to your must see list when in Paris.

Luxembourg Gardens

In the afternoon of April 11th we found this magnificent horse as part of the Fontaine de Obsevatorie in the southern end of the Jarden du Luxembourg.  The park is located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.  The fountain's centerpiece represents the four parts of the world represented by four women holding a globe.  The sculptor was Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux in 1874.  Those are turtles sending streams of water  towards the horses.

People Powered Merry-go-round!

On a rainy April 10th we visited the people powered merry-go-round across the street from the Eiffel Tower.  This Carrousel is powered by both the riders and people sitting around in various spots by pedaling bicycles!

Here is Jim on a special bike adding his energy by pedaling his bicycle!   I added my power by sitting on the bench with the wheel in front.  Something different to do after we visited the nearby Musee du Quai Branly.

PROMENADE PLANTEE

On April 9th we took the Metro to the Bastille Station, walked past the Opera de Paris Bastille and found the stairway up to the Promenade Plantee or as the french call it:  Coulee verte...the green course.
This is a nearly three mile walking trail created along the path of an old train line that cut through the center of the 12th arrondissement from the Bastille towards the Bois de Vincennes, a very large park just outside the peripherique.  Much of it is elevated and has views of the city on both sides of the trail.

On the corner of Avenue Daumesnil...the trail parallels this street...and Rue de Rambouillet, we discovered this unusual building.  Not the building so much as the statues that surround the top floor.  A close up is below.  And, on the ground floor there is a police station!   Rue de Rambouillet leads into the Gare de Lyon, one of Paris' major train stations.   Notice the unusual cut outs on the back of each statue. 

Val-de-Grace

On April 11th we toured the "Val-de-Grace" in the 5th arrondissement where I discovered this fun photo of a spiraling staircase.  "Val-de-Grace" is a Military Hospital and also a Museum for the Military Medical History.  At one time it was an Abbey and part of our tour included a magnificent church that is only accessible to the public through the Museum.   It is located very close to Luxembourg Gardens and easy to visit.   A photo of the ceiling in the church is found below.  This was my day to enjoy looking up!

Toy Store Delight

This photo of an "Alice In Wonderland" tea party store display was taken during Easter Week

Chapeau Boutique

Loved this little Chapeau shop in the St. Paul's Villages!  Tucked off the street in a secluded square off of Rue St. Paul; I couldn't resist snapping a photo on the morning of April 4th as we discovered new areas.

MARAIS in Paris

On April 4th I spotted this sleepy lion guarding two red doors.   We'd just left the Bastille Memorial in the park at the corner of Blvd Henri IV and Quai Henri IV...heading towards St. Paul's Village.

Our group at the Arc de Triomphe

Yes...I'm still in the USA but I do miss blogging; so thought I'd start posting a photo every few days that you might enjoy from our recent trip to France.  This was taken on Terry's camera by a passing tourist!

HOME IN THE USA

Thursday, May 31, 2012

We arrived home about 11 pm last night.  A very long day if you start at 6 am in Paris and remember to add the nine hours difference making a total of twenty-six hours we were awake with only a nap here and there.

The first flight was ten hours to Dallas, Texas; long but uneventful.  It was daylight for the whole trip and everyone stays awake for the most part.  I do try to do some exercises every hour to keep from getting too stiff.

The fun began when we landed in Dallas.  There had been a bad thunderstorm all day to the point that they actually shut down the airport for an hour in the afternoon.  It was open when we arrived but everything was really backed up.  It took an hour and a half to get through customs; about three times the normal!   When we arrived I turned on my cell phone while still in the airplane and it worked.  The battery had held a full charge for two months!  I called my sister who was tracking our flight and she told me that our connecting flight had been canceled because of the storms.  While we were still processing through customs inspections I was able to talk with airline staff and they said that they’d already switched us to another later flight for Los Angeles; I asked about Orange County and because of all the delays he was able to get us on a flight that had been scheduled to leave at 5 pm but was delayed until 7 pm.  

We were thrilled with the change as it cut our travel time from the airport to home in half!  We eventually had to wait until 8:30 pm before the flight finally got off the ground.  The airport was a mess because so many flights were canceled and/or late because of the storms.  Once we were in the air I could see the clouds in a distance where the lightening was flashing in huge strikes one after another…so fast it was like daylight!  But, we were far enough away so that other than a few bumps we were fine.  We arrived safely in California after a three hour flight.

By 11 pm we were home and tucked into bed…left the luggage in the car!  We slept through until 6 am so we should be just fine as far as jet lags goes.  We did take our “No Jet Lag” pills all the way home.  It’s been a busy day with laundry, paying bills and getting back in the grove after being gone two months.  Thanks again for sharing our journey.  I’m going to take a vacation from blogging for awhile but hope you find time to go back through some of my earlier post to read about other trips we’ve taken.

EIFFEL TOWER

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Everyone took the morning to do what they wanted and then we met in the lobby at 11 am.  We were early so I played with the hotel cat while we waited.  She was also here in 2010 and is queen of the lobby!

We caught the Metro to Rue Cler when Linda and Terry treated us to a light lunch of beer and crepes at our favorite place:  Ulysse…Linda had a chocolate crepe and Cappuccino coffee and the rest of us enjoyed a great Greek beer called Mikos with our cheese and jambon crepes!  A trip to Paris always finds us in Rue Cler for one of Ulysse’s special crepes.  We enjoyed one in April before the friends arrived and again today!

We then took our time walking over towards the Eiffel Tower views from the far end of the Champ de Mars at the Military School for photos of Mr. Eiffel’s beautiful tower.  We slowly walked towards it taking more photos as we walked until we were underneath the towering structure by 12:30 pm.

Before leaving home I had ordered and printed our tickets for a 1:00 pm entry.  We had to wait for ten minutes after we arrived and then they let us in about ten minutes early.  We felt just a bit guilty as the people who did not get their tickets in advance had waited in line for nearly three hours before they could purchase their tickets and enter the elevator.  Once on the upper level we were mixed with everyone and had to queue with everyone for the second elevator that takes you to the top of the tower.  The first elevator is like a funicular…traveling on a slant up the leg of the tower.  It pauses at the first level with the restaurant and then goes to the second level.  

 On the second level you have to change to another elevator that goes directly up the center of the tower.  Right now they are repairing one of the elevators so the number of people who are up in the tower at the same time is cut nearly in half.  It was not nearly as crowded and we didn’t have to wait long in the lines for the other elevators.  It was a very enjoyable experience.  

Yes…the sunshine is beautiful and it is warm but when walking under the trees on the right side of the Seine River we found it very pleasant.   They have been predicting some rain nearly every day but it’s been beautiful.  Not a drop has fallen on us since we arrived!

We ended our journey today at pont de L’Alma to see the golden torch that symbolizes the torch of the Statue of Liberty.  It is three bridges down from the Eiffel Tower on the right bank.  It is officially, a monument to French-American friendship, a copy of the torch of the Statue of Liberty.  But, unofficially, the Princess Diana memorial created by the people.   When Princess Diana died in a car crash in the tunnel directly beneath the monument; people started leaving flowers and written messages to her on and around the torch.  It’s always interesting to see this monument.   For the first time I didn’t see any flowers on the torch for her…but the messages are still written on the concrete walls overlooking the underpass.  

On the Metro…actually we cross the bridge and came home on the RER C; and then an afternoon of packing for our trip tomorrow.

Tonight we’re all meeting our Paris friends for dinner at a wonderful restaurant near the Opera Garnier known as Café de la Paix.  Reservations are for 7:45 pm so it will be a late night and then the alarm goes off at 6 am.  

Our shuttle picks us up at 7 am for the trip to the airport.  Yes, we’ve decided not to do the train.  I’ll add more to this either tonight or after I get home in the USA…depends on access to the Internet after we leave the hotel.

POSTSCRIPT:   It's Wednesday morning, May 30th, and we're sitting at CDG Airport waiting for our flight.  We had 15 minutes free on the wifi and I'm paying for another 30 minutes so that I can update my blog.  See additional photos from last night.

We arrived outside the Cafe de la Paix and met Nicolas...Maeliss was working late and met us at the restaurant...instead of this restaurant he took us walking to see the Place Vendome, filled with the best of jewelry stores and then on to a wonderful favorite restaurant of theirs in the Place Demarche St. Honore.  We sat among the wine bottles and enjoyed three hours of food, wine and good friends.  A wonderful way to end our journey; and a special treat by Nicolas and Maeliss.  Soon we hope that they will come again to the USA so we can repay all the dinners they have given us. 

I hope you've enjoyed sharing our journey for the past two months.  Au Revoir