Last night I was asked if I took lots of pictures in Paris, so I had the opportunity to demand obnoxiously "Have you been reading my blog?" (When did I become this person?) Because I am a terrible self-promoter, the person did not know I had a blog. So, first: Hey, guess what! I have a blog!
Secondly, here is a link to my Flickr account with more photos from Paris than any sane person would want to see. They are organized by date and location; some are captioned; some are actually pretty good if I do say so myself! I will add the link to my sidebar as well.
Thanks for checking out my blog and my photos. Promotion for the 2014 Paris program starts in about 3 weeks so . . . À bientôt!
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Better content than mine
So it turns out that The Atlantic's senior editor Ta-Nehisi Coates has been in Paris since about the same time I arrived there and has been writing a series of "Dispatches" about his experiences. I was busy being in Paris and missed reading these as they appeared. I'm also tantalized by the prospect of having crossed paths with Mr. Coates at, e.g., Shakespeare & Co. without knowing it, since I would not readily have recognized him.
Mr. Coates and I are as different as chalk and cheese in every possible way. His essays make my blog entries look like kindergarten drawings. But these are reasons that you SHOULD read them. Here is the most recent "Dispatch," which barely mentions Paris and yet rings totally true to me as a fellow lover of that city. And here is my favorite; I only hope TNC, as the commentariat calls him, will not mind if I immediately adopt his "no-huddle offense" analogy, which is perfect.
Mr. Coates and I are as different as chalk and cheese in every possible way. His essays make my blog entries look like kindergarten drawings. But these are reasons that you SHOULD read them. Here is the most recent "Dispatch," which barely mentions Paris and yet rings totally true to me as a fellow lover of that city. And here is my favorite; I only hope TNC, as the commentariat calls him, will not mind if I immediately adopt his "no-huddle offense" analogy, which is perfect.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Last Night
I can't believe it's our last night in Paris. It's almost midnight and our cab to the airport comes at 7 tomorrow morning. I have some major catching up to do on this here blog; hopefully I can work on it during the flight. The last couple of days have been busy but so much fun. Time for bed; see you on the other side! À bientôt!
One day more
For our last day in Paris we split up to visit the things we most wanted to see (and, in my case, run some unglamorous and non-touristy errands). Daniel went to play poker at Le Cercle Clichy Montmartre--I was surprised to find out that this is not a random hole in the wall but a beautiful historic building. (Why was I surprised? Isn't everything in Paris in a beautiful historic building?) I went with Vicki and Samantha to visit Notre-Dame (we had been on the premises but not been inside). It is spectacular. Vicki especially loved it.
They then headed on to the Orangerie while I went back to Cité Universitaire to see if they had my camera charger. I think I must have left it in my room when I moved out, but the Maison de Provinces de France did not have it. It never turned up in my luggage, so I will have to replace it. Sigh. That's also why these pictures are from my iPhone. The visit to Versailles was the end of my camera battery.
Friday afternoon I decided to take up someone's suggestion to visit Sainte-Chapelle and I am so glad I did. It costs a bit of money but it is worth it: an incredible little chapel from the 13th century whose walls are practically all stained glass. Beyond gorgeous.
I had just enough time to finish my last mission: writing some cards to friends to post from Paris before we left. I sat at a café behind the Centre Pompidou and then felt really proud because I successfully followed the café waitress's directions to the post office. Back at the apartment it was nap time and then over to Brasserie Vaudeville for our last Parisian dinner. It was delicious (again)--Dr. Guglielmi gets all the credit for introducing me to it. This time I skipped the appetizer (okay, I mooched some of Daniel's foie gras), had beef carpaccio and frites for my plat principal, and chose crème brûlée (always yummy) for dessert. We drank a carafe of Beaujolais, cracked jokes with the waiters, and generally had a great time.
Our intended after-dinner destination was Parc Tino Rossi for a bit of alfresco dancing, but I got the directions totally wrong (wrote them down but didn't bring them; remembered them wrong). I took us to the Pont de l'Alma instead of Pont d'Austerlitz. We would have been very disappointed but we happened to come out of the métro at about 9:54, just in time to see the Eiffel Tower light up at the top of the hour! What a great ending to our visit.
They then headed on to the Orangerie while I went back to Cité Universitaire to see if they had my camera charger. I think I must have left it in my room when I moved out, but the Maison de Provinces de France did not have it. It never turned up in my luggage, so I will have to replace it. Sigh. That's also why these pictures are from my iPhone. The visit to Versailles was the end of my camera battery.
Friday afternoon I decided to take up someone's suggestion to visit Sainte-Chapelle and I am so glad I did. It costs a bit of money but it is worth it: an incredible little chapel from the 13th century whose walls are practically all stained glass. Beyond gorgeous.
I had just enough time to finish my last mission: writing some cards to friends to post from Paris before we left. I sat at a café behind the Centre Pompidou and then felt really proud because I successfully followed the café waitress's directions to the post office. Back at the apartment it was nap time and then over to Brasserie Vaudeville for our last Parisian dinner. It was delicious (again)--Dr. Guglielmi gets all the credit for introducing me to it. This time I skipped the appetizer (okay, I mooched some of Daniel's foie gras), had beef carpaccio and frites for my plat principal, and chose crème brûlée (always yummy) for dessert. We drank a carafe of Beaujolais, cracked jokes with the waiters, and generally had a great time.
Our intended after-dinner destination was Parc Tino Rossi for a bit of alfresco dancing, but I got the directions totally wrong (wrote them down but didn't bring them; remembered them wrong). I took us to the Pont de l'Alma instead of Pont d'Austerlitz. We would have been very disappointed but we happened to come out of the métro at about 9:54, just in time to see the Eiffel Tower light up at the top of the hour! What a great ending to our visit.
One of the things I like about Paris is that even when you don't end up where you intended, you usually see something great anyway!
It was a little hard to go to bed knowing we'd be leaving the next day. But Paris will be there when we get back.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
We queued at Versailles
This is not the first time Vicki and I have been overseas together; we were travel buddies on my first transatlantic trip, *coughmumble* years ago. On that trip we went to London and among our other entertainments we went to the Wimbledon tennis tournament. It's possible to wait in line to get into the tournament if you are really patient and not too picky. As a reward you get in (hopefully) but you also get a sticker that says "I've Queued at Wimbledon." If it is raining you get a sticker that says "I've Queued in the Rain at Wimbledon."
As Bill Cosby would say, I told you that story so I could tell you this one. Today we went to the Palace of Versailles and queued for about an hour and a half to get in. Stickers were lacking but I think Versailles should consider it: "I Queued at Versailles." Of course, it was worth the wait. The palace is always amazing but today we also rented bikes and rode to the Grand Trianon and the Hamlet (somehow skipped the Petit Trianon--next time!). I had never seen those parts of the estate. The Hamlet is really beautiful!
By the way--it is worth taking your kid to Paris because kids get into a lot of the museums and national monuments, including Versailles, for free.
When we got back, we were totally done in and opted for a very glamorous French dinner of frozen pizza. I did manage to go out to a karaoke bar with Daniel later that night. In a funny coincidence, the second or third song we heard was "Georgia On My Mind." That guy could really sing, too! Daniel sang Charles Aznavour's "For Me Formidable," which is the perfect song for us because it's bilingual. It was fun to go out late at night--something I didn't do during the program since I usually had classes or excursions the next day. The karaoke bar, called Rive Droit, was right next to the Pompidou Center so we walked over so that Daniel could see it. It looks cool at night. I took a picture of the Niki de St. Phalle fountain nearby that everyone (of a certain age and background) knows from the old French In Action series.
It was time to turn in after a drink and a few songs. The next day--Friday--would be our last day in Paris.
As Bill Cosby would say, I told you that story so I could tell you this one. Today we went to the Palace of Versailles and queued for about an hour and a half to get in. Stickers were lacking but I think Versailles should consider it: "I Queued at Versailles." Of course, it was worth the wait. The palace is always amazing but today we also rented bikes and rode to the Grand Trianon and the Hamlet (somehow skipped the Petit Trianon--next time!). I had never seen those parts of the estate. The Hamlet is really beautiful!
When we got back, we were totally done in and opted for a very glamorous French dinner of frozen pizza. I did manage to go out to a karaoke bar with Daniel later that night. In a funny coincidence, the second or third song we heard was "Georgia On My Mind." That guy could really sing, too! Daniel sang Charles Aznavour's "For Me Formidable," which is the perfect song for us because it's bilingual. It was fun to go out late at night--something I didn't do during the program since I usually had classes or excursions the next day. The karaoke bar, called Rive Droit, was right next to the Pompidou Center so we walked over so that Daniel could see it. It looks cool at night. I took a picture of the Niki de St. Phalle fountain nearby that everyone (of a certain age and background) knows from the old French In Action series.
It was time to turn in after a drink and a few songs. The next day--Friday--would be our last day in Paris.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
That time we didn't go to the Louvre, twice
The day after Daniel, Vicki, and Samantha arrived was the first Sunday of the month when a lot of museums, including the Louvre, don't charge admission. So we went, but of course the line was enormous. We went to the D'Orsay instead. Today we decided to try again and . . . the line was enormous. So we went to the Rodin museum instead. Not going to the Louvre has turned out to be a good decision every time. The Rodin museum was great, as was the D'Orsay on Sunday. But we have decided that this trip shall henceforth be known as "that time we didn't go to the Louvre, twice."
After the Rodin we went to the Cafe du Commerce (Mrs. Redboots, please take note!) for a Fancy French Lunch. Vicki had gnocchi--not very French, but very tasty--I had "lieu noir" with "orge" which turned out to be fish and barley respectively (learning vocabulary by ordering things with names you don't know), and Samantha had a fish filet with fries. Everything was good and the restaurant itself was, as Vicki put it, "a French restaurant straight from Central Casting."
In the afternoon we headed to Montmartre and Sacre-Coeur which are always a good call. We took the funicular (after walking up through Abbesses metro station which is the deepest one in the system at 35 meters), walked through the church, then walked down and ate macarons. Plus a little light shopping in between! We bought cute/funny souvenirs in Pylones, which is a little store full of witty design objects. Now we are back at the apartment relaxing while the Pont-L'Eveque I bought comes up to room temperature. Cheese and olives for dinner ahoy!
Also! Yesterday morning Daniel and I went to the Invalides/Museum of the Army to see Napoleon's tomb and the collections of arms and armor there. Then in the afternoon I dragged him to the Arc de Triomphe because I like it, and he gamely went along.
After the Rodin we went to the Cafe du Commerce (Mrs. Redboots, please take note!) for a Fancy French Lunch. Vicki had gnocchi--not very French, but very tasty--I had "lieu noir" with "orge" which turned out to be fish and barley respectively (learning vocabulary by ordering things with names you don't know), and Samantha had a fish filet with fries. Everything was good and the restaurant itself was, as Vicki put it, "a French restaurant straight from Central Casting."
In the afternoon we headed to Montmartre and Sacre-Coeur which are always a good call. We took the funicular (after walking up through Abbesses metro station which is the deepest one in the system at 35 meters), walked through the church, then walked down and ate macarons. Plus a little light shopping in between! We bought cute/funny souvenirs in Pylones, which is a little store full of witty design objects. Now we are back at the apartment relaxing while the Pont-L'Eveque I bought comes up to room temperature. Cheese and olives for dinner ahoy!
Also! Yesterday morning Daniel and I went to the Invalides/Museum of the Army to see Napoleon's tomb and the collections of arms and armor there. Then in the afternoon I dragged him to the Arc de Triomphe because I like it, and he gamely went along.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)