paris/october 2006. i love paris in the springtime. i love paris in the fall. our first day found us at the louvre. i never tire of the place, art or sound of the french language. it is said that paris is a 'virgo' city, intent upon precision, details and perfection. there is nothing but these three at the louvre. after we left the museum we hit a little of the paris drizzle. just in time to step into a café for a small dinner and then a walk, taking in the visuals of the
moulin rouge.
breakfast at our hotel was divine. the french equivalent of the the american complimentary breakfast is so much more! fresh croissants, brie, fresh fruit, café au lait, jams, honey and fresh baguettes are just a few of the items offered. sheesh!
musée d'orsay. here, i would LOVE to reside. just imagine waking up in this place and walking around from room to room with your coffee, saying good morning to the
van goghs, renoirs and toulouse-lautrecs...it's easy to feel the spirits of these artists in this place of exhibition. for me....especially monsieur auguste rodin. the force of his pieces almost make me swoon, not unlike being at a beatles concert...for me.
one piece that has always been a favourite is 'the circus' by seurat. his last work, unfinished, has been a personal symbol for virtuosity. i love everything about this vervy swervy painting. seurat believed that painting could achieve harmony like music. i hear this sing!
and what would paris be without at least one visit to les galeries lafayette. berets, parfum et lingerie!
after a day incorporating shopping, sight-seeing, and museums, mjk and i were low on energy and even lower on clean clothing. a few shops down from our hotel was a gorgeous little wine store. we found out that it was 'white night' in paris. all the museums would be open - free - until dawn. all the landmarks would be lit. everyone would come out come out and pack paris in like a sweaty night club.
so...we did laundry...
with a bottle of delicious wine...
the last day in paris was insanely busy. a trip to le cimetière du père-lachaise. respects were paid to yves montand, simone signoret, apollinaire, delacroix, many more, and, of course, james douglas morrison. jon began singing and playing on guitar 'crystal ship' when the gendarmes came over to silence him...basically the police were letting him know that music was for the metro NOT for the cemetery!!! aside from this ridiculolus scenario i rather enjoyed the place. and i really had to be coerced into going. i think of cemeteries as creepy, morose devotional sites to a belief system that i DON"T believe. but this was one of the most breathtaking places. i would have loved to have been there at night...and play enormous amounts of music. electric music!
from père-lachaise we took the metro to the centre pompidou. honestly, i had become desensitized...i needed a day off from the museums. one really needs two or more weeks in paris to fully appreciate the amount of history represented. i was done. there would be more mirós and dalís in spain. what i wanted and got was a fabulous dinner before hopping an all night train to barcelona. and so it was au revoir to france...and bienvenidos á españa!
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