Hobnobbing with Monet and van Gogh

Today was another gloomy day in Paris, though a lot less rainy and a bit warmer so it was an improvement over yesterday. We had planned to visit Versailles but decided that a lot of our motivation was to photograph the place and with the gloomy weather it wouldn't be worth it. So instead we bonded with the likes of Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, Manet and Renoir. That's right, we finally made it to Musee d'Orsay and Musee l'Orangerie when they were open!

There's no photos allowed in either museum but I of course snuck a few. Below is the view from inside the clock at d'Orsay, you can see the Louvre across the Seine and Sacre Couer on Monmarte in the distance. 

Neither of us are really art addicts but we both know enough to get serious goose bumps when standing in front of an original Van Gogh like  'Thatched Cottages at Cordeville'. There were so many that caught our eye and since we couldn't take pictures we grabbed the names so we could remember later what really made impressions on us. Here is the list of our favorites:

- Self Portrait by van Gogh

- Starry Night by van Gogh

- The Rue Montorgueil in Paris by Monet

- Smaller Dancer age 14 by Degas

Next we went to l'Orangerie which had a special installment of art that Debussy liked, influenced etc. which was nice though we were both disappointed that they weren't playing Debussy in the exhibition hall. There was one piece in particular that was part of the exhibition that I really liked by John Mallord William Turner called Distant River. We found the best part of the museum by walking through an empty stark white room and into a large oval room which was like surround vision as the walls were plastered with panoramic of Monet's Water Lily's - two oval rooms full. Again, we're not experts but it was really cool to be surrounded, if I let my mind go blank it almost felt as if I were in a boat floating through this imaginary world in Monet's mind. When you went close it was just smudges and not impressive but when you went to the other end of the room it was just amazing....very much worth the treck across the river and the second trip and everything. Very cool. Oh and thank you Nancy from work for insisting that we go to this museum! 

A tip for next time, definitely by the Passport ticket for both museums. We waited about 30 min to go through security at d'Orsay, bought our ticket there and then when we went to l'Orangerie we skipped two long queues and went right in since we already had our tickets.

Snails, Creme and Lights

Feeling well rested, feisty and grateful that the rain had passed Megan and I took off to find a tripadvisor recommended restaurant. We started hoping  for Restaurant Mariette only to find them closed :( No worries though because our back up of Chez Pierrot was near by and perfect. The waitress was patient even though it was late and they had all of the 'typical' French delicacies we were hoping to try. 

We started with escargot which we both actually enjoyed. We followed Lauren's advise to 'not look at it' and the pesto sauce it was with was so good that it was really quite pleasant. 

For our main course we shared a dish of scallops and rice and a second dish of trout and potatoes. Of course they brought out the entire fish, head and all, but I put a lime over it and Megan bravely dismantled it and it was all delicious. Pictures of both are on Flickr here. We also ordered a bottle of wine, we don't even know what it was, some sort of average Chardonnay but it was light and crisp and perfect. For desert we each had a light and creamy Creme Brulee that was divine. We plan to add to the positive reviews on tripadvisor.

After dinner we made our way back to the Eiffel Tower in time to see it get all bling like at midnight and spent the following 45 minutes taking various photos of it all lit up. I personally think that during the day it's nice to see the welding and construction but it's really at it's most impressive at night. It's no secret I love Rome and seeing the Coloseo at night, lit up is one of my favorite sites but I've decided that the Eiffel Tower deserves it's place on the same list of awesome historical sites, though just because of it's youth it must go lower on that list. We got some amazing shots of the tower, the flood lights on the top combined with the low hanging clouds made for great conditions. We kept our eyes open but overall felt safe and enjoyed looking for new angles.

Unfortunately we got back to metro about 6 minutes after the last train but we found a taxi without any excitement and were safely on our way back to our apartment when suddenly our cab was pulled over by the Police. Apparently they said he ran a red light though he kept insisting it was only orange. They took his huge stack of papers, licenses, visas etc and issued him a ticket. It took about 10 minutes and we were just a little too far to walk the rest of the way. In the end it wasn't a big deal though it did get us a little nervous until the argument over the color of the light began, then we knew it was just a typical situation. :)

One more day in Paris before we fly to Barcelona. We've decided to wait and see what the weather holds for us tomorrow. For now we've worn ourselves out and are again full of delicious food.

Rain on Stained Glass

It is so COLD and WET today! The museum we tried to go to was closed and with the rain we decided to go to a chapel we knew would be open,  Saint Chappelle. Of course there was a long line so we stood in the rain for nearly an hour to go through the metal detectors. We finally get to the entrance of the church to find there is an 8,50 euro entry fee. Grr, but we've come this far right? So we paid and went in to a small chapel, it was pretty and all but nothing super impressive, certainly not worth the wait and the fees....until we went up the spiral stairs to the main chapel and then, holy cow!

It has these crazy high stained glass windows with some of the most complicated and ornate panels I've ever seen. Each told the story of a book of the Bible, at least that's what we read but we couldn't make any of the stories out ourselves. It was worth the wait.

Unfortunately with the weather and our now numb feet we couldn't think of anything else to do that could beat the idea of our nice toasty apartment. So here we are, warming up and resting and watching the rain fall on Paris outside our windows.

We're not done for the day though, once warm and rested we'll get back out there. Megan has yet to see the Eiffel Tower lit up and we still have Parisian delicacies to eat!

Rainy Day in Paris

This is part of our diabolical plan to attract Parisian men. See, those $1 store ponchos scream 'we are exotic American women'...

Megan's Happy Moments

I captured two highlights of Megan's day in photos. We had our first European McDonald's experience. According to Lauren McCafe coffee is good and just as common as Starbucks so we both had coffee with Chantilly cream.



Then at the grocery store Meg did a happy dance (literally) when she saw that they carried her all time favorite brand of chocolate. I think she bought out the store....15 bars!

Now that we have internet I'm posting the iPhone photos to Flickr so you can see more here. You'll have to wait till we get back to the states to see the awesome pics from our cameras.

Paris with a Tour Guide

Lauren came into town and met us at Oberkampf, our metro stop. From there we went to the Eiffel Tower which was Meg's first full sighting. Then we took a bus to Theatre Michelle where Lauren works and were given a back stage tour. It's an incredibly old, small theatre that is amazing inside. They were about to start one of their matinees made for kids so it was full of excited children. Then it was off to Flam's for flatbread pizzas and creme brulee - Megan had a goat cheese and honey pizza that was so good - we already have plans to duplicate it. Then we wandered down the Champs Elysees to the Arc di Triomf and then made our way to Monmarte to shop. We ended the day by exploring a French grocery store with Lauren as our guide which was amazing and led to the perfect home made feast of cheese, bread, arugula, tomatoes, soup and wine.

What we did with Lauren was great but really what made the day memorable was the company. We had such a good time with Lauren, there was never a dull moment, we all laughed and just had great conversation. The day just flowed naturally and is one neither of us will soon forget. We were preparing our meal when I made a sigh of some sort and Meg asked me what was wrong. Nothing I told her, I'm just in a really good mood. Me too! she said and we both giggled. And just like that, it really sunk in for us both that we're in Paris, on a two week long adventure together. We stayed up late and munched on our dinner for hours.

French Body Language or Internet at Last

Yesterday morning we finally heard back from the owners of the apartment about the wifi and it still wouldn't work. The owner stopped by, we had met Helen but no her husband Daniel. They are a couple in their 60s who own or manage the entire floor of our building. Daniel stopped by to help with wifi but he speaks zero English. He asked for my computer, pulled out his reading glasses and proceeded to type in the password I had already tried and then scratch his head, chin etc when it didn't work. He tried again, no luck, then he began to mumble and gripe to himself. He tried again, then he pulled out an old cell phone, tried to call several people (I think his kids?) who didn't answer. Then he asked me to follow him to another apt where he tried to connect again, it looked so promising we both made hopeful exclamations, but then alas it errored out and we both groaned. He kept looking at my little Apple Air and saying 'miniature!' and making a disappointed face that there was no place to lug in a cat5 internet cable. Then a light bulb went off, he said 'adapter!' and disappeared. We didn't expect to see him again.

Twenty minutes later he was back with the adapter! He was so proud of it and emphatically indicated that we should leave it in the apartment. Then upon leaving he noticed that I had left the keys hanging on the inside of our door. 'No!' he said, 'risque, dangerax' and placed the keys on the counter and and said they should stay there. Then he took me to the door and showed me how to slide over a second lock, he made little clicking sound effects as he did it a said 'regarde, pas hommes, filles securite!' - look, no men, safe girls - :) 

He was awesome! Now we have internet, are even safer and are impressed with our ability to use our minimal French and body language to accomplish these two things with Daniel. :)

Now off to explore Paris with Lauren.

EXCELLENT Day - too good to even post about…yet

Today was awesome, amazing, serendipitous even, but we will tell you all about it tomorrow. Tonight we are enjoying this amazing feast and are enjoying bonding time and are not of sound mind to say anything else. So check back tomorrow for more. That is all. Bonsoir and au revoir.

Parisian Friends

Megan recently went on her first couch surf to Philly and was approach by another surfer, Lauren from Paris, on couchsurfing.org to stay on her couch in Orlando. So naturally when we realized we were going to be in Paris we contacted her. Tonight she invited us into her home for a traditional French meal.
She met us at a central metro stop and we then took a train to her suburban town of Poussy. There she, her boyfriend Nicolai and their adorable pygmy snake share a flat that is about 150 sqft but they make the most of every inch.
They served us fra grout (can't spell) and other delicacies for a starter. Then white bean, duck and sausage casulet (casserole) for the main course. This was followed by a fromage (cheese) course of Brie, Perac which is sheep's milk cheese, and a firmer cheese that started with a C and was named after a town that is 'North of the Southern Central part of France' (and yes, we remember where but not the name of the cheese (: ). Finally there was a dessert of assorted small macarons and eclairs all decadent.
The food was all delicious but it was the company and conversation that really made it a memorable night. It's always fun to meet new people, but especially so when you get to laugh over cultural differences and when every 10 minutes there is a real life game of Taboo as you try to help each other find the right words in another language.
Lauren will be surfing Megan's couch not long after we get back to the states and we're already talking about what sort of American foods we can make for her to return the hospitality :)
She has generously offered to meet is tomorrow to show us more of Paris. Tomorrow is the only day during our stay in Paris where the sun has a chance of making an appearance so hopefully we'll be able to get some good photos.
PS - we can't get in touch with the owners of the apt to get Internet access. So for now we're a bit quieter than we'd like to be...

Laura rocks the Louvre

I have the COOLEST sister in law ever. Today we toured the Louvre a'la Laura. On my first trip to Paris I asked my art major of a SiL to help me make a list of key pieces to see and what made them special to help me get the most of my visit. She took it to a whole other level by detailing a 10 stop tour using envelopes. Each had detailed instructions, down to which elevator to use, on the outside taking us to a specific piece of art. Then once in front we opened it and it contained a one page article on the piece. Even though I had done it once before it was amazing. Talk about a rewarding scavenger hunt. Meg was our navigator and she had just as much fun finding the pieces as looking at them.
The Louvre is so awe inspiring. It really puts life into perspective. There we were surrounded by works thousands of years old, by all of this talent and beauty it really makes you think about how we are just a blip on the radar.
Megan's favorite piece wasn't officially on our tour. It was Man on Hypogryph Slays Water Dragon to Save Dying Maiden, or at least that should have been the title.
I'm such a Michelangelo fan, I could've spent hours looking at The Slaves.
The weather has been odd. It's colder than predicted and overcast but today the sky was kind of fierce. In the photo below you can see the Eiffel Tower sticking up at the top of the fountain.
I've decided if there is a rainy day this week I will spend it wandering the Louvre.

Surreal

Today was very relaxed. We landed at 8am local time and decided to keep a casual pace. We found our Parisian home by 10:30am and love it! It's 20 yards from a metro stop and has a cozy neighborhood feel with two trendy cafes downstairs. Our favorite feature is the mini balcony. 

I survived my first international coach experience but sleep wasn't really an option. So after a needed nap we hit the streets in hopes that it would sink in that we actually made this happen. 

I got goosebumps at Notre Dame and Meg had her first crepe. We both rolled our eyes at the street performers singing Backstreet Boys in front of the Sacre Coeur. 

We stumbled upon an amazing dinner of Salmon and Gnocchi and are finally settling in for a full nights rest. 

We can't get the wifi to work and I can't seem to download the pics from my camera but we'll make it work. So far it's still surreal. 

No idea what we'll do tomorrow though we have a dinner date with a Parisian so we're looking forward to that. 

Quote of the day: Look! I speaking English! Hello, How are you? I am fine. 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 10 20 30 50!

Day 4/5 - driving

We made it to Roma and were at Fabio's by 6am after dropping Marcello off at his own car. There were five of us in a VW Torreg (the pic below is Marcello with the car).

The middle seat in back is not really made to sit on, there's no seatbelt. The AC did not work. But even after 400 euros for gas and 100 euros for tunnel tolls we were lucky to be able to move around Europe. So many people are stuck that all of the major airports have set up cots in the airport because all hotels are full so we are really grateful to Marcello for being in the car for 30 hours straight to get us and take us back and to Fabio & Adrian for having a bed for us. The picture below is our first gas bill!

Enough of the depressing stuff.

Once Marcello arrived we had a quick lunch of crepes (i had a goat cheese crepe with walnut salad). Then we took Marcello on a whirlwind tour with him and Adrian jumping out to take photos at Notre Dame, the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. By 3pm we were enroute to Roma.

The drive wasn't bad at all. There was a lot to see, we talked and joked for the first 10 hours and slept through the last four. Granted, I didn't take a turn driving, but it seemed to go quickly.

We saw many castles (the tan spot in the picture above is a castle) and as we neared the alps some castles were on the edge of a cliff which was crazy looking. The country side was lush and green and the moutain air around the alps was so fresh and pure, it smelled if earth, nature and health. You can see the sun setting on the alps below.

We had to pass through many, many, many tunnels. I am claustrophobic and I was already squeezed into the back middle nonseat of this hot car so when we entered a tunnel it was not a good situation for me. Luckily watching the sun set on the alps (4th pic) provided a great distraction. However, there was one tunnel, through Mount Blanc, that is nearly 7 miles long. For this I had to meditate and find my happy place :)

Switzerland is not EU so we tried very hard to avoid it since customs with two Americans, an Italian and two Argentinian Italians in a car that isn't properly registered (Fabio just bought it and it still has the US equivelant of paper tags) would be a nightmare in Switzerland. We passed right next to Geneva though and could see houses that were Swiss while we were driving through France.

We stopped for dinner as soon as we entered into Italy around 9pm. We were in a tiny town of Aosta and were very lucky to find a Trattoria (diner) open so late on a Sunday night. I ordered pizza expecting enough for one person, you how big it was. It was yummy though.

After dinner Adrian and I practiced English, Italian and Spanish before falling asleep. The speeds made it hard to sleep for long, Fabio averaged 220 km/hr which is about 140mph!

It was cramped and crazy. We sped by things that I wanted to stop and see but it was fun considering the circumstances and, as always, I'm glad to be back in Roma.

Now it is 7am and we're a going to bed.

Life is crazy.

Sara
7:10a - Roma

Day 4 - the great escape

Marcello, Adrian's brother will arrive at 1pm. He's never been to Paris so we'll have some lunch, give him a quick tour through the car windows and then head back to Rome. By the time we hit the alps it will probably be dark :( but at least we have a way out!

The boys are VERY eager to get home, they're aren't impressed with French hospitality. It will be nice for us all to get to their condo in Rome where we all feel at home, with a kitchen and news in a language we can understand. With the boys so eager to leave and SO many people stranded it feels like we are escaping.

I have actually been impressed by the French and their attitude toward us Americans. People have been helpful and pleasant. Granted we worked hard to learn enough French to be polite back.

I'm still impressed by how big everything is here. The city us just spralling, everything is a 15 minute walk, at least. The Eiffel Tower was larger than expected and nothing could have prepared me for the size if the Louvre.

This morning we had time before Marcello's arrival so Chris & I went in search of souveniers (they're very hard to find in this city, sorry family, I have very little to bring home from here). We passed by Muse d'Orsay and a pretty Spring Garden and the Louvre (in the photo there
are two building tops, one is in the distance, both are the Louvre).

Now we're waiting for the escape car to arrive :)

Muse d'Orsay

A pretty church garden

The Louvre. Both the tower that is closest as well as the one in the distance, to the left are the part of the Louvre.

Sara

1:30pm - Paris

Day 3 - transportation plans

We wanted to give a quick update on what's going on. We couldn't find any tickets to anywhere at the train station so Adrian's brother is coming all the way from Rome to Paris to get us. He started driving Saturday night and should arrive late Sunday morning. We will drive back to Rome Sunday morning and it will take about 15-16 hours but we will get to drive through France, the Alps and down the west coast of Italy! The delays here are crazy. We're already assuming we wont be able to nonrev home on Wedn as planned. We are excited and trying to enjoy the adventure the boys... not so much. Adrian hates the French language and they both just want to go home.

Tonight, after two hours at the train station without finding any tickets we went to Tracadero for dinner. Adrian & Fabio got fondu which was awesome! The restaurant was interesting and cute.

From dinner, back to the hotel until we hear froml the brother. I'm falling asleep as I write. I'll you in as we go if I can.

Day 3 - site seeing

Today our mood was a bit blue. We're all a bit preoccupied by the fact that we're trapped. Since we couldn't seem to find a solution this morning we toured the sites.

We saw the Arc de Triumph and the Eiffel Tower as you can see. Then we went to Mouffetard Market and had a surprisingly yummy lunch.

Now we're fighting with the hotel WiFi and competing with thousands of other stranded travelers to surf the internet and find a way out of here. The current favored option is a train to Rome. But we'll update as to how it all works out.

Sara
5:45p - Paris

Plot Twist!

We just learned that Paris and surrounding airspace is closed due to volcanic ash in the air (which we can't see). All flights are cancelled until Monday. Plot twist!

Now we are trying to figure out how to get to Rome, but tons if other people are doing the same thing so there are no rental cars in Paris. With CDG closed we can't even go home on Delta. Italy has also restricted their airspace so we can't take a bus south and then grab a
flught to Rome. Seems we're good and stuck. There went our plans and likely our buget.

Sounds like we'll get up tomorrow and see what happens.

I figure worst case we'll be here extra days and I can return to Notre Dame. :)

There's always a twist, and always an adventure! :)

Sara
1:22am - Paris

Day 2 - Eiffel Tower

Obviously we made it to the Eiffel Tower! It was perfect timing as we
were passing by it happened to light up for the evening. But before
going closer we enjoyed a tré bien, and tré french dinner that
encluded: duck, ratatouille and creme brûlée with delicious white
wine while sitting in the second story window of a restuarant over
looking the lit up Eiffel Tower. After dinner we strolled over to the
Tower, stole a kiss underneath then made our way back to the hotel for
much needed rest.

Tomorrow we are going to hit all of the popular traditional French
sights while having daylight, then we are going to head to the airport
for our evening flight to Rome.

Day 2 - Notre Dame

Let me start by explaining that I love carthedral architceture. My favorite book is Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. I could spend hours admiring the construction, sculptures, decoration, stained glass and mosaics. My favorite is the glass. It killed me to leave Sacre Coeur so quickly yesterday.

Today I took my time at Notre Dame. It was beautiful. Uts such a classic example if gothic style. The carvings at the door so precise and delucate. One of the notable architectural details about Notre Dame is it was one of the first to use flying buttresses which were a new invention at the tine, they absolutely revolutionized architecture by allowing in more light. Stained glass suddenly became a more prominent feature in the church. To learn more just google 'flying buttress'. Below is a small model of the church that shows the buttresses.

The nave (below) was so tall, it went on forever. But even though it's made of heavy, solid stone it felt to light and airy, like the walls might easily be plucked away. It was mind blowing, as always, to think about the men who built it back in the 1200s (it took 200 years to complete) with the use of machines or modern technology. Once you climbed to the top and realized your chisel was at the bottom there was no 'pust to talk', no cell phones. Chris's Dad told us to notice how straight all the lines are but there was no laser to cut for them. It's just breathtaking.

Being so revolutionary in architecture we expected the stain glass to be basic and rudamentary, using color and basic square geomoetric shapes. We were surprised to find intricate, fluid designs on many, including ivy and flowers. It seemed to gave glass from many differentbperiods though because some of the windows were more like we expected. They were all phenominal. The pics on the camera will show it better.

Above is a pic of the front if the cathedral. You can pay to climb up but we're all still sore from yesterdays crazy walk and my bum knee is especially bummy so no climb for us. Off to the right we found some gardens in full bloom with cherry blossoms, tulips, daffodils and more. The bots rested while I took a million photos of the flora and church. I warned you that I live cathedrals :)

Now, we are back at the hotel. I finally joined the WiFi and I'm rattling on to you while they all nap.

We still haven't gone to the Eiffel Tower. Tonight we're dressing up a bit and going out on the town for finber and to experience Pari's nightlife and see the city lights. I doubt we'll get a good night shot with the iPhone but I'll try.

Sara
7:30pm - Paris

Volcano

We just heard about the volcano erruption in Iceland. We are safe and see no sign of ash. It doesn't sound like it will effect our RyanAir flight tomorrow night, but it may back things up for our standby flight home next week. We'll see.

The picture below is a view from inside the Louvre of the pyramid. To our right was 'portrait of John II the good' and to our left 'souvenir from mortefontaine'. I figured if I was going to post I might as well share a photo too. :)

Day 2 - the Louvre!!!

I need a computer keyboard to explain the feeling of space and beauty here. Below is the famous pyramid entry from which we followed Laura's amazing tour. Below that are just a few famous pieces of art that she described to us all the way from Florida:

Below is the Mona Lisa. She is indead tiny and stored in a very hot room behind glass. In contrast, there is a massive painting on the wall directly behind you as you look at the Mona Lisa.

Here is the Venus DeMilo. The famous armless carving of a half clothed woman with a surprisingly tiny head. Many think it to be a mask used by the model to hide her identity after the carving was released.

Fabio and Adrian standing in a spot that would make Laura, our tour guide, very, very jealous! The painting behind them is her favorite - "The Coronation of Napoleon" (it is EXTREAMLY detailed)

Looking upward from the subterranean entryway through the glass pyramid at the outside of the main fascad of the Louvre.