I see Paris, I see France...

We just got back from a wonderful tour of northern France. We spent 2 days in Paris, followed by a 2 day tour of the Normandy coast, followed by half a day at Mont St. Michel and another half day touring chateaus in the Loire Valley. I'll be covering our trip through a few different posts.

note the fine pollarding of the trees leading up to the tower

Most of my expectations of Paris came from movies such as French Kiss (a Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline classic), books such as Julia Child's My Life in France, and blogs such as DesignMom (an American family of 8 living in rural France). These sources--of varying accuracy--showed me what to expect in terms of culture and food, but not much in the way of historical context. Fortunately, I had a European history aficionado as my tour guide, so I saw all the major sights and learned a bunch about the city's history as well.

We stayed near the Eiffel Tower in an apartment that I found through AirBnb, and we spent our first day walking through the Tuileries and to the Louvre. Originally a palace for the king, the buildings we see today are only part of the original construction. It was incredible to imagine one man living in a house that large.

the palace bends in a U-shape, with the museum entrance through the glass pyramid
You walk under Napoleon's monument after exiting the garden

We got to the Louvre museum only an hour before closing, but it was still wonderful to see Winged Victory (she is so elegant and powerful-looking), the Venus de Milo (she is lovely) and the Mona Lisa (she is quite popular) in person.

that's Mona on the wall
this is also a 'Where's J?' photo - can you spot him? :)

After a lunch of buckwheat crepes, we peeked inside Notre Dam, which is celebrating its 850th anniversary. I was most impressed with the colossal roses surrounding the church, while J admired the architecture--the cathedral was one of the first with flying buttresses to allow for larger windows to let in more light.

We found a ride from Cologne to Paris using a ride-sharing website, which was a special traveling experience, so we were quite tired that first day! Following a nap at the apartment, we ate dinner at Chez Papa, a small French chain restaurant where J had eaten last summer on a research trip. We both got duck, served in a piping hot ceramic pot with potatoes, delicious garlicky cheese, and mushrooms. We also split a bottle of the house wine, a tradition during the trip.

The next day, we caught the metro to La Sainte-Chapelle (the royal chapel). The building and its incredible stained glass windows date from the 1200s. The windows progressively tell important stories from the Bible, with Adam & Eve by the entry, Christ's crucifixion over the raised dais in the center, and the end times depicted in the rose window by the exit. They were restoring several of the windows, but it still felt very much like being inside a "jewel box." The chapel is also right next to the Palais de Justice and the prison where Marie Antionette was kept prior to her execution during the French Revolution. 

We spent the afternoon strolling through Montemartre, walking by Moulin Rouge, vineyards, and Renoir's garden on our way to the Sacré-Cœur Basilica at the top of the hill.

Montmartre Cemetery: home to Alexander Dumas & many others
Fun fact: new cemeteries have been banned in Paris since the 1700s, when
they had to dig up a bunch of bones and put them in the catacombs because
every time it rained, human bones would wash out of the overcroweded

cemeteries!

taking a break from the heat on a shady street in Montemartre

the Basilica

view of Paris from the basilica

From the Basilica, you can see most of Paris. Since the French Revolution, Paris has been carefully planned out, with broad, arrow-straight avenues allowing one to see major landmarks from far away and from many different directions. So you can stand by the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde and see northwest all the way down the Champs Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe and southeast all the way through the Tuileries Garden to the Louvre.

looking northeast through the Tuilerries, to the obelisk, and finally the Arc

We also stopped by the Musee d'Orsay in the late afternoon to take advantage of the discount entry fee. It's in a grand old train station, with the ceiling arcing high above the main hall where statues are artfully scattered.

photo by Bob Hall

The large number of  nude statues, paintings, and photographs horrified J when he visited in 8th grade, and this was his first time back since then. I could see the art and beauty in a lot of it, but we highly suggest avoiding Room 19, which currently houses an exhibit of (actually pretty gross) naked pictures. Many of the photos were very...gritty. In the words of a museum plaque, "Images of naked bodies appear in disconcerting numbers in the Musée d’Orsay photographic collection." No kidding. So we stuck to the wonderful Impressionists gallery on the 5th floor and were quite happy. The paintings look like how I remember things, sort of fuzzy around the edges but forming a clear picture nevertheless--Monet really was a genius. And the views through the big clock faces out into the city were magical!

photo by Etienne Boucher

Our last destination of the day was Napoleon's Tomb, which also houses the bodies of important generals and soldiers. It is quite a monument, settled in the extensive grounds of the Les Invalides, a hospital for wounded soldiers. It's now also home to a museum of military history.

Les Invalides is the low building in front, and Napoleon's tomb is the dome behind it

inside a courtyard of Les Invalides, near the military museum

Napoleon's tomb -- the guy standing between the statues gives
a sense of the size of it!

Our time in Paris ended with a romantic midnight stroll under the Eiffel Tower, all the way to the Arc d'Triumph. Both were so much larger than I had imagined! And the Eiffel Tower really does sparkle.

And that was it for Paris! It was exhausting to see so many things in 2 days, which I believe is a common experience in Paris--the Musee d'Orsay was filled with tired-looking tourists, wilting after a long day. I wouldn't have it any other way, though! It was such a treat to get to visit the city of love with J for our anniversary. I'll post about the rest of our trip soon -- stay tuned!