Final Post from France

Spence, Aimee and I have ended our historic vacation in Paris!  It was a great trip and an awesome time.  And sadly over far too soon.  

Our last day was fantastic - we went to the Louvre and I saw a few of my favorite pieces/artists (more on that below).  We walked over to the Place des Vosges and sat in the park while the fountains came on and people strolled around and really felt like we were living the Parisian life!  

We ended with a tasty tasty meal at Cafe Hugo which is in the colonnade around the park.  Cafe  Hugo is named after Victor Hugo who lived just around the corner.  There was some VERY delicious pate (duck's liver) that I particularly enjoyed.

Anyway, that morning as Spence and Aimee did some shopping I wandered over the to Mosque of Paris and the Institut du Monde Arab.  However the Institute has moved to a new space (I went there on Tuesday between the time we had to check out and the time my Eurostar train left for London.)  So I just wandered around the empty rooms, peeked into the mosque, and took a few pictures of the tiles.  Very reminiscent of the tile work in Granada.  Here are some pictures.  

At the Louvre we saw the Winged Victory of Samothrace.  This is probably my favorite piece of art in the world.  It's absolutely stunning.  I have a picture of this from the trip our family took to Europe all those years ago (thanks again for that trip, Dad and Mom!)  It was just as amazing this time!

El Greco is probably my favorite painter.  It's amazing to me that he lived in the late 1500's - his work is so modern that it wouldn't be out of place 400 years later!  I saw a fantastic exhibit of his work in London a few years ago.  The Louvre has a few of his paintings - here are two that really caught my eye. 

The Crucifixion

St Louis (king of France)

Finally, here is a painting of the Wedding of Joseph and Mary.  I can't remember the artist, but I like it because if shows Joseph as a young man, not the usual old man that's usually shown.  And I think it shows a Joseph who loves Mary, which is also very nice.  He went through a lot.

A few pictures that I found interesting:

Some stairs up from the walking areas along the Seine.  They are absolutely packed in the evenings - when Spence, Aimee & I took one of the evening cruises there were so many people - sitting, eating, dancing, listening to music.  It's such a cool Parisian way to live!  

There are public fountains all over the city.  Most are larger, but this one is really interesting.

Finally a picture of flowers from the garden of Eugene Delacroix.  It was close to our apartment.  It was a little oasis of greenery in the city - you were far from the hustle and bustle.


I'm back in the UK now with Kelly and Paul.  I'll be here through next Tuesday and then it's off to New Zealand.  I'm looking forward to that adventure.

Tapestries in the Musee de la Moyen Age

There is an amazing collection of tapestries at the Cluny Museum.  I've pasted a few examples below.  The most amazing and famous is a series called "The Lady and the Unicorn".  The pictures below that are primarily red (the second, third and fifth) are all from this series. 

Tomorrow we're doing some shopping and going a restaurant in the Marais district that a friend recommended.  Then it's back to the UK for me and back to Seattle for Spencer and Aimee.

Gardens at Versaiiles

We (meaning Spencer & Aimee) did their research and knew that on Saturdays the fountains in the gardens of Versailles are on (here's a cool map.)  So that's why we went.  Here's a picture (with rainbow) of the Apollo Fountain on.  It was really amazing.  We sat right on the edge of the fountain, listened to the music that was also playing, and enjoyed the spectacle.

Here are some goldfish in a fountain in the gardens.  I thought it looked a little like an Impressionist painting...

The Museum of the Middle Ages

Today we went to the Museum of the Moyen Age (Middle Ages) or the Cluny Museum.  Here are a few photos of the buildings.  It used to be a abbey of the Cluny order so it's a fantastic old building.  And there is a VERY old Roman bath next to it/incorporated into it.  It's fantastic.

Some great old stained glass is in the collection - this is one of the ones I liked.

And this is just something that caught my eye.  

I'll post a few pictures of some of the tapestries in the next post.  This museum has an amazing collection. 

Versailles!

Here are a few photos of the chateau at Versailles.  We had a fantastic day for the trip.  But we skipped the chateau tour and wandered through the gardens.  I'll have a few photos of those in the next post!

This is the line - and the reason we went directly to the gardens!  The line actually goes of for quite a distance to the right and behind me.  We tried every trick but couldn't get in any other way....so off to the gardens!

Art from the Musee l'Orangerie

Spence, Aimee and I made it to the Musee de l'Orangerie - a fantastic museum in the Tuileries Gardens.  The main floor has been specifically made for some massive pictures by Monet (see the pictures in the link above) and the lower floor has a fantastic collection of Impressionist art.  Below are some of my favorite.  I promised myself that I'd remember the artists of each, but of course I haven't.  So just enjoy!

A Few Cool Pictures from the Guimet Museum (and the Tour Eiffel)

Here are a few of my favorite photos from the Guimet, a fantastic museum of Asian art.  No commentary on these tonight because I want to get a few more pictures up!

This is a bhodisatva with 1,000 arms.

These are examples of my favorite art form - a fusion of Indian,  Greek and Asian art that came from Ghandara.

And the Tour Eiffel!