Paris

Sunday in Paris is quiet.....so they say. But it is all relative in world cities like New York, London, Hong Kong and Paris....they seem to be on the go all the time.

The EuroStar was a bit "down at heel" but it was fast and got us here from London in a couple of hours and in time to settle in to our apartment before dinner.

The building itself seems to be really quite old with exposed rock walls and exposed rustic beam ceilings, but it is nice and comfortable and has room for us to spread out ...... and it is located in a really nice neighbourhood very close to the metro and the sights. We have a patisserie across the way, restaurants and cafes all around and can see the Eiffel Tower from the end of the street.

We visited the Louvre......together with the "world and his wife" and saw the Mona Lisa......not as striking as you would think, and the Venus de Milo and countless other works of art from all around the world..... and from antiquity.
From its beginnings as a fort, to a palace and then to a museum in the 18thC, the Louvre certainly is a huge museum, the largest in the world......and with a huge patronage, but still very impressive. It would be great to spend a week in there....without the crowds.

The picture below is of the line up to get in.....just at the front entrance.

We visited the Musee D'Orsay which is not far from our apartment and is famous for its collection of works of the impressionists and post impressionists. Some of the paintings ( Lautrec, Renoir, Cezanne, Monet and Van Gough) we had seen at the exhibitions in Canberra over the last few years but many, like Rodin's sculptures, we have never seen. They are quite impressive in 3D and in real life.
The building itself is quite "arty" and the picture below is a view out one of the feature windows.

We also visited Notre Dame cathedral, a few Metro stops from the Louvre......

(It was raining and the gargoyles were being a bit ........"Linda Blair"!)

..........and the girls went shopping in the St Michel district and crossed the Pont de L'Archeveche where lovers attach a padlock to the bridge and throw the key in the River Seine as a symbol of their unbreakable love.

Both sides of the rail and both sides of the bridge looked like this.........no wonder they call Paris the "city of love!"

We strolled along the Champs Elysees, window shopping. All the big brand names are there....YSL, Hugo Boss, Hermes,Tommy Hilfiger,....MacDonalds!

The view from the top of the Arc de Triomphe was pretty impressive, but the climb up the narrow, spiral staircase was a bit claustrophobic.

From the top you get a panoramic view of the city with the streets radiating out from the centre like spokes in a wheel. Apparently Napoleon wanted to be able to fire cannons down the avenues to give any pesky crowds a "whiff of grapeshot".
Sacre Coeur is the pointy basillica on the horizon.

We saw the Tour Eiffel from a number of different angles including this from the Pont de Bir-Hakiem (named after a famous WW2 battle involving the French and asssociatated with Rommel and our Tobruk) before heading home to escape the storms, one of which struck while we were in a cafe having lunch....flying awnings, umbrellas and crashing glass all over the place.

On Tuesday evening we went to a show at the famous Moulin Rouge......yes, the one with the topless dancers, and what a spectacular show it was. It was a real caberet with different acts (Erin's favourite was the talking dog) including gymnasts, a ventriloquist, jugglers, ponies, pythons in a huge glass tank ( swimming with a topless dancer) and of course the Can Can. It was a feast for all the senses....especially the eyes!

On advice from Nick, and our host Sebastian, who was very insistent, we saw the icons but to get a sense of Paris, Montmartre is the place to see. So we visited the district famous for its bohemian artists of days gone by and its famous basillica, Sacre Coeur. We wandered around the streets of Montmartre with all its cafes and cobbled streets, its art shops and trinket shops until we found we had our fill and couldn't absorb any more.

We have enjoyed our fleeting stay in Paris, and experienced enough of a taste to want to come back again at some time.
But for now, after almost six weeks, seven countries, umpteen dozen beds, too many packups /unpacks to mention, and goodness knows how many kilometres, it's time to start heading home.

We fly out tomorrow via Hong Kong, to break the very long flight and we are all looking forward to being home soon....as Dorothy said.....etc.