At long last...
The second half of our Parisian adventure!!
February 13, 2008
So after our hours of exploration with the Orsay, we hadn't quite been museum'ed-out just yet, so we headed over to the Pompidou for a modern change of pace. As fate would have it, we arrived to quite a surprise... on Wednesdays from 6-9 visitors between the ages of 18 and 25 get in free. Graham barely made the cut. And we arrived at 5. So we had an hour to kill. We were pretty much starving after drooling over Monet and Van Gough, so we decided to take an LATE lunch / early (especially for Europe) dinner break. We headed to a cute little corner cafe overlooking the square in front of the Pompidou center and listened to live jazz while sitting on comfy cushions below heat lamps. Graham was craving another Croque Madame and I opted for the quiche of the day. Both were amazing, but I would argue that mine was far better. But after our first amazing Croque Madame which we devoured while staring at Notre Dame, no second act held a chance in living up to those expectations. Quite possibly the best part of our much needed rest was the fabulous people-watching that the ample outdoor seating allowed. There was the most adorable little baby girl standing precariously on the bench beside her father and bobbling along to the jazz band strumming along behind her. Her smile was infectious. It seemed that no matter where we went, adorable children were spotted as frequently as Creperies and cafes. I'm not sure why, but practically EVERY French baby we saw could have been in Gerber ads. With big puffy cheeks, sparkling eyes and the cutest little lips decorating a wobbly little head atop a quite fashionably decked out little body, we couldn't help but goo and gah right back at each and everyone of them. Yes, we are
those people.
Anyhow, after baby drool and with full tummies, we wandered back to the museum, free tickets in hand. I've never really been a fan of modern art. I tried. Ok, semi tried. But after formal education in classical arts and architecture, it's difficult to appreciate that a urinal on its side is not only a work of art, but an important piece of social commentary and criticism. But it's good to expose oneself to culture, and the Pompidou houses some of the world's most important modern artistic culture. We browsed through the works by the likes of Picasso and Jackson Pollock. Some pieces confused us. Some shocked us. Some made us laugh at the sheer ridiculousness. And yet, as in every museum there were those who seemed in complete awe of the mastery on display. At the above-mentioned urinal (quite literally nothing more than a plain, white urinal turned on its side, as if the floor were the wall it was intended to hang upon, with a tiny black signature from the artist) there was a girl who stood, wide-eyed, gasping with the French equivalent of "wonderful", "amazing", "inspiring" or something along those lines. She would stare, rotate to a different angle, and stare again. I didn't understand what she was seeing, but I'm sure I look the same when I get weak in the knees staring at Bernini, so who am I to judge? Even though we saw some very noteworthy names, nothing inspired us to take a picture of it. Maybe we were just photoed-out from the Orsay. But nevertheless, my favorite part of the museum was that outdoor escalator that gave a very impressive view of the nighttime Parisian skyline. Of that I did manage to snap a few shots :)
Notre Dame from the top floor of the Pompidou
Parisian streets and the Eiffel Tower through the (dirty) window on the top floor of the Pompidou.
February 14, 2008
Happy Valentine's Day!!!
And what is more appropriate on the day of love than a visit to the Sacred Heart? We spent the first part of our Romantic day in Paris visiting Sacre Couer and Montmartre. Unfortunately, it was a bit of an overcast day, so the normally stunning view from atop the hill wasn't quite visible. But we did get a few beautiful shots of the church!
Our blustery but cloudy day...
We've been taking SO many pictures that we were bound to end up with a few
curious ones every ow and again :) (please note, this was posted not only with his permission, but with his prompting)...
After a lunch of a delicious French hamburger (Graham) and French onion soup accompanied by yet another Croque Madame (me) at a cute little Montmartre bistro decked out in teal and brown, we headed to the Champs Elysees to see...
The Arc du Triumph!!! For those who have never been to Paris, the arch is basically the center of many of the major roads in Paris; something like the center point of a large circle. So, needless to say, there is a lot of traffic around it, and the only way to get a nicely centered picture is to stand on the little hunk of cement dividing the two directions of traffic. Not a big deal, right? Apparently it was. I told Graham to stand and smile as I backed up a bit to take a better picture. The "smile" he is wearing is the result of the panic coursing through his body as the white van that provides an unfortunate blur on my otherwise perfect shot almost took my arm off mi-photograph. I didn't notice.
Mine didn't turn out as well, but Graham only took one shot and wanted to run as quickly from the trafficy spot as possible. I snapped one shot of Champs Elysees, and we were off.
Our next stop? Cartier. No really. Cartier. I peaked at the window (what girl wouldn't?) and Graham noticed. He asked "do you want to go in?" and without really giving me time to respond he was pulling me towards the door. I became anxious. I've never been inside any Cartier store, let alone THE Cartier store here in Paris. We browsed the displays awkwardly as women draped in fur examined the private selection of jewels brought to their tables. I was nervous and uncomfortable. We could hardly afford to breath the air. But it was amazing. A silly little high that I never would have allowed myself to experience. But I have an amazing boy who continuously surprises me, and together I continuously find that we can in fact do many of the things I would have otherwise thought impossible. After that, we needed a little dose of reality. It came in the form of a stroll down the Champs Elysees, a quick jot into Sephora, and then another in to Virgin Records. Some makeup and a few cds later, we headed back to the hotel to change for dinner.
For dinner Graham had wanted to surprise me with a dinner cruise down the Seine. Apparently we worked all that out too late, so instead we made reservations at Chez Clement, my favorite restaurant, because to have dinner with the love of my life in Paris on Valentine's Day is enough of a fantasy that I am spoiled by just the thought of it, regardless of where we actually eat. Dinner was interesting. The restaurant was packed (of course) and service was terrible. We tried foie gras. Don't need to do that again. Almost two hours later, we were cold and tired, so instead of strolling around the streets of Paris at 11 at night, we decided to go back to the hotel to rest up for our last day in the City of Lights.
Oh yes, how could I forget... the whole week Graham's immune system was desperately trying to fight off what would later become probably the worst sickness he's had in years. So our normally very energetic and go-getting selves were somewhat slower than normal, so as a result we took Paris at a slower pace and went to bed at (what our parents will be happy to hear was) a respectable time.
February 15, 2008
For our last day in Paris, we asked for as late a check-out as possible. Graham was feeling very under the weather and I wanted to keep him warm, and out of the cold Parisian wind as long as possible. When we finally had to leave the room, we stored our baggage with the hotel and head out for the pharmacy for the second time in the week (the first medicine we bought proved ineffective). Luckily, this time seemed to offer something a bit better. As I munched on what would be my last Parisian crepe, Graham took his medicine and was feeling better before I had finished. So we decided to make the most of our remaining hours and headed the the most sinful and most holy places in the city.
First stop, Moulin Rouge.
Not as impressive as expected. It's somewhat small (relative to what I had imagined) and just kind of sits there on the corner in the middle of the Red Light District. I would have been very upset if we had purchased tickets for the show there and exited the theater late at night to find a street full of ladies-of-the-night. Nevertheless, it was daytime, and somewhat cleaner and safer, so we explored a bit.
The super-cool metro entrances that fill practically every corner.
Neighbor to the Moulin Rouge, and not the only one of its kind...
For our very last stop in Paris before running to catch our plane, we headed back to Notre Dame for a quick peak inside (it was closed when we visited a few nights before). It was absolutely stunning. I think the word breathtaking may have been invented to describe the experience of stepping inside Notre Dame (but shh, don't tell San Pietro I said that).
One of the famous rose windows.
Flickering candles.
And then we said au revoir to Paris and headed back to the airport. This time the bus managed to make the trip without hitting any cars. We got safely onto our plane, and, as usual I said goodbye from the air and snapped my last shots of the city. Somewhere in there you could spot the Eiffel Tower (darn airplane moves to fast and makes my beautiful pictures blurry :( )
The non-Catholic cemetery (yes, one of the only ones in Rome). Resting place of Shelley and Yeats, as well as countless other expats from around the world. It's also home to one of many Roman cat colonies.
Livia playing dress-up. The boys were both spiderman. She was a ballerina fairy with a pencil for a wand.
Enrico and Eduardo playing with Enrico's friend.
Eduardo and his friend... I know, their books/puzzles/toys/room in general is to be envied by all. They're a teeny bit spoiled.
Eduardo playing with one of their two dwarf hamsters. Well they did have two... a few days ago Enrico slipped while carrying a hamster and a book; unfortunately the hamster ended up under the book AND Enrico. Now they only have one hamster. But according to Livia, they have to go back to the store and get another one, so the remaining hamster doesn't die of a broken heart.
I took Livia and Jennifer to St. Peters a few Saturdays ago. She's lived in Rome for a large percentage of her life, but she's never been there. I couldn't believe it. We had a blast.
They took pictures of EVERYTHING!
Afterwards they sketched pictures of the piazza and tossed coins into the fountain.
Another outing in Villa Borghese.
Livia and the stunningly picturesque blossoms in the park. She wanted a picture "holding" them.
Graham and I had our own excursion in Villa Borghese, only ours was better because we brought food. Yes, we had a picnic in the park. Yes, we are that couple.
Sipping red wine from a plastic cup. Classy.
We took practically 1000s of these. This was the winner.
I got lost in a cave... or just started taking silly pictures, and was curious what I would look like from the POV of Graham's wallet.
If you can figure out the POV of this picture, we may just fly you out here...
This one's obvious. I think he looks like a little kid... just so happy :)
Beautiful sunsets on the Tiber, looking towards Trastevere.
We got tickets to Easter with the Pope!!! As for our wretched appearance, it may have been Good Friday, but the weather was anything but. It was raining like crazy, and the wind was nice enough to blow it right into our faces... even when we were under an umbrella.
To get our tickets I strolled right up those stairs to the big bronze doors and asked the Swiss guards like it was no big deal. Only later did I freak out and squee like a little school girl when I realized what I had just done.
The massive congregation for Good Friday services in St. Peter's. The pope is there; all the way in the front and to the left. I try to zoom in to see him in the videos below. Mind you, we were about a football-field away...
