Montmarte

Tuesday, July 29

A little seedy around the edges, packed with tourists in the main square, Montmartre is actually a pleasant place once you get off the beaten track and stroll its pretty cobbled streets in search of the homes, studios and hangouts of the artistic and literary lights of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. They're all there, from Renoir & Van Gogh to Hemingway, Picasso and Gertrude Stein. Parts of Monmartre are reminiscent of Berkeley, North Beach in San Francisco, and Venice Beach in LA.











We took the Metro out to Montmartre, it's too far to walk. Through the early twentieth century, it was an outlying village and not part of Paris (it still has its own small vineyard, with an annual production of around 300 litres). Our nice weather returned today so it was cooler with a lovely breeze, perfect for hiking the hilly streets.


We started at Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart) high up on the butte, overlooking the city. The domed Roman-Byzantine basilica looks old but was actually built over a period of 44 years between 1875 and 1919. The interior is lovely, the most impressive feature being the beautiful blue, white and gold mosaic above the altar of Christ with outstretched arms and exposed heart. Mass was in progress when we were there and a nun in a white habit and black veil was softly playing the lute. The tourists present actually remined silent through the service and it was the nicest church experience we've had in Paris.


The main square is as you'd expect, jammed with tourists and artists, lined with cafes, shops and galleries. We had a delicious lunch at a small quiet cafe off the main square (a street cellist provided a nice accompaniment to the experience).





















Highlights of the rest of the afternoon included a stop in the Musee de Montmartre, in a 17th century manor house, featuring paintings, original posters, photos, music and memorabilia recalling the traditional Montmartre scene. The museum was featuring an exhibit on Absinthe, the inspiration and downfall of many creative Montmartre residents.














We also saw (in addition to artists studios & homes) the original La Maison Rose Restaurant, Au Lapin Agile Cabaret, Moulin Rouge, and the Moulin de la Galette, the last being the location where Renoir's painted his masterpiece, en pleine aire--what some call the quintessential Impressionist work. A glance up some of the streets (with the basilica dome in the background) recalled paintings by Utrillo, who lived most of his life in Montmartre (when he wasn't in rehab!).






















Dinner was at Pitchi Poi, a restaurant specializing in Eastern European Jewish food on Rue Caron.

A Walk Around the Faubourg St-Antoine

Monday, July 28

Our guidebook has several guided walks, so we decided to try one today. We relaxed for a lot of the morning then took a walk around the Faubourg St-Antoine area. Starting at our studio, we walked (sauntered, actually, the weather has been quite warm the past few days) to the Bastille, or rather what used to be the Bastille. Since the prison was torn down to start the Revolution in 1789, there's nothing there but a tall monument in a big roundabout. We then walked along the Port de Plaisance, location of the Paris yacht club and docking place for lots of pleasure boats, and the Paris Arsenal garden with its pretty flowers, cobblestone streets and antique lampposts.








We then proceeded to the Avenue Domesnil and the Viaduc des Arts. This looked to Claire like Paris' version of Showplace Square, the "to-the-trade" interior design shops of San Francisco. In 1859 the Paris Viaduct was built to take a railroad line that linked this district with the suburbs. In 1994 it was revamped to house 50 shops and studios devoted to all sorts of arts and crafts--everything you need to decorate your home in style, from hand-woven fabrics, rugs, furniture designer/makers and restorers, to floor coverings & decorative tile, kitchen & bathroom items, plus fine painting, sculpture, glass, porcelain, as well as more personal items like jewelry, lace, leather bags, ribbons, embroidery thread, buttons. The window shopping was fantastic.






















After a delicious lunch at the Viaduc Cafe we retraced our steps back to the Bastille (two stories up this time) along the Promenade Plantee, a lovely rooftop walkway landscaped with roses, lavender, bamboo, hollyhocks and more. Because of the heat, walking back required another cafe interlude for Perrier and a teensy weensy cup of French cafe.





















For dinner we returned to Cafe Framboisy, where we had such a wonderful lunch last week. The dinner was as good as we expected. It was a hot and humid evening, so sitting outside was comfortable and people watching was fun. Just as we finished eating, a thunderstorm hit, cooling things off considerably. We walked home (2 blocks) in a lull of the storm and only got slightly wet. The cafe's owner, Francoise, speaks excellent English with a slight German accent. We asked her about this and found that she went to school in Germany and spoke lots of English while there. Also, her partner is an American from the LA area and we had a nice conversation with him.

Musee Marmottan

Sunday, July 27

We can't get enough of Monet, so we thought that today we would expand on yesterday's Giverny adventure by viewing some of his actual work (the "Monets" on the walls in the Giverny house are copies--some good, some not so).

Paris has three major museum collections of Monet: L'Orangerie, D'Orsay, and Marmottan. Musee Marmottan is located on the far west side of Paris, almost to the Boulevard Peripherique, and an hour's walk from the Eiffel Tower. So we tried public transportation again, this time the Metro. The Paris Metro is similar to the London Underground and the New York Subway; it is very extensive and will take you close to almost any destination in the city but it is aging and showing the results of deferred maintenance. It is also complicated but can be very effective once you learn the details of the layout; the stations where several lines come together can be confusing and exiting on the street you want can be difficult if you're not careful. We got on Line 1 at St. Paul, transferred to Line 9 at Franklin D Roosevelt and got off at La Muette. The trip was fast, efficient and cheap.

The museum is housed in a mansion built by Jules Marmottan. His son, Paul, was a friend of Monet and other painters and he collected their works. When he died with no children, he bequeathed the house as a museum. The basement gallery is entirely Monet. The ground floor has some more Monet plus other Impressionists (Sisley, Renoir, etc.) and other artists (Claire epecially enjoyed getting to know the work of Berthe Morisot, Manet's sister-in-law and a skillful Impressionist painter); it also has a collection of medieval religious illuminations and period furniture. The top floor usually has more Impressionist paintings on exhibit but today there was a special exhibition of some modern artists.

On the way back to the Metro station, we walked through a very pleasant park where families were picnicking and we bought some panini at a stand. The Metro brought us back to St. Paul quickly (we're old hands at this now). We bought a Sunday Times (London) to read, first in the studio then in a cafe on St. Antoine. We didn't get much reading done in the cafe as the street theater was too riveting.

Bill took a walk to Place des Vosges; there is a free internet signal available there so being online should become easier.












We went to dinner at Arirang in the square at rue Caron. This is a Korean barbecue; Bill had shrimp and Claire had beef, with vegetables an sauce; quite good.

Giverny

Saturday, July 26

We decided to do a day trip to Monet's home and gardens in Giverny, about 50 miles west of Paris. After a week of walking, city bus-catching and organizing our own itinerary, it was nice just to plop down on an air-conditioned bus and be given background info by a tour guide, dropped off right in front of our destination, not have to wait in line to buy tickets, and then be driven back again. There's definitely something to be said for organized tours!

The bus went past the Eiffel Tower, down the Champs d"Elysee past the Arc d'Triomphe, onto the ring road (Boulevard Peripherique) and out of the city into the Seine Valley. It was nice to see some of the French countryside, including fields of lavender (if only whizzing past the window) after a week in the crowded bustle of Paris. We had plenty of time to enjoy Monet's two lovely gardens and farmhouse.













By the time Monet, his second wife and blended family of eight children moved to Giverny in 1890, he was a successful artist with the time and money to spend the remaining 36 years of his life landscaping his gardens and painting them. The house itself is fun to go through--the decor is just what you imagine "Country French" to be, with soft pastels on the walls, lace and gingham curtains on the windows, blue-and-white patterned tiles and polished copper pots in the kitchen, potted geraniums and hydrangeas everywhere--plus, Monet's wonderful collection of Japanese prints adorning the walls in every room. But of course the gardens are the best part of the experience, and delightful to see and photograph. The Impressionists very greatly influenced by Japanese art and used ideas gained from it in their new art form. One of Monet's gardens is a Japanese garden with the famous lily pond and bridge.




















After the bus ride back into Paris (with a stop at Versailles to drop some people off), Claire went to the Museum of Decorative Arts (not Bill's thing so he returned home and published yesterday's blog). The museum covers the history of interior design from medieval times to the present, of course with an emphasis on the French influence.








For dinner, we went to Cafe de Musees on rue de Turrene (just off rue St. Antoine & St. Paul, a ten minute walk). It was recommended by a good friend, Charles Mills. We shared a gazpacho and both had sea bass; it was excellent. After a nice dessert, we walked home in the warm evening past numerous cafes that were still going strong.

Slow Day

Friday, July 25

Being tired from the frantic museum trips and all the walking, we decided to take it easy. We had a very nice lunch at Le Framboisy, a small cafe two blocks from St. Paul on rue de Charlemagne.











During lunch, we got a display of street drama. We assume that someone was moving into a flat on an upper floor of the building across the street from the cafe. Five trucks showed up (one with appliances), one which had a telescoping power lift. They completely blocked the intersection for almost an hour, standing around waiting for something. The guy in charge (you could tell by the clipboard and cell phone) kept waiving his arms around and talking on his cell phone, giving the occasional "Gallic shrug". Then suddenly, they all left. How French!

We did some shopping at the local supermarket, Monoprix. This interesting when all the products are labelled in French and very few of the employees speak English (or don't admit to it). Then home for some rest (eating a good lunch and watching street drama tires us out).

We then walked to Pont Neuf (new bridge, although it's the oldest bridge in Paris; the first bridge without buildings on it) on the tip of Ile de la Cite to catch a boat tour on the Seine. On the way, we walked along the Right Bank and saw Paris Plages; they bring in sand every summer and dump it along the promenade on the banks of the Seine, creating a beach. There are cafes selling food and drinks, tables for sitting and watching, playground areas for the kids, and sun bathing areas. Families were in great abundance. And we were exposed to French girls in bikinis; disgusting!


We decided on the Vedettes du Pont Neuf based on location and price. The tour took about an hour and went from just East of Ile San Louis to just West of the Eiffel Tower. There was narration from a tour guide in French and English, but her accent was pretty thick and hard to understand. We saw many of the sites we had already walked by, including Notre Dame.

Musee Carnavalet and return to Notre Dame

Thursday, July 24

Musee Carnavalet is a five minute walk from rue St. Paul. The museum is housed in two Marais mansions and was opened in 1880. It's purpose is to exhibit the history of France, but realistically provides an excellent overview from Louis XIV (that's him in the picture) to Napoleon and the Commune. Admission is free so it is poorly funded; shortage of staff causes some rooms to be closed. The exhibits are quite good and you learn how the nobility lived, especially the opulence of the Louie kings (XIV - XVI). The authentic decor in the lavishly furnished rooms is like a gorgeously illustrated course in French interior design through the ages. Unfortunately, the building housing the exhibit of the Revolution and later was closed, so Bill missed the part he really wanted to see.






After lunch, we walked to the RER station to get tickets for a trip to Versailles tomorrow; unfortunately the station is closed for repairs and we might not make that trip. But we did get some posters from a Left Bank stall and some delicious gelato on Ile St. Louis. There were lots of people sun bathing and children playing under these odd "misting hoops" (for want of a better term) along the Seine on this beautiful warm day--can't imagine more perfect weather!
















We then walked back to Notre Dame. The crowds were quite dense but we did get to enter some spaces that were forbidden during the mass on Sunday. This is one imposing edifice! When we asked our nine-year-old granddaughter what she liked best about Paris, she said Notre Dame. We think if we could be here in December as she was, without the summer crowds, we'd agree.

We have been chasing museums non-stop for five days and are really tired; some down time is called for. We had grilled cheese sandwiches in the studio for dinner and are planning on a slow day tommorow (we did buy tickets for a bus tour to Giverney on Saturday).

Musee D'Orsay

Wednesday, July 23

The Musee D'Orsay picks up where the Louvre leaves off; they exhibit French art from the nineteenth century (actually to 1914). This is the largest collection of impressionist art in the world (Monet, Manet, Renoir, Pissaro, Sisley; Van Gough, etc.). The building is an old railway terminal that was slated for teardown in the '70s. It was renovated into a large museum and exhibits from around Paris were collected in this one place. And it is impressive. If you like impressionist art, this is the place to be. We got there on the #69 bus, which was a pleasure for sore feet. After lunch we decided to treat ourselves to a taxi home.



We had dinner at Au Bouquet St Paul, a very nice restaurant on the corner of Rue St. Paul and Rue St. Antoine. This was our second meal here and we will surely return. We also discovered that this place has a Wi-Fi (pronounced wee-fee) signal for customers to use.








Paris has a system of public bicycle rentals called Velib (you might call it "city bike"). There are racks of bikes all over the city. You take one (after inserting a card in the rack) and drop it off at any other site. The first twenty minutes are free. You see people riding these bikes all around; they may be slower than motor scooters but they sure are quieter and there's no problem with parking.