A few more pictures from Paris…
Versailles
Yesterday was the trip to Versailles. We took the train out of Paris and arrived at the palace. We joined the enormous queue to enter the building. It was not very well organized; thousands of people shuffling through one small door, single file. We waited in the cold wind for our turn, sure that the wait would be worthwhile. It wasn’t.
The palace is lovely – it is a palace after all, and perhaps if I had never seen such grandeur before I would have been awe stricken, but having been to palaces in Vienna and Russia, this really wasn’t anything new. Additionally, it was SO crowded. Rooms packed with tour groups wearing audio guide headsets and video taping every gilded nook and cranny…it was not the most pleasant environment for viewing. There was, however, a lovely display of portraits by a single artist (the name escapes me) that we enjoyed viewing. Also the hall of mirrors really was beautiful.
We had planned to stroll about the gardens and fountains at a leisurely pace, but there were two problems: the fountains were not turned on and the wind was blowing cold rain at an angle that made umbrellas inoperable.
Agreeing that we had seen elaborate palace grounds and fountains before, at Peterhof, we decided to bid Versailles Adieu and returned to Paris.
Death and Chocolate
Monday was magnificent. We walked from our hotel to the Hotel des Invalides, an impressive military hospital and museum surrounded by a waterless moat and rows of cannons. Inside the complex was the Dome Church which contains the tomb of Napoleon. It was an imposing sight, as he was buried in six coffins, each inside the next, so that the final one is enormous.
From there we walked towards the Eiffel Tower, which became more beautiful with each step. It was magnificent; so towering and impressive in its construction. I found it breathtaking. I did make the climb to the top, pausing on the first tier to mail some post cards (yes, there is a post office up there). The view was incredible which made the climb all the more satisfying.
We celebrated this victory by dining in Montmartre at a charming restaurant founded in 1793.
Today we began the day with breakfast on the Rue Mouffetard – one of the oldest in the city. We enjoyed our coffee while watching the vendors set up shop, laying out tables of fruit and vegetables, bottles of wine, freshly butchered meats and fragrant displays of bread and cheese.
We meandered through a light rain to the Mosque, a fabulous somewhat hidden gem on the left bank. The mosque was ornately tiled and surrounded two beautiful courtyards containing gardens of leafy palms and wisteria in full bloom. In the mosque is a cozy tea room, where we sipped tea while seated on ornate cushions, watching tiny birds flitting through the open doors. Betty Lou was delighted.
On the way to the metro, we strolled through the Jardins des Plantes and the zoo, where we saw wallabies.
The metro zipped us to the Catacombs, which I have wanted to see since highschool. We descended far beneath the street and the sewers to the labyrinth that was once a limestone quarry, but is now filled with the bones of millions of late 18th century corpses, arranged in decorative formation. The bones line the walls of the passages along with grim quotations about death. It was swell. (Dawn, you would have loved it.)
We followed our brush with death with a fantastic lunch at La Closerie des Lilas – the famous cafe where Hemmingway wrote “The Sun Also Rises”. We dined on white asparagus and mango risotto with prawns, red wine, espresso, and two classic French desserts: creme brulé and profitteroles (i had the latter). I ate what seemed like vats of the finest, darkest liquid chocolate imaginable. My head is still spinning.
Was that all? Not even close! We then went to the Museé D’Orsay for a tour of impressionist paintings in a magnificent setting.
We walked home along the banks of the Seine where we bought art from a painter.
I think we have seen enough for today and we must conserve our energies, as tomorrow we tackle Versailles.
d&b
Post Script: Betty Lou has noticed that of the dogs we have seen, a great number have been Jack Russel terriers. We have seen but one poodle.
Art & Opera
Yesterday we hit (nearly) all of the main tourist sights.
We walked from our hotel to the Louvre – a beautiful walk. We stood in line for no more than ten minutes and were inside. The museum is, of course, overwhelming with all there is to see, so we picked a couple of areas of interest and saw the “essential” sights.
We saw the Mona Lisa. I have never been a big fan of the picture, but i thought that it may be one of those works of art that one must see in person to ‘get’ it. I still don’t. No wave of transformation swept over us. We both agreed that there were more impressive works to behold at the Louvre. Napoleon’s apartments were very impressive and the Dying Slave is a masterpiece of homoerotic expression in marble.
From the Louvre, we strolled through the Tuilleries Gardens, watched the little boats in the fountains and a painter capturing the scene.
We continued past the obelisk down the Champs Elysees where Betty Lou bought a bottle of perfume.
Finally we (triumphantly) reached the Arc du Triomphe. BL enjoyed the breeze at the bottom while i made the climb to the top to take in the view.
On our walk back to the hotel we stopped for a dinner of cheese fondue and red wine, in which Betty Lou partook.
In the evening we went to the stunning Paris Opera House (the old one) and watched a very unusual performance of an Italian opera called “The Prisoner”. I can’t say that I liked it, but I enjoyed it. Betty Lou did not and at one point leaned over and said to me “I am going to sleep now.” And she folded her arms across her chest and slept for the duration of the show.
It was a very full day.
Presently, it is Monday morning and we are off for breakfast and then on to the Eiffel Tower.
Au Revoir!
d&b
Montmartre by Metro
Today we took the metro to Montmartre, and walked in the footsteps of the French bohemian elite. Betty Lou was delighted with the charming village atmosphere and oodles of artists displaying their wares. We wandered through the narrow passageways past the quaint and the touristy alike. In one of the churches we visited we walked in on a wedding! (I know, yesterday it was a funeral…tomorrow we are sure to stumble upon a baptism.)
We then visited the Sacré Coeur and took a stroll through the delightfully seedy Pigalle area, past the “Sexodrome” and other peepshow venues.
Another short Metro ride whisked us to the Père Lachaise cemetery. We meandered through the grounds in search of a few special graves: Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Chopin, and Proust. It was no easy feat, but we managed to locate them all. Jim Morrison’s grave was especially impressive, due to the throngs of pilgrims leaving flowers and pouring liquor on his grave.
After that we visited the bustling Marais district, and then walked to the Pompidou, where I went in to gaze upon the best of modern art, while Betty Lou opted to sit outside in the evening air and watch the street performers.
Walking back to our hotel, we had dinner at a delightful cous cous restaurant. Shortly it is off to bed for us weary but contented girls.
That is all for us, except for one important message: Happy Birthday, Dawn!
d&b
April in Paris
Greeting from Paris!
We arrived at 3:30 (paris time) on Thursday after an uneventful flight. Our lodgings: L’Hotel des Grandes Ecoles is wonderful. It is three buildings surrounding a medieval courtyard and garden, which is filled with birdsong. We are one of the lucky few whose room opens directly onto the garden. Our room is small and charming and very girly. We are completely ensconced in pale blue toile; curtains, walls…the works (except for our bedspread while is a massive, white crocheted doily.
Last night we wandered around in the pouring rain (yes, rain – stop your snickering right now though, because today it is 23 degrees and sunny) and ate dinner at a Tibetan restaurant, which was delcious. We were too tired for much conversation, but fortunately there was a table of lively American Entymologists nearby who kept us amused with tales of searching for rare insects in Alabama.
Today we visited the Pantheon, which holds a crypt containing the remains of famous French persons, including Victor Hugo, Dumas, and the Curies. We then walked across the Pont Neuf to the Ile de la Cite where we went to the Notre Dame and other places of historical note.
When visiting the Church of Saint Germain, we stumbled upon a funeral. It was lovely, really, which live music and bouquets of flowers. We made a point of looking solemn when the pall-bearers passed us with the coffin.
We just finished having lunch at the Cafe Deux Magots, where we enjoyed an assortment of cheeses.
Now, we are wandering around, exploring side streets and having a grand time.
My French? It is ok. Despite feeling foolish, I can express myself in a pathetic, yet comprehensible way and can understand much of what is said to me.
That’s all from us for the moment. On to more exploring,
Dale & Betty-Lou
Bon Voyage
Greetings, all.
Today is the day of our greatly anticipated journey to Paris. Both Betty-Lou and I are sorely in need of a vacation (I to recover from the assault of law school and Betty-Lou to escape the chaos of home renovations – Thank you to Ron for keeping watch at home.)
Finally I will have the opportunity to discover how well my eight years of French education has served me. Betty-Lou is already sporting her beret and has grand plans to develop a taste for wine and Gauoilses. Between the two of us, i believe we have six guidebooks, so we are well prepared.
We do plan to chronicle our (mis)adventures, so check in for updates.
Bon Voyage!
Dale & Betty-Lou
(wandering norths)
Home from Amsterdam
We are home…at least I am. Betty Lou will return to Summerland tomorrow.
The last leg of our journey took us back to where we began: Amsterdam. We didn’t do much with the evening (dinner & bed), but had a lovely day today (at least I think it was today…it feels like yesterday).
We visited the Anne Frank house/museum, which was very moving and certainly worth a visit. After that we walked along the canal to the flower market, had a bit of lunch and returned to the airport.
The flight (10 hours, I think) went by remarkably quickly, considering that neither of us slept.
And now we are back. I’m not sure how I feel about that, but then again, I am so tired I cannot really evaluate my feelings about anything.
It was an excellent trip and neither of us could have asked for anything better.
Thank you again for taking the time to read about our adventures.
Dale & Betty Lou North
Helsinki: Day Two
Our first full day in Helsinki was a busy one.
| Dale at Helsinki Cathedral |
We visited the Helsinki Cathedral (the big white one that overlooks Senate Square) and the Uspenski Cathedral – you would think we would be burned out from visiting so many churches at this point, but we’re not. We went to the market which occurs every morning down by the water. It is sort of like a temporary Granville Island – people selling produce and fish and handmade items, souvenirs, etc. There was live music (which included one man using a moped as a percussion instrument) and the weather was most agreeable.
We had coffee on the Esplanad, which is basically a pedestrian street/park which is lined with cafes, shops and public art installations. For those of you who know South Beach, it is sort of like Lincoln Road. We had coffee and watched a marching band parade around the area. We don’t know what the marching was all about, but it felt festive.
We checked out some of the shops in the Design District before hopping on the number 3T tram, which winds a figure eight through the city in about an hour and goes past most of the sights. We hopped off after a full loop and visited the Kiasma museum of modern art, which is a truly stunning structure, slightly reminiscent of the Guggenheim from the inside, but with quite a different exterior. The art was interesting, the best exhibit being one from Asia, which depicted mostly disturbing installations and sculptures inspired by political upheaval and poverty.
We had a fabulous dinner at a classic Helsinki restaurant…the name escapes me, but I suppose it doesn’t matter.
Today has been more leisurely. Slept in until 7am (yes, for us that is sleeping in), went out for breakfast and then took the metro up to another market, which was not too different from the one we went to yesterday, but it did get us to another part of the city and to another church (quel surprise).
Today is especially warm and sunny and it seems that every Finn is out with their dogs and strollers. They are sunning themselves on lawns and benches and every sunny cafe patio is packed. We did manage to find a place to enjoy the weather a bit as well.
We went to the Design Museum today, which we both enjoyed quite a bit. It had a history of Finnish design and an impressive exhibit by Finnish design students. After that, I napped on a park bench while Betty Lou read Chekov and ensured that no one mugged or molested me.
We may take in a movie tonight, as there is a cinema near our hotel. In Russia the American movies were all dubbed into Russian, but here they are in English with Finnish subtitles.
Tomorrow we fly back to Amsterdam. I shall be sure to double check our departure time to avoid another error.
We will be home very soon. I can’t imagine how anyone can be missing us, with our daily blogging, but hopefully some of you will be pleased by our return.
Ok, that’s all for now.
Good evening, faithful readers.
Until next time,
Dale & Betty Lou
Wandering (Farther) North
Good morning from beautiful Helsinki.
We arrived at the ferry terminal in Tallinn one hour before our supposed departure only to find…our ship had sailed. I pride myself on being a bright girl- i’m in law school for crying out loud – and yet, I cannot tell time. I’ve never been particularly good at reading clocks, but I get by. One thing I have never been able to sort out is the bloody 24 hour clock. I had our confirmation which said we were leaving at 13:30, but somehow it had registered in my brain as being 3:30, not 1:30. I am retarded. Fortunately there was another ship leaving at 4:15 (sadly though this one did not have a cigar lounge). The ship was large and well-appointed and quite comfortable. The ride took 2.5 hours.
We arrived and a taxi driver with a penchant for “Cosby Show” analogies whisked us to our new abode: Gasthaus Omapoja, which is terribly charming and as our taxi driver noted, when I asked if it was a good location, “It is in the heart of the centre of Helsinki”. This may be our nicest lodging yet (with the possible exception of Amsterdam).
Due to the ferry mishap, we arrived a bit later than anticipated, so we simply went out for dinner and walked around the city a bit. Our location is truly excellent and both Betty Lou and I are quite excited to see what a beautiful city Helsinki is. There is much to see, so i’ll sign off here and get to seeing things.
Näkemiin (goodbye)
d/b