As a first time visitor with only a week in France deciding where to spend your precious Paris hours is a serious challenge. There is just so much to see. As my cousin was treating me to the trip, she did all the planning, ticket buying and worrying. As soon as I put a foot on our plane in Los Angeles I was basically stepping onto a magic carpet. All I had to do was show up and ride. Part of our time was spent with a tour group, but we did many activities on our own.
Arriving at the Eiffel Tower, the sheer size of it was a big surprise. Standing underneath its straddled legs looking up it was BIG. Mr. Eiffel really had a vision. He planned for elevators (which were relatively new in his time) because he knew people would want to go up, up, up. He also knew that not all of them would be game to climb the 647 steps that visitors are allowed to climb (although there are actually 1,665 in total). He installed a small apartment for himself at the top. We saw a photo of Thomas Edison sitting with him in the apartment, two amazing visionaries sitting together side by side. There is an elevator that runs all the way to the top. We saw a life-sized mannequin next to the elevator shaft and learned that in the early days an operator rode on the outside of the elevator driving it up and down using huge pistons (still in use today). That must have been a chilly ride as when we were there it was in the 30s. Paris is relatively flat and from the Tower you can see for miles. Like so much I saw in Paris it is an unforgettable view.
As a stained glass artist I knew that Sainte-Chapelle a small cathedral completed in 1248 (no typo 1248) was unsurpassed for the beauty of its windows. Happily it was on my cousin’s list. Standing inside was like being in a box filled with glowing jewels. This cathedral was completed 100 years before Notre Dame. It is unbelievable how little support surrounds the glass. Many years of stained glass artisans and stone masons perfecting their craft led to a technology that makes these windows as delicate a lace. It is impossible not to feel humbled by the level inspiration that drove human beings so many years ago to create such beauty.
Beauty is everywhere in Paris. We visited the Musee d’Orsay, a former train station transformed into a light filled museum. Wonderful statuary fills the central court. There were two pieces I really loved. One was the god Pan communing with a wild boar. The statue that really won my heart was a bust with two heads kissing. They melted into each other melding completely into one passionate embrace. There were smaller galleries on both sides of the central hall. These galleries are filled with priceless art in intimate sized rooms dedicated to specific artists.
I fell head over heels in love with the post-impressionist Toulouse Lautrec. He is famous for his bold posters of Parisian nightlife, but it was the pastels that knocked me out. Dashed off with great spontaneity, his subjects seemed to wink, strut and even sleep with such vitality. I would give a lot to be able to capture the spirit of people the way he did. How sad that he died at only 36 years old.
Everyone wants to see Versailles, the grand palace that was the home to many Louises — Louis XIII, Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI — and Marie Antoinette. The palace became a world heritage site in 1979 honored as a center of power, art and science. This includes the extensive formal gardens that surround the palace buildings. I did not like the feeling of Versailles. It seems to be an example of what happens when the wonderful facility the French have for design, ornamentation, and style is given unbridled rein. It is so ornate and excessive that it actually made my teeth hurt. Unlike more subtle examples of French taste, Versailles struck me as just awful with it’s layer upon later of “wedding cake” gold, tapestries, murals and carvings. If you’ve never been and are curious about the place watch Sophia Coppola’s movie “Marie Antoinette” which was filmed on site. Poor Marie, what a life!
Montmartre is described as hilly with the famous Sacre-Coeur Basilica at the top. Our Uber driver dropped us at the top right by the basilica and we walked down. The view from the top was lovely and we were there at the “golden hour.” Looking down at the people below so many were dressed in black and from a distance they looked like an impressionist painting from the Belle Époque.
I was looking for cobblestone streets but somehow we missed them. My cousin was in a hurry to get to the Moulin Rouge where we had tickets for that night’s performance. We passed a sad little carousel and found ourselves on a tourist street that reminded me of Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. I think we missed the boat on Montmartre, as it really wasn’t charming as we walked.
Finding the theater we were too early and had to kill time. We found a small sidewalk café and rented space by ordering a string of a la carte items including Crème Brulee, frites (French fries), haricot verts (Green beans) and hot chocolate. We stayed outside for a while to watch the passersby. A young couple stepped under the awning together just next to us. They only had eyes for each other. I have to say the French do know how to make love. The longer they stayed kissing and staring deeply into each other’s eyes the more they began to look like the statue of lovers I had seen at the D'Orsay. I think of the French and France as being romantic and they really did not let me down.
(Next week: Part 3 and a final Paris story including: The Moulin Rouge, dinner in a French home, a food tasting walk, nighttime on the Seine River cruise, and a fabulous meal at Le Train Bleu.)
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