Our last trip to Paris was at the end of an almost two year excursion to (mostly) Eastern Europe. By that time we were pretty tired and just didn’t have the energy to blog about our last few days. We figured we’d get around to it once we got back to Las Vegas but, of course, we never did.
Recently we were hunting through some of our notes and we realized that we had written the entries for the last three days in Paris on the plane ride home. We had completely forgotten about them. So, why after three years are we posting them now? Well, this blog was originally intended as a personal diary of our travels. We’re posting this so we have a complete record of what we did. Hopefully, you’ll enjoy it too.
Saturday, February 9, 2019
In the morning we went to the Church of St. Sulpice. This church is well known because Delacroix painted one of the chapels. It is also well known because it was featured in, “The Da Vinci Code”, where the albino monk, Silas, enters a church with a rose line, cracks open the floor and removes what he believes to be a codex. The problem with that scene is that the church does not have a rose line. The floor does have a metal line inset but it is actually part of a meridian that was used to track the equinoxes. The astronomical clock, which was completed in 1743, uses two light beams that come from the opposite window to indicate the time of year. Actually, to our recollection, the inside of the church doesn’t appear to resemble the one shown in the movie at all. Anyone who has read our blog from our time in Rome knows how seriously we take these astronomical clocks. It should be noted that Saint Sulpice, who lived from 570-674, was the Bishop of the town of Bourges that is today near the center of France.
The Delacroix murals are in the first chapel on the right when you enter. They are bright and colorful and depict scenes from the bible, but they are not his best work. The church is another beautiful Gothic style building. There are lovely paintings in the many chapels and some gorgeous stained glass windows. Oddly, the columns are in the classical style with Corinthian capitals.
Not far from the church is the Pantheon. The last time we were in town we tried to visit but we got there about 15 minutes before closing time and were not able to see it. Today we finally got to see it. Cost of entry was €10.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.
The name, “Pantheon”, seems rather odd to us. Literally translated it means “many gods”. Strictly speaking this is a bit of a misnomer. The idea for the building came from King Louis XV when in 1744 he expressed a desire for a prestigious building that was dedicated to Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris. There was always some ambiguity over the purpose of the building: was it to be a church or a civil building? In fact, over the years, the building fulfilled both of those roles – sometimes at the same time. In 1885 Victor Hugo was buried within and since that time the building has been exclusively secular in nature. There are many famous burials in the crypt including Voltaire, Emile Zola, Jean Moulin and Marie Curie.
The main part of the building is a series of chapel-like sections that emanate from a circular center. It is quite grand. Each section has large scale paintings glorifying Saint Genevieve and, across the top, are mosaics depicting scenes from the bible. The construction, themes, style and colors of the paintings were strongly reminiscent of the works of the Czech artist Alfonse Mucha, who had studied in Paris just a fews years after these works were completed.
Just around the corner is another Gothic church named Eglise Saint-Etienne. This church was closed during our last visit but we got to see it this time. The building is surprisingly large and beautiful. Between the pews and the altar there were filigree dividers and sweeping rounded staircases made from bright white marble. One of the chapels, decorated with gorgeous stained glass windows, contained stones from the tomb of Saint Genevieve and relics of Saint Etienne. The main altar was tastefully decorated with four large paintings of biblical scenes. The entire church was a delightful surprise.
By the time we got back to the neighborhood where our hotel was it was almost 8:00 pm and we were ready for dinner. We had intended to try a highly recommended restaurant that specialized in pizza and Italian food but found that there was a wait of two hours for a table. We wandered about and checked our numerous menus before finally deciding to give one of the many typical French bistros a try. We ordered two of the specials of the day: a quiche lorraine and a pasta carbonara along with a carafe of wine from Bordeaux. The quiche was quite good but the pasta was nothing special. We enjoyed the wine very much; it was welcome after a long and tiring day.
Sunday, February 10, 2019
We got a late start and by the time we left the hotel it was time for lunch. A friend from New York had recommended a place called Breakfast in America but, once again, there was a long wait. We decided to eat at one of the bistros nearby. We had a bagel with smoked salmon and a bacon cheeseburger topped with a sunny-side egg. Both came with fresh french fries. Everything was delicious.
When we left we headed to the Tuileries Garden as we intended to see The Musee de l’Orangie. The weather was not too friendly and shifted between very windy and very rainy. Just as we were passing a large department store the sky opened up with a huge downpour so we ducked inside to wait out the weather. It was a nice, upscale store on six levels. Deborah learned that Isotoners are a French brand and found some new slippers at a reasonable price. By the time we paid for the slippers the weather had turned more favorable and we continued on our way.
The Tuileries is a large garden that abuts the Louvre. At one time there was a palace there where Mary Queen of Scots spent her formative years. It is a large manicured space with a central fountain and many statues. The last time we were in town it was closed for repairs so we were happy to be able to see it from the inside. The far end leads to the Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe.
The Musee de l’Orangie is named for the orange grove that used to be part of the garden. The building looks rather large but contains a relatively small collection of Impressionist works. The cost of entry was €10.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.
The museum was designed specifically to house a series of large scale panels depicting water lilies by Monet. Monet designed every aspect of the rooms in which these works were to be displayed. The exhibition was completed posthumously according to his designs. The paintings are contained in two large oval rooms. Each of the four walls is covered by a series of canvases and are lit from above by natural lighting. The paintings are highly reminiscent of his most famous works from Giverny with large swatches of brightly painted flowers set in a pond. Monet donated all of these works to France.
The museum also contained works from other artists. Each artist’s work was displayed in a dedicated space. There were works from Soutine, Cezanne, Picasso, Matisse and Renoir to name just a few. One of my favorite paintings by Renoir was there: Young Girls at the Piano. We used to have a copy in our house. Like so many of these paintings Renoir did several versions. This one was very nice but we like the one housed at the MET in NYC just a little more.
Monday, February 11, 2019
Today we went to see Sainte-Chapelle, a site we had seen previously and had liked it so much that we decided it was worth another visit. Sainte-Chapelle was built by Saint Louis in the 13th Century to house Christ’s crown of thorns. Today that relic is on display in Notre-Dame. Sainte-Chapelle is also famous for its incredible stained glass windows, many of which are over 800 years old. Tickets cost €10.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.
The building is a large, multi-story Gothic style church. You enter into the ground floor and find yourself in a relatively small room. The vaulted ceiling is not very tall. In the back there is a small altar with a statue of Saint Louis and a few lovely stained glass windows. Based on expectations it was not that impressive. During our first visit we were a little disappointed and we were about to leave when we noticed a small staircase near the back. We climbed the narrow circular staircase up several flights and emerged into a huge chapel with high ceilings and enormous colorful stained glass windows. The main chapel was on the second floor! Of course this time we knew what to expect. This is definitely a must see for anyone visiting Paris.
