Kelly and I took the 10:09 TGV train from Avignon to Paris. We were excited about having a couple of days in Paris before heading home, and I was looking forward to our first-ever Mother-Daughter overnight trip. But it was sad to say goodbye to Charley and leave him there on the train platform as the doors closed and we started on our way. I won't see him for five weeks, and he and Kelly will be apart for seven weeks. Suddenly that seems a very long time.
I also left my digital camera with Charley, so he can take pictures during his travels. Kelly became the official photographer for our trip to Paris, and as you'll see in these entries, she did a wonderful job. This is the first time I've ever traveled without a camera, and it was a very strange feeling-- I felt empty and a little bit powerless!
The sun was shining in Provence, but as we sped north to Paris, the world outside us changed and the sun disappeared behind us. We arrived in Paris to overcast skies and cool temperatures-- in the upper 60's and low 70's. I was nervous about my wardrobe. I had packed only for summer and hadn't planned for the possibility of this type of weather. I only had cropped pants and open toed sandals and only a few things for days like this: a long-sleeved hiking shirt (that I've been using as a robe), a raggy-looking black sweater, a multi-purpose wrap, and two scarves. You could tell who the locals were on the streets because they were properly dressed. Some people were wearing heavy jackets! I thought I might have to buy some other shoes and a jacket.
We took a taxi from the Gare de Lyon to L'Hôtel des Grandes Écoles . I was very pleased with my choice of a hotel-- it was convenient, economical, interesting, and in a very good location in the Latin Quarter. We really liked the arrangement of the hotel-- almost on its own private street with a pretty courtyard and lots of flowers. We were five minutes from the busy Rue Mouffetard, a street full of shops and restaurants that Kelly found especially appealing.
The pretty courtyard at L'Hôtel des Grandes Écoles (photo by Kelly)
Despite the strange weather, it was great to be in Paris again. This was my sixth trip to Paris: three days in 1991 with two girlfriends (six months before Charley and I got married); a week in 1994 when Kelly was 14 months old; four days in 1999/2000 for the big millennium celebration; two weeks in 2004 during our long trip; and four days in 2004/2005 (also during our long trip) when we came up from Provence for another New Years. I know this city, and I like it. I've forgotten how very much I like it. But I have to say that it was culture shock to arrive in the midst of Paris after our month in the quiet Luberon countryside.
Kelly and I decided to let our days in Paris just kind of evolve. We had a couple of things on our list: the Orangerie museum, the Centre Pompidou, and an architecture museum called Le Pavillon de l'Arsenal. We also hoped to connect with Dave McMane (Happy in Paris) from Slow Travel. We managed to do all this and much more.
Kelly lobbied to use the Metro to save time, and we bought a batch of tickets and ended up taking the Metro a lot. Sometimes I felt we walked just as much getting around underground as we would have walked up above ground, but we do find the Metro very easy to use. We also did a lot of walking around Paris. We had umbrellas, and although it was overcast, it never rained.
After we checked into the hotel, we set off to enjoy Paris. We walked down Rue Mouffetard to Les Gobelins Metro station, enjoying the shopping along the way. Kelly saw lots of things on Rue Mouffetard she'd like to have, and we returned there several times-- and yes, she did buy several things (a necklace, a duffel bag, and a top).
Checking out the shoes (I never did buy any, but I enjoyed looking!)
We took the Metro to the Louvre. Kelly had studied the Louvre (the building) in her architecture camp and really wanted to see it. She took lots of photos. There were many, many tourists swarming all over in front of the Louvre. We've visited there a couple of times and decided not to go on this short trip.
(photo by Kelly)
(photo by Kelly)
(photo by Kelly)
(photo by Kelly)
We walked through the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel down through the Tuileries gardens to the Musée de l’Orangerie. The flower borders were absolutely beautiful. Children were playing with little boats in the big fountain.
(photo by Kelly)
(photo by Kelly)
Flower border at the Tuileries gardens (photo by Kelly)
Who's this attractive French girl?
(photo by Kelly)
The Orangerie was closed for renovations during our last two visits, and we were very anxious to see the Monet water lilies paintings. I hadn't realized how much other wonderful art was in this museum-- it was definitely worth waiting for. Renoir is one of my favorite painters, and there were lots of his paintings, including one of the two girls at the piano. (There's another of this series at the D'Orsay.) We didn't have to pay for Kelly to visit this museum; in fact, she had free admission to every place we visited since she's a student under age 18.
There are two rooms of Monet's large water lily paintings (photo by Kelly)
Detail of one of the paintings (photo by Kelly)
This Renoir painting was my favorite (photo by Kelly)
We took the Metro back to the hotel (to the Censier-Daubenton station this time) and checked out the restaurants on Rue Mouffetard. Later in the evening we returned to the restaurant we had selected-- one specializing in fondue and raclette. We both had French onion soup. Kelly had boeuf bourguignon and I had raclette, a dish I really enjoy. My appetite is still not normal after being sick, but it did feel good to have a regular meal again.
Comments (3)
Hope you are enjoying the hotel in Paris. We stayed there in May, 2005 with friends and just loved coming home after a long day of exploring Paris, and relaxing in the beautiful courtyard and just enjoying life!! lol
Posted by Annie![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/wood/nav-commenters.gif)
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August 17, 2007 6:20 PM
Posted on August 17, 2007 18:20
How fun to read about and see photos of the Hotel des Grandes Ecoles! Kirk and I stayed there on our very first trip to Paris, in the early 90's, and it's always been a favorite spot of ours.
We're enjoying reading about your trip while we're exploring Amsterdam for a few days-
Anne
Posted by yavamos![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/wood/nav-commenters.gif)
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August 18, 2007 12:42 PM
Posted on August 18, 2007 12:42
GREAT PHOTOS Kelly!
I am finally getting to reading your Paris entries, and you are not disappointing!
Posted by teaberry![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.slowtrav.com/blog/wood/nav-commenters.gif)
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August 26, 2007 2:16 PM
Posted on August 26, 2007 14:16