Paris memories, part two

So Sunday was Louvre and Pompidour Centre day. First we had that wonderful breakfast again. Then we had to stop at a pharmacy near the Arc de Triomphe - poor Therese was having trouble with a bad tooth, a lot of pain. So we decided we would take the Metro to the Arc, have a little photo op, go to the pharmacy, then walk to the Louvre.

It was fun walking down the Champs Elysees. The day was overcast but not too chilly. Just around the time we reached the Place de la Concorde, a little drizzle started. But we made it to the Louvre ok and entered by the Pont de Lyon courtesy of our Paris museum passes. From there it was a short walk to all the galleries of amazing Italian Renaissance paintings.

Of course, it was all Mona Lisa centered, but we managed to look at lots of other great stuff while the throngs were crushing to see La Gioconda. Titians, Tintorettos, etc., but we never did find the other Da Vinci's which are said to be overlooked by most museumgoers.

Our backs and my knee were bothering us and we were feeling ready for a break, so we traced our way toward the pyramid and a cafe. Two sandwiches, two bags of chips and two beverages was actually pretty reasonable, and Therese saved us a table while I waited in line to pay. The break revived us, and we decided to take some of the lovely over-the-counter pain-managing pills Therese had gotten at the pharmacy.

Next stop, the sculpture gardens in the Richelieu wing. We definitely felt the effects of the medication - we were relaxed, elated even, and had a wonderful time looking at the amazing sculptures. From there we made our way through the Napoleon apartments to Dutch early Baroque paintings. We finished up in a room of Rubens all celebrating a French royal personage - in each painting, she looked imposing, even larger, taller than all other people in the painting. Pretty amazing. And then a man from the Louvre came and told us the museum was closing.

We had thought we would take a break between the museums, but now we decided to go straight from one museum to the next. A short Metro ride and then a short walk found us in front of the original and quite unusual Pompidou Centre.

The current exhibition was all about different aspects of Women's art, with the focus on deconstruction. Some things were more successful than others, but all of it was intriguing. There were a couple outdoor sculpture areas we could see through large windows beyond which were amazing views of Paris - one direction was the Eiffel Tower, another the Sacre Cour.

The floor below that was of art from earlier in the 20th century. The highlight of that for me were the large-format paper-cutouts of Matisse - Oceania and two others whose name I forget.

We left the Pompidou Centre as it started to get dark. What a full day!

Monday we slept in and missed breakfast, so before we did any cultural stuff, we ate lunch, at the Brasserie Lipp in the 6th arrondisement, on St. Germain-des-Prez, across the street from the church of the same night. It was choucroutes and German beer for both of us - potato, sauerkraut and sausages and ham. It tasted like it was all boiled, while the other time I had that dish, it was baked in the oven. So this while equally delicious was a little lighter. A little spicy mustard and we were good.

Then it was across the street to the Church of St. German des Pres. This is a beautiful neighborhood sized church, of incredible antiquity - with big round Romanesque columns and early Gothic ornaments painted everywhere. Unfortunately, the church looks in a state of some disrepair, so it's kind of a sad place. You can't help wondering how glorious and amazing it would look with the rot and mildew wiped away and a new coat of paint. Nevertheless, we found lots to astound us - monuments to two Baroque French knights were pretty amazing, for example.

From there we walked to the Musee de Cluny, the national Medieval museum. For such a compact building, this had an incredibly vast collection of sculpture, stained glass and paintings and treasures from all over France and elsewhere. Therese was really impressed when we came across a couple pages from an antiphonary (I think 14th century) and I was able to translate the Latin text and then also sightread the chant music. She felt like she had her own private expert guide, and I felt very proud to be reminded of how much the Medieval period and its music means to me.

Next was my cigar lounge experience for the trip. On the internet, I'd discovered that the Hotel Lutetia converted an old kitchen into a smoking room, and our concierge has confirmed that it was the best place in Paris to smoke a cigar. We walked to the hotel, I asked at the desk for the smoking lounge, and they directed us to a small room next to the hotel's bar. The room was empty when we entered, and not more than a couple of people joined us while we were in there. I had the field of being buried somewhere where my cigar wouldn't bother anyone. But at least they have gone to the trouble of creating this room. Perhaps if we had been there when there were more people using it, it would've felt different.

Our last day in Paris the weather was once again a little overcast. Therese had decided we needed our Eiffel Tower photo-op, and I agreed. So we went over there and posed and an Asian man took our picture. From there, we took a train to the Musee d'Orsay. Apparently, they are renovating the museum, so that all the incredible Impressionist paintings are not where they normally would be. Even as it is, I was very impressed. I love Renoir's and Van Gogh's and Toulouse Lautrec's and it was great to see so many wonderful paintings I've never seen before, other than in books.

Then we ate lunch in the d'Orsays wonderful cafe. Wow, what a lovely huge room. Our last meal in Paris was perhaps a bit modest, but it was delicious and we enjoyed it quite a bit.

Then it was time to return to pick up our luggage and head to the airport. We both dozed in the taxi on the way, and then endured the long trip back to NY, wishing that the dream pulsing through our brains of this wonderful romantic place would never dim.