The Sisters in Paris

Frank Gehry's Glass Ship, and Montmartre

We planned to wake up early Monday and start our explorations. We woke up at 10AM, so we changed tactics and decided to take the metro to Frank Gehry's newest creation, the building housing the Louis Vuitton Fondation (modern Art).We figured we could have lunch at the museum. We took the metro to Les Sablons, and walked the rest of the way, again exclaiming continually about the beauty of the fabulous old buildings. 

The Louis Vuitton Fondation is situated within the Bois de Bologne, at the edge of the Jardin d'Acclimation, a children's amusement park. The first sight of the building is unbelievable. It is a massive glass ship bearing down on you. As you near the building, you come upon a large water feature that incorporates water gently running over shallow steps, to the bottom of the building. It is incredible to me that this building was actually made a reality. As my sister said, it is a 'flight of fancy.' I know that Gehry had an enormous team working with him, and obviously an enormous budget, but what kind of mad genius wakes up and says, 'I know, I'll build a giant glass ship in a Parisian park!'?

We entered the glass ship (I got a discount because I'm a teacher -woo hoo!), and headed straight for the restaurant (we were ravenous). We were told we had to wait about 10 minutes, so I of course wandered over to the bookshop. When I returned, my sisters informed me that we wouldn't be eating at that particular restaurant. It would have cost us about $100 each, and there was nothing for a vegetarian to eat, anyway. (Paris has not embraced the vegetarian lifestyle). Instead we were told we could walk to the nearby Jardin d'Acclimation, which boasts half a dozen different eateries. 

We decided to stop for lunch at the first restaurant we came to. It was a good choice. 

Inside the restaurant

After a fabulous lunch, we returned to the glass ship; thought-provoking Art, and incredible views. 

I want to try something like this with my Grade 3 class. On a much smaller scale, of course. 

When we were galleried out, we boarded a shuttle bus (1 euro, probably the best bargain of our entire week), which took us to the Arc de Triomphe. We took the metro (we were becoming pros at the metro now), to Montmartre. 

We took the funicular up the hill, and made our way to the base of Sacre Coeur. There was a huge crowd sitting on the steps, listening to a band of buskers, watching a performer dance with a basketball, and soaking in the sunset over the city. I imagine that the scene would have been the same centuries ago. We wandered a bit, stopped for chocolate and crepes, and took the subway back home.

In one little park in Montmartre, artists and caricaturists ply their trade. I couldn't resist this beautiful paint-filled palette. 

I saw this sparkly graffiti all over Paris. 

On the way home, we had to change trains. I don't remember the station (Madeleine, Concord?). But I was stopped in my tracks by this gorgeous mosaic, made to illustrate a Russian poem!

Sunday in Paris with the Sisters

Sunday was Cathy's choice. As she LOVES to shop, she chose a big 'flea market' at the end of one of the subway lines.

 But first we meandered down towards the Seine for our breakfast. We stopped every few minutes to exclaim over door knobs, balcony balustrades, shop windows, and the view of the Seine. 

We made our way to a sweet little restaurant on Ile de la Cite. We ordered the petit dejeuner, which included coffee, juice, a quarter baguette smeared with butter, another quarter baguette smeared with jam, AND a piping hot croissant. For each person.

 We then wandered through the back streets of the Latin quarter to the metro. 

We figured out the ticket machine for the metro, and ventured north. When we emerged from the subway, we weren't 100% sure how to find the flea market. While Cathy & Dar went off to find a toilet (in MacDonald's), I got directions from a crepe salesman. 

We walked in the correct direction, into an outdoor market. I was a bit disappointed because it seemed to be a lot like a North American flea market, inexpensive purses and apparel. I said to Darlene, "I hope this isn't it." A passing couple overheard me, and assured us in English that, no, this wasn't the real flea market, we had to keep on going. We kept walking, past even more vendors of running shoes, and men offering us phones and watches. 

And then we found the real market, a warren of tiny streets lined with funky stores with everything from mannequins to winding staircases to massive fireplace mantels to brooches to nameplates from headstones. 

the ultimate cat toy

After a lot of wandering and exclaiming, we were ready for a snack. We found one restaurant, but it didn't seem to have anything suitable for a vegetarian (even the salads had some kind of meat in them). We ended up buying crepes and coke from a sidewalk vendor. We sat in plastic chairs, ate our crepes, and watched the people of Paris wander by. 

Back in our neighbourhood, after a cup of tea and another look at the map, we set off again. 

First we stopped in St.Eustach Church, built 400-500 years ago (it took 100 years to complete.) Unbelievably beautiful. And lucky us, there happened to be an organist playing for a crowd. 

An altarpiece by Keith Haring

After leaving the church, we found our way to Rue St.Denis. I said to my sisters, "When I lived here 10 years ago, this was a street where a lot of prostitutes did their business. It could have changed since then." There were some interesting stores (Cathy bought her first purse of the trip), but there were some other little shops that were definitely catering to a different clientele. We wandered over to the Pompidou centre, bought our dinner at an Indian restaurant, and brought it back to our little home away from home.