What to do? What to do? I've completed my agenda items and I'm not sure how to proceed. Jacque makes a wild suggestion. Let's just walk around and enjoy being in Paris! What a concept!!
John has mastered the Metro. Ever since we got here he's been determined to map out our Metro adventures, but the task is a bit daunting. Paris is supposed to have one of the world's best mass transportation systems, but with its many criss-crossing underground lines, it can be confusing....to say the least! But today he proves his mastery of the system!
We don't meet until 1:00 again...we're liking these late starts...but what's this? John and Jacque have been out and about since 10:00, using the metro to find some desired spots. Jacque has wanted to find "Jacque's Tower" since she found out about it on the dinner cruise. They have managed to maneuver their way there, take pictures, visit the Bastille area, and return to meet us at 1:00 with nary a miscue. Go John! To reward him for this accomplishment, I buy him a trophy...a laminated placemat of the Metro system. May he enjoy his trophy for years to come!
So, with John's guidance, we take the Metro to the Notre Dame area and have lunch. The goal of lunch....people watch!! Fun! After that, I make a wild suggestion of perhaps going IN the Notre Dame Cathedral that we have viewed and photographed from the outside numerously. Well, after checking out the lengthy line (this is now a weekend!), we dispense with that idea.
Following Jacque's plan, we start to walk and enjoy the ambience of a lovely spring day in Paris. We walk through the Latin Quartier and the Saint Germain des Pres area, which are bustling.
it's just a street corner; why not build a fountain?
the Saint Michael fountain on the street Rue San Michel
John and I practice our sophisticated Parisian expressions;
think we'll fit in??
I realize we are approaching the Musee d'Orsay, and I'd love to stop in, but you can only press people into so many museum hours per trip. Well, I check into things and realize that if we enter we'll only have an hour to visit before closing. Since Larry and I have been here before, we think we can head to our favorite exhibit and enjoy an hour there. John and Jacque are game. So we get to visit with Monet, Manet, Renoir, and Degas, to mention a few. Unfortunately, Van Gogh was on a special exhibition with a lengthy line so he didn't get to visit with us.
the exterior of Musee d'Orsay
The Musee d'Orsay is, again, a fabulous building. It was originally a train station...and this city loves its train stations! While walking around we find the Salon de Fete room (which we didn't find last time) and it's gorgeous! I seriously think Janelle should have her wedding reception in this room.
photos aren't allowed in the Orsay Museum, except in the clock room;
the Louvre is in the background
We are heading back to our hotel and dreading the packing for the trip home tomorrow. Will all our purchases fit in our luggage?? We decide to have an early dinner (7:00 is very early for dinner in these parts) and then face the challenge of packing. So we find a restaurant near our hotel. We don't know anything about this restaurant, but its close and convenient.
What a choice this turns out to be! The food is good...but the waiter is great! Who said that French waiters are stuffy? Not this goofy guy! He reminds Larry of Rowan Atkinson, the British comedian of the Bean movies, and I must agree. What this guy can communicate with his eyebrows is quite amazing! He has us all in stitches and gives us a great last evening in Paris.
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