Museums and More Museums

Our day started with breakfast back at the Cafe de Marche where we had our first wonderful French croissant along with a ham and cheese omelette. From there we hit a tobacco shop to purchase a two-day museum pass that allowed access to most of the museums in Paris. In addition to saving money, we were told the passes had the added advantage of skipping queue lines. We liked the idea of that!

Another order of business was to obtain our rail ticket to take us to Bayonne on Monday. The five hour train ride will bring us very close to St. Jean Pied de Port and the start of the Camino. At this point, our timing will likely be to start the Camino next Wednesday.

Following the advice of our hotel concierge, we forged a path from Napoleon's tomb to the Rodin Museum to the Orsay. The Dome of the Invalides which housed Napoleon's tomb was part of a complex of buildings, all military related. It was originally built as a home and hospital for unwell soldiers. The Saint-Louis-des-Invalides Cathedral, also part of this complex, was created as a chapel for them.

Napoleon's Tomb

Rodin's museum was really as much a garden with his famous sculptures strewn about as it was a museum. The Thinker and The Gates of Hell were probably the two I appreciated most. Just as we were exiting by The Thinker, I noticed a man sitting on his roof in line with this famous sculpture. Could not resist taking a picture of this odd juxtaposition.

We loved seeing the impressionistic paintings of Gauguin, Van Gogh, Picasso, Monet and many others at the Orsay -so cool to view original paintings by these infamous artists. I did have a moment of panic when we went through security and the gentleman asked me for my camera. I don't take kindly handing my camera over to someone else's care but it turned out he ways just trying to get a reaction from me and I didn't disappoint.

About halfway through the Orsay, my stomach decided to turn on me. Not sure if it was something I ate or just travel fatigue but I was appreciative of French water closets rather than the typical American stall-type bathrooms. Much more privacy.

By the time the museum closed my stomach was ready for a settling agent so we headed back toward our hotel in search of a beer. Found a place where I enjoyed my Leffe and it seemed to do the trick so now we added food to our search. Had a light dinner of roasted chicken and French fries. Must say that while all other French food has amazed us we have not been impressed with the food identified by their name - the fry!

Eating our way through France we added another stop to our journey back to our hotel - dessert and coffee. A lovely apple gateaux with Creme Fraiche hit the spot.

Already I am running a day behind on my journaling/blogging. After such full days, I can't seem to stay awake to complete my thoughts. I appreciate that I can post date my blogs so my entry dates match their occurrence. Tomorrow will be the Louvre!

 

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