Planes, trains, and automobiles

The journey home begins today and it's so unreal that three weeks have passed already. It seems like we were just in London taking the neighborhood walking tours to familiarize ourselves with the area and now our time in Paris is over! It's going to be strange and sad to get home and not have our group to travel, dine, walk, and talk with anymore. :( For added fun, the travel itinerary for today apparently includes just about every form of transportation, from trains and taxis to the underground and airplanes. If our calculations are correct, it's something like 22 hours of traveling (Paris time back to EST)—presuming that we make our connecting flight—so that promises to be an adventure as well. It's super early and time for breakfast before our departure for the Eurostar station, though, so updates for the journey home will have to wait until later. :)
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Anticipation...

Ever since our itinerary was posted back before the LN85 program officially began, Peep has been waiting for Notre Dame. After all, it is a beautiful and iconic landmark of Paris—definitely a must-see, despite the fact that I never officially drafted any kind of must-see list for Paris. So today, our final full day in the city, Peep got his chance to see the cathedral, which he'd clearly been anticipating even before we left for London...

Like many of the churches we've seen in London and Paris alike, Notre Dame was a popular destination, and there were the expected crowds of tourists on hand to see the cathedral. Unlike some of the other churches, though, photography (sans flash) was allowed, so we had the chance to document our tour through the inside and the incredible stained glass windows. Although we visited areas all around Notre Dame on previous walking tours of the area earlier in the week, it was neat to go inside. The gift shop was a bit odd to see—there was also one when we visited Sacre Coeur, so perhaps it's a French cathedrals thing?—but the interior was beautiful. Peep did not emerge for a photo op inside the church, but was suitably impressed with the size and scale of the cathedral from the outside (much larger than the model he posed with prior to leaving Florida). With some spare time after our interior tour—the lines were too long to climb to the tower for the super views—we got to wander around some, see the back and sides of the church, and visit a couple of souvenir shops too before our afternoon river cruise on the Seine. There were some scary people on the sidewalks around the cathedral and a surprising number of food vendors and nearly identical souvenir shops, but that made it convenient for grabbing a late lunch and picking up any last-minute souvenir choices before our group meeting for the cruise.

It's much bigger in person...

Peep admiring the architecture

Following our relaxing dinner cruise during which we had a chance to see a lot of famous sights along the Seine, the group went to a final farewell dinner. Peep missed out on our special dinner and chocolate mousse dessert, but it was a fun way to end the day and our time here in France. :)


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Finding Fréd on Bastille Day

Since we ended up missing the 4th of July back home in the States, it was nice to be in Paris for Bastille Day, although their festivities seem a little different than the standard 4th of July fare. We actually saw some street fair concerts and random troupe acts last night (July 13th) after dinner near the Bastille. It was strange, though, because they all seemed to be competing with one another and playing simultaneously, and by this morning (actual Bastille Day), the Place de la Bastille was back to normal (all of the food vendor tents were gone, traffic could use the roadways again, etc). So, I'm not really sure how the holiday is celebrated here beyond the special fireworks show later on tonight at the Eiffel Tower. I had heard previously that many stores and businesses would be closed for the holiday, but that didn't really seem to be the case—at least not to a large extent—throughout the day. Still, I imagine the crowds and transportation will probably get worse as sunset and the fireworks show near. National holiday aside, though, it was another sightseeing day in Paris, and today took us to Père Lachaise cemetery, where I could begin my search for Fréd...

As an undergrad student, I minored in music, which required courses in music theory and analysis. One of the projects for my second music analysis course involved a focus on a specific composer, and my group was assigned Frédéric Chopin. I'm not even sure what we really presented about—likely his mazurka in A-flat found in our analysis book—but I do remember that we concluded our presentation with information about his death in 1849 and burial at Père Lachaise cemetery. His was the only famous grave/monument I knew of at that cemetery prior to coming to Paris, even though I do also recall Père Lachaise appearing in French civ. as well. So, when I realized we would be going to Père Lachaise, finding Fréd became a must.

We unfortunately (or at least I unfortunately) didn't have maps of the cemetery really, and thus, after a group trip to find Jim Morrison's memorial/monument (which is seriously hidden amongst the others), I had to trek back towards the southern entrance of the cemetery to consult the large posted maps of all the various sections of the cemetery. The routes within are marked, but the pathways vary in size and some of the smaller ones do not really seem to have names or just dead-end into other monuments, so it is easy to get lost. I consulted the map and set out, only to follow one of the random little paths into nowhere and just about get lost again, so I retraced my steps to find a clearer route.

The second try was much more successful, and I did find Chemin Denon, the avenue, if you will, off of which Chopin's grave is located. The cemetery itself is packed with monuments of all shapes and sizes and eras marking individuals and families, so it's something of an adventure to find the right site even with directions and the correct "address." The more famous sites, though, seem to have either flowers or crowds—often both—and Chopin was no exception. I almost walked past the monument completely because it's not super large compared to those around it, but it is very bedecked with flowers, and there were a couple of people standing to the side apparently looking at it. When I circled back realizing that it was the monument I was seeking, though, I realized the two ladies weren't actually interested in Chopin at all but had instead picked the worst possible location to consult their map for finding some other site. A tour group was hedging in on the far side to get pictures while they pondered directions, and I could really only see the side of the Chopin statue because they were blocking the whole of the narrow little Chemin Denon, so it was an interesting little traffic jam temporarily.

The ladies did move on and the tour group ended up passing on without really noting Chopin at all, so I'm not sure why they were there at all, but I finally got to see the place I spoke about in my music analysis project and read the tributes to "A. Fréd Chopin." Some of the other people who eventually wandered over didn't know the story about his heart being buried in Poland, so I got to pass along some info too after my photo ops. It was time for the class meeting shortly thereafter, though, so I had to make my way back and try to find the correct way to the original entrance point, which was thankfully easier than I thought it might be.

The cemetery itself was beautiful, if crowded, and by that I mean with monuments and mausoleums, not tourists. I couldn't hear city noise of any kind practically until I was all the way back to the entrance point, which made the whole experience pretty unique for still being inside Paris. Plus, I got to see Chopin. Afterwards, we went to Sacre Coeur, which was beautiful inside (sadly, photography is prohibited inside the church), but the view of the city was wonderful, if crowded, and by that I mean with people. With only one full day left in Paris, I had to try the savory crepe for dinner (with a sweet one for dessert), so it was a pretty fun day all around, and the fireworks haven't even started yet...

Peep at Sacre Coeur admiring the view

A view of L'Arc de Triomphe on Bastille Day

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Journey to Champagne

Riding out to Epernay (in first class seats!) this morning reminded me in a way of my trip out to Devon (sans the first class seats for the latter), particularly as we left the large city/train station and headed out into more rural areas. The fields and vineyards were beautiful, but most of my attempts to capture them on film ended up with a nice glare from my camera reflecting in the train windows and/or some kind of blurring action in the fields. Nonetheless, Epernay was a charming little city and the weather was gorgeous, all of which made for a lovely day to tour Moët & Chandon and some more village wandering...

After arriving by train, we had some time to wander the city and eat lunch at this cute little pizzeria. Seeing menus for the past couple of days has definitely reminded me of my high school and early college French courses, when we would practice ordering random items and everyone would pick the easy-to-pronounce foods and drinks. Unfortunately, it's not practical to order those easy foods all the time (they're usually easier to say because they're closer to English names), so I got to branch out again with some new menu options and help a couple of my lunch companions decipher their menus. Pizza with tuna and egg was one such unusual discovery, but we all passed on that in favor of some more familiar choices.

There was some free time between lunch and our scheduled tour, during which I strolled around the city and found some cute little historical landmarks, none of which were really explained well but had their own historical marker designations. The only souvenir shop we could find didn't seem to have much in the way of souvenirs beyond postcards, pipes, or magazines, so that wasn't such a successful venture, but it was a curiosity. There were flowerbed everywhere, and lots of small park areas, so even though most all of the stores we found seemed to be closed—perhaps for the holiday tomorrow?—we did have a pleasant walk before the Moët & Chandon tour.

I've never been to a winery before or been in any kind of wine cellar, so the whole Moët tour was a new experience for me. The brief history of the company given upstairs (ground level) was interesting, but they definitely weren't kidding about people wanting a jacket or coat of some kind when down in the cellars themselves. It was rather brisk, even as part of a group of people touring together, and the maze of routes within the cellars was a surprise. Who knew they had 28 km of cellar space alone? At any rate, our tour path was a significantly smaller portion of that distance and yet the huge (for lack of a better word) stockpiles of wine we saw were impressive in their own right, let alone as a fraction of the total production.

The tour ended with a tasting that was very popular among the tour participants, but I really enjoyed the informational part more. I think I was probably the only one in the group that didn't know Dom Perignon is made by Moët & Chandon, and while that was not part of the tasting at the end, it was still neat to see the statue dedicated to him and one section of the cellar in which Dom Perignon is housed. Peep was impressed as well during the tour and came out for a photo op once, but since it was so cold and the poor guide would've thought we were all crazy to be taking pictures with random toys and pictures, Peep stayed hidden for the rest of the time. Epernay was quaint and pretty, though, and it was wonderful to visit such a cute little relaxing place (in great weather) and have a little break from the action, noise, and lights of Paris, if only for an afternoon. :)

Peep in an alcove down in the cellars

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The Sun King on a Sunday

Prior to our trip there today, I imagined that Versailles was akin to Hampton Court, but on a grander, more elaborate scale. It does, after all, house the fabled hall of mirrors, and, as they told us at Hampton Court, the French royal palaces set the bar for later Hampton Court renovations by William III. Still, it was so pleasant and relaxed at Hampton Court—a blending of historical significance, royal associations, and grand estates and gardens—that I anticipated our trip out to Versailles would be similar. If Hampton Court was popular for London, though, Versailles is the must-see for all of France...

I suppose I didn't anticipate large crowds because it didn't seem like there were many at Hampton Court and for some reason, I very much equated the two in my mind, despite their scale and time period differences. I don't think, however, that I've ever seen that many tourists in one place, aside from actual theme parks, which are a completely different category and experience altogether. Versailles, with its Louis XIV-XVI and Marie Antoinette connections, has quite the appeal, though, and tourists from all over definitely turn up to see it. Logically, of course, Hampton Court wouldn't have the same audience draw as even Windsor Castle or Buckingham Palace in England, so I don't know why I thought it would be similar at Versailles, but nonetheless, we made it to Versailles and after a little wait in a very polite queue, got to tour the estate.

I have limited experience touring large estates, whether here or in the U.S., but it still seemed odd and a little hectic to have so many people crammed into these elaborate rooms trying to take everything in while simultaneously ignoring the "no flash photography" directive; I've definitely never seen that many people packed into little rooms before, although the presence of the audioguides cut down on most conversation too. The audioguides provided were great, but I think at one point they caused a traffic jam because people were waiting for the tape to stop speaking but it was tiny corner room and there just wasn't space for people to loiter. Still, even the occasional crowd couldn't detract from the beauty of the rooms and all of their gorgeous artwork. I'm not sure if it was something we were supposed to notice or if it is just part of the interior design, but while touring the "History of France Galleries," there was this one view down a long hallway that connected at least six or seven rooms together that allowed pedestrians to see the doorframes and a small portion of that room's decor. Looking down that corridor from one end to the other, you could literally see a rainbow of room colors and textures in the wallpapers and tapestries. It was a really interesting and colorful effect, although difficult to photograph since people generally wanted you to move into the next room so they could stay with the audioguide.

Some of the sections of the palace seemed to prohibit photography in general, although again, not too many people seemed to mind the signs warning against cameras, and the guides/guards didn't respond either. Thankfully, though, the famous hall of mirrors, though crowded, was not one of these photo-free zones, and even Peep got a photo-op in among the chandeliers lining the hall. All of the state apartments had great views of the gardens, and even though there wasn't a maze to wander around in (a la Hampton Court), the weather cleared up nicely and it was sunny again at Versailles, which seemed fitting for the sun king.

Since I couldn't take pictures downstairs (there were signs everywhere that appear to prohibit cameras) and we didn't get to tour the gardens themselves, we left Versailles after lunch and headed back towards the center of Paris. Our walking tours for the past two days covered a lot of ground and basically included most of the landmarks to see that we won't be visiting as a class, but we did find another, perhaps lesser-known item of interest to visit: la statue de la liberté. Smaller than the American one and apparently hanging out in the middle of the river on a sandbar-esque island, this replica Statue of Liberty doesn't seem to draw the crowds, at least on a Sunday afternoon, but it was pretty neat to see, especially since I've never been to the Statue of Liberty in NY. It's dinnertime here now, although I'm strangely not hungry after our French Tex-Mex lunch (also an adventure of it's own...). :)

An Eiffel Tower view en route to la statue de la liberté

La Statue de la Liberté

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Practicing French and pizza

Although I knew we would have a free day in Paris to see the sights, travel, or do whatever we individually wanted to do, I didn't actually plan anything specific beforehand (i.e. no real must-see lists for Paris like in London). So, there wasn't much of a plan for today's free time beyond wandering down to the Champs Elysees and l'Arc de Triomphe after breakfast and likely repeating our Paris-by-foot tour of the center of the city. Being out in the city for most all of the day--including two meals--also meant a chance for souvenir shopping and eating at cafes, all of which provided me a chance to practice using French and, at the end of the day, reminded me of a silly little French song we once learned called "Je suis une pizza"...

Taking the Metro down to the Champs Elysees was actually very easy, and we were kindly directed by signs to find nearby monuments and attractions. Unfortunately, we headed right, towards the river, when in fact the metro station we exited literally faced the Champs Elysees and we could've found l'Arc de Triomphe by heading out to the left instead. Nonetheless, we got to see le petit and le grand palais and walked down to la Place de la Concorde without really planning to. It was exciting to cross the streets there because the street crossing signals were all taped off/not functioning and the streets were all major intersections. We had some interesting calls with lights changing suddenly, but managed to survive long enough to circle la Concorde and head into a little park that parallels the Champs Elysees. Because of the eventual advent of the Tour de France up the Champs Elysees, we couldn't walk up part of the avenue since they had it roped off and were setting up stands/bleachers for future spectators.

When we did get to the CE, it was crowded, of course, but had tons of interesting shops, and we kept running into other program people who had also wandered down that way during our free day. We had some serious issues finding the correct route to actually get to the l'Arc, mostly because all of these little brown signs kept indicating that it was underground and then the metro directions popped us out at the same station, which, thanks to crowds and our apparent inability to see the giant entrance, kept seeming like the wrong place. We seriously circled a couple of times before finally spotting the real entrance, but we did make it there and Peep got some souvenir pictures to prove it.

After heading to the Latin Quarter, finding La Sorbonne, and eating a cute little street cafe, we wandered some more, ending up in le Jardin du Luxembourg (we were intending to head towards the river, but obviously got turned around) and then over to Ile de la Cite. There was quite the line for Sainte-Chapelle, so we admired its stained glass windows from the outside in passing, but didn't try to see Notre Dame since we'll be going there for class next week. After a brief stop on Ile de la Cite, though, we headed for Marais, which didn't really seem to have any notable landmarks as we passed through, and then all of a sudden it seemed like we were back at the Bastille, which is very close to our hotel.

I'm not sure how far distance-wise we walked, but it was a good little trek around the center of the city. When added to yesterday's journeys around the Louvre area, I feel like I've seen a good bit of the interior portion of the city traveling by foot, but then again, it's a good way to see what you want to see and you definitely get to see people and interact on a more personal basis. Most of the merchants do still end up helping us along with English if not just using English from the start, but it's definitely a learning and relearning experience to be reading maps and signs, listening to locals around me talking, and try to order items in stores.

After our super walk, we thought we'd try the hotel's restaurant only to find that it doesn't exist for dinner, meaning we had to have a backup plan. The backup plan became ordering a pizza, but since the menus for said pizza places (as provided by the front desk) were all in French, I got to help navigate the options and ultimately ended up placing the order online, which was another fun adventure. It was a little gratifying to have the ordering process work out, although admittedly, it wasn't a complicated order, and it was an inexpensive dinner. :) The delivery was crazy fast and to our hotel room door, though, so that was a pleasant surprise and a fun dinner en suite. Tomorrow we travel to Versailles(!), which means a little trip to the local grocery is in order for some water, if not dessert following our little pizza dinner. :)

Me ordering pizza online in French (and it worked!)

...dinner! (to the tune of "Je suis une pizza")

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Arts and Leisure

After our introduction to the Metro yesterday, we got to ride the bus today en route to the Louvre and see some of Paris in transit. Traveling around the city and seeing/hearing familiar names and terms definitely reminds me of l'hexagone and 'the spiral' from French civ., but unfortunately, when we were tested on which famous landmarks were found in each arrondissement, the associations didn't always come with visuals; therein, I've discovered that I can be staring at a famous landmark and not really recognize it by sight at all, but instead, only by name. That seems odd, but it was definitely the case as we visited the Louvre today (one of the iconic ones easily recognized) and then walked all around le premiere arrondissement. It was a combo of arts and leisure, with some firsts and interesting experiences thrown in along the way...

Walking through the various galleries in the Louvre was a little like having my humanities book come to life, especially as we toured through the 13th-15th century Italian painting galleries. It was neat to see in person some of the works we'd studied and/or written papers about in the past, even though the collection is much larger and more varied than my few humanities classes could ever cover. The sheer size of the galleries and their interconnectedness make it easy to get turned around and/or lost within the maze of rooms, which is how we briefly turned up in the medieval exhibit in the basement. Still, I knew going in that I wanted to see the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, so those were definite must-finds (and were thankfully fairly well marked out).

I had been told prior to coming that the Mona Lisa is actually much smaller than you might imagine, and thus, I expected something along the lines of an 8"x10" framed portrait. Signs everywhere throughout the museum also prohibit flash photography, so I was surprised first to discover the Mona Lisa is somewhat larger than I thought it might be and second, to see the swarm of people surrounding it using their camera flashes all while the guards stood by watching. We joined in the group trying to take pictures (but refrained from flash photos), and then set off to hunt down Venus de Milo. There were similar crowds there as well, and one kid in particular who kept jumping into other people's shots. He was not popular with the crowd, especially when he would pop up from behind or around the statue since no one was really taking any photos of it except from the front. I suppose he'll have to be edited out of the one picture of mine he managed to appear in, but then again, that adds to the memory of the day, and I did manage at least one shot that he didn't jump into.

After a little more touring/wandering/trying to find the correct exit in the Louvre, we headed out to scope out restaurants for dinner. In the process, I got to eat my first crepe, which was delicious and the guy making them was quite the interesting character. We walked all over the place in le premiere arrondissement, including Pont Neuf, Place Vendome, Opera Garnier, and the periphery of Notre Dame. It was fun to tour the city, although admittedly, I was tired after the sugar high from my crepe wore off. I did, however, pick up some postcards and two popular children's books from a little bookstore: Alice au Pays des Merveilles and Madeleine, both of which are fun to try and read in French. :)

We returned to the Louvre for a little more touring later on, and then I came back to the hotel, where there ended up being an issue with the room key. The desk clerk said they didn't have the key, but as it turns out, my roommate did leave our key there this morning when we left, so we don't know what happened to it in the interim hours that it was MIA when I returned. Thankfully, though, they issued us a new one and deactivated the old one, so we can once again access our room and have a little leisure time at the end of our day exploring and appreciating art. :)

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