I woke up this morning to a sunny, cloudless day. I opened the windows and laid back in bed and took in the view for a few minutes. Breathtaking. When I stepped out of the shower awhile later, church bells were ringing. Great start!
My first stop today was “Marche des les creations” a Sunday art market in Montparnasse. I certainly found what I was looking for, original art by local artists. I took two trips up and down the market absorbing each piece and deciding what I wanted. My first two pieces were small watercolours; one of Sacre Coeur, the other of Cafe de Flore. One is the view I look at every morn, the other is in the area I am staying. I think those were good choices. The artist, Jacqueline Legendre, was very sweet and she had some beautiful watercolours of flowers. A woman after my own heart!
I then found an oil painting by a gentle older man. He was like a sweet grandpa. He had oils of nudes. I was struck by one that reminded me of a Degas I saw the day before. Not that it is even close to a Degas, but that was the first thought that jumped in my head.
As I was leaving the market, I stopped by Jaqueline’s tent again and looked through her larger pieces. She had one large pen & ink with touches of watercolour that drew my attention. It wasn’t a bad price, so I bought that one too!
After I had spent all my money, I visited the Cimetiere du Montparnasse as it was close by. I didn’t have a cemetery visit on my agenda, but I should have. It was beautiful. The grandeur of the head stones is impressive and it is very serene. What a nice place to walk around and glance at the history in front of you. When I think of graveyards, I usually think of bad zombie movies and creepiness. But in this one, all you see is how much they cherish the people who are no longer with us. There is a large amount of care and devotion put into one’s resting place here. And the flowers! So many graves have little gardens around them with tons of fresh flowers.
That’s one thing that is a huge difference from North America. The people here (and in England) cherish fresh flowers. They are everywhere. I see them being bought and carried around all the time. I wish we North Americans did that more.
After the cemetery, it was on to Notre Dame. Very cool. The gargoyles are awesome. I didn’t go in as the line was very long. I just sat down and took it in. It smelled like pee. That’s one thing about Paris, I think men just piss wherever. Hey boys, your pee stinks! Remember that before you whip it out.
Then it was on to Ile St.-Louis, the little island beside Notre Dame. I read that you can get the best ice cream in the world there. Yep, it’s true. The place is called Berthillon. It’s the parlor with at least 25 people waiting in line. It was worth the wait! Their ice cream is to die for. I got chocolate and caramel butter salt. Pure heaven.
My last stop of the day was the Eiffel Tower. What a zoo! I think I would rather take it in from a distance. When you are there it is not so parisian, more like Disneyland. I did wait the hour to go up. Now, that’s much better. It’s very nice up there and the view is pretty awesome.
Hey, is that me in a photo!?
