Paris in Seven Days: Art Museum Madness and Play in the Park!

It’s day five of our adventure in Paris for my ten-year-old grandson and me…and today is art museum day! Armed with my Paris museum pass, which allows us to hit as many as we wish on the list and cut to the front of the line, we head out! I have big plans for today, starting  at the Louvre…
  …entering through the famous glass pyramid designed by Chinese American architect I.M. Pei. I love the way the French like to juxtapose the ultra modern with the classic and traditional! And yet…somehow, it works!

Of course, we head straight for the must-sees and jostle our way to the front to have a peek at the Mona Lisa…then check out Winged Victory and Venus de Milo!
  Then off to the Egyptian exhibit, where we spent most of our time and I took lots of photos of…

…hmmmm…

…it seems I was missing my staff! (But don’t tell them about the cat mummies! I don’t think they would understand!)

The Louvre requires a lot of walking, but fortunately, a wonderful park is located right behind it…the Tuileries Gardens! We found a statue with a funny hat and had a picnic lunch…ham and cheese on a baguette with my grandson’s new favorite drink…Orangina!

He happily demonstrates his unusual method for eating a French sandwich!

Next stop…the Orangerie…located at the far end of the gardens and just a short walk from the Louvre.  It features a fabulous display of eight of Monet’s huge water lily panels arranged in two oval rooms topped by sky lights, as originally planned by Monet himself!  You have the feeling of actually being at Monet’s water garden…spectacular!

It was fun to get a close up look at the water lilies on canvas after seeing them in person!

Next, back to the gardens (see the Louvre in the distance?) to try our hands at something I have always wanted to do…

…sailing a little boat in the Tuileries fountain! Doesn’t it look like fun? You can rent the boat and the stick to control it for one euro for 20 minutes…although the nice man gave us unlimited use!

After having an ice cream cone for dessert, we pass by the Place de la Concorde at the entrance to the gardens. The beauty of the view is not lost on me…

…since this is how it looked during the French Revolution! Yikes! Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI met their fate here. (We actually saw this painting….but that’s for next time!)

Our final stop of the day was the Musée d’Orsay, a former train station from 1900 turned art museum, showcasing the masterpieces of the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist periods!

This is without doubt my favorite of the museums that we visited! I would take a few steps, gasp and say “They have that?” and then take a few more steps and gasp again…amazing! I have never seen so many wonderful paintings in one place…Monet, Manet, Renoir, Cézanne, Degas, Van Gogh, Gauguin…incredible! My grandson especially loved Monet’s series of paintings of the façade of the cathedral in Rouen, in which he captures the light at different times of day.

However, I must say that my favorite of all of them was this one… Renoir’s Bal du moulin de la Galette! I only wish that I could take you there to see it in person since no print does it justice…fabulous! No pictures were allowed in the museum, so I stood my grandson in front of it and said…Never forget that you have seen this one in person! A true Impressionist masterpiece!

We ended the day with a stop by the pâtisserie on Rue Cler for a special treat…French pastries! My grandson chose the croustillant praliné and I got le divorcé…a funny name for a pastry that's half chocolate and half coffee! Yum! This is something I miss…although it’s probably a good thing that these little jewels are not so readily available for me! Ahhhh…another perfect day in our adventure in Paris!

Missed any Paris posts?
Back from Paris…or...My Grandson’s Favorites!  Listing the must-see spots for a ten year old boy!
My Favorite Street in Paris…Rue Cler   Great little street to use as your headquarters 
In case you want to follow along, here is my plan for visiting Paris in seven days! I am linking each of the seven days as I complete the posts.
Day One…All about Eiffel! Eiffel Tower/ Champ de Mars park and play area
Day Two…Sightseeing by Subway! Arc de Triomphe/ Montmarte/ Sacré-Coeur
Day Three…Monsieur Monet, I Presume (and a lot of Louis)! Giverny/ Versailles minibus tour
Day Four…The Cradle of Paris! La Sainte Chapelle/ la Conciergerie/ Notre Dame/ Latin Quarter/ the book stalls/ ice cream on Ile St. Louis/ the bâteau mouche on the Seine
Day Five…Art Museum Madness…Plus Play in the Park! Louvre/ Tuileries Garden/ l’Orangerie/ Musée d’Orsay
Day Six…A Phantom, a Fountain and Some History! Opéra Garnier/ Pompidou Center/ Carnavalet Museum
Day Seven…A Tomb, a Tank and a Tower! Napoleon’s Tomb and the Musée de l’Armée at les Invalides/ Eiffel Tower at night
Thanks so much for stopping by! See you next time! A la prochaine!