Finale in Paris this year --some highlights and issues
Jul 5th, 2003, 08:05 AM
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Finale in Paris this year --some highlights and issues
Greetings,
I wrote a bit earlier about our trip to Mougins, Lyon and Alsace this year. We finished up in Paris, during which the strike intervened-- but first the hightlights.
Musee Maillol--the Raoul Dufy exhibit was one of the most fabulous exhibits I have seen--I don't know if it will continue beyond Paris, but catch it if possible. I think it ended in June at Maillol. However, the museum itself is one of those rare jewels, a private home inherited by Maillol's mistress with an amazing collection. I had no idea that Maillol was such a master of paintings and ceramics in addition to his sculpture. If you have visited Paris a number of times and have seen the major museums, this is a do not miss. Additionally, it is not crowded, we went at the opening and shortly after 2 small French tour groups arrived, but we were able to work around them easily. We spent 3 hours there and I could have gone back the next day there was so much I wanted to fix in my mind from the wonderful show. The museum is in a great neighborhood for shopping and strolling and very close to Bon Marché.
Two shops where I found beautiful items were close to the Musee Maillol. Diners en Ville is on the corner of 27 rue de Varenne and has the breathtaking selections of French flatware--most of which I have never seen in the USA. Many of these patterns are a combination of colored handles and silver trims, some very elaborate, in the continental size. As you can imagine, many were very expensive, but I was able to find a reasonable set for 6 in a poison green with engraved silver (stainless) trim which was just perfect for us--ask to see the less expensive sets which are not with the settings sold by the piece (Ask for les couverts moins chers en carton). They also have salad servers and tons of beautiful table accessories. Two doors down was another wonderful shop which had beautiful table linens. For 12 euros each, I bought several cloths for the center of the table for us and as gifts. They are woven damask by Garnier Thiebaut, and very distinctive--I selected a variety of colorways with vegetables as the center of the cloth --I am so glad I did. They were significantly less than available here--take a look at Bliss.com for some examples of the fine linens by Garnier Thiebaut.
Musee Marmottan is a bit out of the way, but a must do for those who love Monet. Take the metro to La Muette and be sure you have a detailed map--the entry can be a bit tricky to find. The entire bottom floor is a broad expanse especially designed to show a vast collection of Monets--if you are a fan, don't miss it. It is also a nice section of Paris to tool around--we had lunch in a casual place that was very good and reasonable. The Bois de Boulogne is a quick walk.
Hotel Muguet--we stayed there for the first time--it is fun looking out at the Eiffel Tower all lit up--we had a 6th floor room with a terrific view--the room was lovely and we enjoyed the beautiful bath, but one night our air conditioning was not very cool--it had been extremely hot in Paris--so you may want to select a lower floor. Other than that, we loved the hotel--convenient and close to lots of neat places--we walk whenever possible so it was perfect. We took our breakfast at a closeby cafe each morning as it was about half as expensive as the hotel and it feels more local.
String Quartet Concert at La Sainte Chapelle--we weren't able to get to Sainte Chapelle on a Sunday for the major concert, but had no difficulty at all getting tix for a concert on Monday--and it was wonderful. There was a violin virtuoso who was quite unbelievable in the group and they played a full program. The light coming through the windows was just fabulous while the music was playing. We chatted with some French people in the rows around us and also met some delightful Norwegians--the setting seemed right for friendly conversation both before and after. All in all wonderful.
A few problems--
Returning the rental car to Paris--we returned to Invalides location of Europcar---on a Sunday. Despite my having checked out where to return when we picked up in Nice, the information was wrong--fortunately there was little traffic, but finding a place to return the car took up way too much time. Somehow returning to big cities is often fraught with problems, but transfering luggage to a taxi at an external location doesn't appeal either.
The strike--Paris rules when it comes to strikes--as a student there, we always looked forward to them--but alas it is a bore when the metros aren't running properly and the museums are closed. One tip we received came from asking around at our cafe and some of the security guards. It appeared that only state-owned properties were impacted, so we selected private museums for those days--it would have been a real bore if one planned to use the Museum Card--we didn't.
The police--this certainly wasn't a problem, but an observation--with the strikes ongoing, the police were everywhere in huge numbers--good for security but it took away from some of the charm. On the other hand, we appreciated the safety factor.
Hope I didn't go on too long.
Take care,
Robyn France
I wrote a bit earlier about our trip to Mougins, Lyon and Alsace this year. We finished up in Paris, during which the strike intervened-- but first the hightlights.
Musee Maillol--the Raoul Dufy exhibit was one of the most fabulous exhibits I have seen--I don't know if it will continue beyond Paris, but catch it if possible. I think it ended in June at Maillol. However, the museum itself is one of those rare jewels, a private home inherited by Maillol's mistress with an amazing collection. I had no idea that Maillol was such a master of paintings and ceramics in addition to his sculpture. If you have visited Paris a number of times and have seen the major museums, this is a do not miss. Additionally, it is not crowded, we went at the opening and shortly after 2 small French tour groups arrived, but we were able to work around them easily. We spent 3 hours there and I could have gone back the next day there was so much I wanted to fix in my mind from the wonderful show. The museum is in a great neighborhood for shopping and strolling and very close to Bon Marché.
Two shops where I found beautiful items were close to the Musee Maillol. Diners en Ville is on the corner of 27 rue de Varenne and has the breathtaking selections of French flatware--most of which I have never seen in the USA. Many of these patterns are a combination of colored handles and silver trims, some very elaborate, in the continental size. As you can imagine, many were very expensive, but I was able to find a reasonable set for 6 in a poison green with engraved silver (stainless) trim which was just perfect for us--ask to see the less expensive sets which are not with the settings sold by the piece (Ask for les couverts moins chers en carton). They also have salad servers and tons of beautiful table accessories. Two doors down was another wonderful shop which had beautiful table linens. For 12 euros each, I bought several cloths for the center of the table for us and as gifts. They are woven damask by Garnier Thiebaut, and very distinctive--I selected a variety of colorways with vegetables as the center of the cloth --I am so glad I did. They were significantly less than available here--take a look at Bliss.com for some examples of the fine linens by Garnier Thiebaut.
Musee Marmottan is a bit out of the way, but a must do for those who love Monet. Take the metro to La Muette and be sure you have a detailed map--the entry can be a bit tricky to find. The entire bottom floor is a broad expanse especially designed to show a vast collection of Monets--if you are a fan, don't miss it. It is also a nice section of Paris to tool around--we had lunch in a casual place that was very good and reasonable. The Bois de Boulogne is a quick walk.
Hotel Muguet--we stayed there for the first time--it is fun looking out at the Eiffel Tower all lit up--we had a 6th floor room with a terrific view--the room was lovely and we enjoyed the beautiful bath, but one night our air conditioning was not very cool--it had been extremely hot in Paris--so you may want to select a lower floor. Other than that, we loved the hotel--convenient and close to lots of neat places--we walk whenever possible so it was perfect. We took our breakfast at a closeby cafe each morning as it was about half as expensive as the hotel and it feels more local.
String Quartet Concert at La Sainte Chapelle--we weren't able to get to Sainte Chapelle on a Sunday for the major concert, but had no difficulty at all getting tix for a concert on Monday--and it was wonderful. There was a violin virtuoso who was quite unbelievable in the group and they played a full program. The light coming through the windows was just fabulous while the music was playing. We chatted with some French people in the rows around us and also met some delightful Norwegians--the setting seemed right for friendly conversation both before and after. All in all wonderful.
A few problems--
Returning the rental car to Paris--we returned to Invalides location of Europcar---on a Sunday. Despite my having checked out where to return when we picked up in Nice, the information was wrong--fortunately there was little traffic, but finding a place to return the car took up way too much time. Somehow returning to big cities is often fraught with problems, but transfering luggage to a taxi at an external location doesn't appeal either.
The strike--Paris rules when it comes to strikes--as a student there, we always looked forward to them--but alas it is a bore when the metros aren't running properly and the museums are closed. One tip we received came from asking around at our cafe and some of the security guards. It appeared that only state-owned properties were impacted, so we selected private museums for those days--it would have been a real bore if one planned to use the Museum Card--we didn't.
The police--this certainly wasn't a problem, but an observation--with the strikes ongoing, the police were everywhere in huge numbers--good for security but it took away from some of the charm. On the other hand, we appreciated the safety factor.
Hope I didn't go on too long.
Take care,
Robyn France
Jul 5th, 2003, 11:34 AM
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Robyn:
Sounds like you had a wonderful trip. How do you plan your trips? or what resources do you use besides this board? For example, how did you find out about the place near Cannes?
I didn't see Musee Maillol in the index of my France book. Do you have a web site for it?
Thanks,
Ronda
[email protected]
Sounds like you had a wonderful trip. How do you plan your trips? or what resources do you use besides this board? For example, how did you find out about the place near Cannes?
I didn't see Musee Maillol in the index of my France book. Do you have a web site for it?
Thanks,
Ronda
[email protected]
Jul 5th, 2003, 01:35 PM
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Hi Ronda--they have a nice web site at
http://www.museemaillol.com/index2.html
You should find what you need here. Btw, we peeked in at their restaurant, but didn't think it was very exciting for the prices and the many options available nearby.
Take care,
Robyn France
http://www.museemaillol.com/index2.html
You should find what you need here. Btw, we peeked in at their restaurant, but didn't think it was very exciting for the prices and the many options available nearby.
Take care,
Robyn France
Jul 5th, 2003, 01:59 PM
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Viva Raoul! I love Dufy's paintings. Wasn't familiar with him until my first visit to Nice, then I fell in love with his color and style. According to the website below, in addition to being a painter, he also worked as an illustrator, fabric designer, and decorator.
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/D/dufy.html#images
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/D/dufy.html#images
Jul 6th, 2003, 05:43 AM
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Ronda--I do lots of research online--I keep searching for b&b's, hotels or rentals in little villages near where we want to be and then do my best to check them out. I don't necessarily use known sites, just put in the area and the word I am looking for, usually in French as many of these sites don't show up on English searches. We have had very satisfactory results that way and have been able to keep our costs down while finding very pleasant accomodations--we do not seek luxury places--we really want to be in places where we can get well acquainted with our hosts.
Capo, I was not familiar with the breadth of Raoul Dufy's work until we saw the show--we were amazed at the complete range of art he produced. Many thanks for the web site. I plan to do more looking at his work for my own painting style and appreciate the link.
Every year, we find more and more to enjoy in France--hopefully, we can soon turn our 2 weeks into a month there.
Take care and happy 4th,
Robyn France
Capo, I was not familiar with the breadth of Raoul Dufy's work until we saw the show--we were amazed at the complete range of art he produced. Many thanks for the web site. I plan to do more looking at his work for my own painting style and appreciate the link.
Every year, we find more and more to enjoy in France--hopefully, we can soon turn our 2 weeks into a month there.
Take care and happy 4th,
Robyn France
Jul 6th, 2003, 06:23 AM
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Hi Robyn,
Hope you can turn it into a month soon, too!
Thank you for the trip report! Very nice, easy to read and with the historical tidbits I like to read about.
Also, thanks for the "les couverts moins chers en carton" piece of advice - sounds like you have a good grasp of the French language. When you conversed with the French people around you at Ste-Chapelle, was it in French?
Okay, I'm feeling out of the loop here, but what's a colorway??
I saw an awful lot of police in Paris as well, with the vans parked everywhere it seemed. But especially disturbing were the military people carrying around the machine guns. You read about them and then you catch a glimpse of one - very startling. My 1st trip there I recall seeing a woman, very young, appeared to be in her late teens, 5'3", maybe all of 90 pounds carrying around a machine gun (looked like an M-16). The gun seemed to weigh more than she did!!
Ciao~Mary
Hope you can turn it into a month soon, too!
Thank you for the trip report! Very nice, easy to read and with the historical tidbits I like to read about.
Also, thanks for the "les couverts moins chers en carton" piece of advice - sounds like you have a good grasp of the French language. When you conversed with the French people around you at Ste-Chapelle, was it in French?
Okay, I'm feeling out of the loop here, but what's a colorway??
I saw an awful lot of police in Paris as well, with the vans parked everywhere it seemed. But especially disturbing were the military people carrying around the machine guns. You read about them and then you catch a glimpse of one - very startling. My 1st trip there I recall seeing a woman, very young, appeared to be in her late teens, 5'3", maybe all of 90 pounds carrying around a machine gun (looked like an M-16). The gun seemed to weigh more than she did!!
Ciao~Mary
Jul 6th, 2003, 06:54 AM
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Hi Mary--thanks for your response and for the opportunity to tell you how very much I enjoyed your report--it was packed with wonderful stories and made me wish I did a better job of detailing some of the more special aspects of our trips.
Yes, we spoke to the folks in French. I am a completely fluent in French and fairly fluent in Italian, having studied French for many years and attended university in France for a year--to boot, I am a former French teacher so that is a driving force for us to go to France each year to keep my language up to speed.
Agreed on the machine guns--one does not get used to seeing that--as long as it is just hearing the funny French sirens it is atmosphere, but anything threatening is definitely a different story.
Colorways are the different color selections that patterns are woven in--those I described are a breathtaking assortment and very distinctive--it is a term you usually see in fabric, but I think it may apply to design in general. The French have such beautiful dining table pieces. One of the most fun things we do when we return is have several French dinners using little trinkets from France to decorate the table--I have several French flags--small and large--only wish I had gone to your favorite souvenir shop--and little monuments etc. I try to reproduce some of our favorite dishes from the trip --it is really fun and extends the glow of the trip.
Recently, we started a little group who plan to get together a few times a year---some call it the Hopeless Francophiles--although I gave it a tonier name for our menu--Francophiles Ardents--and we each brought a French dish and had a great time--I will add that most in the group do not speak French much with the exception of myself and a French friend--but it makes no difference--we just love France! We brought home a wonderful liqueur from Alsace called liqueur pêche de vigne, made from the peaches which grow in the vineyards--we served kir made with that liqueur for our get together--now we much rush back to buy more--haha--I wish.
It's always great to meet people who love France--I'll follow up on your tips next trip.
Take care,
Robyn France
Yes, we spoke to the folks in French. I am a completely fluent in French and fairly fluent in Italian, having studied French for many years and attended university in France for a year--to boot, I am a former French teacher so that is a driving force for us to go to France each year to keep my language up to speed.
Agreed on the machine guns--one does not get used to seeing that--as long as it is just hearing the funny French sirens it is atmosphere, but anything threatening is definitely a different story.
Colorways are the different color selections that patterns are woven in--those I described are a breathtaking assortment and very distinctive--it is a term you usually see in fabric, but I think it may apply to design in general. The French have such beautiful dining table pieces. One of the most fun things we do when we return is have several French dinners using little trinkets from France to decorate the table--I have several French flags--small and large--only wish I had gone to your favorite souvenir shop--and little monuments etc. I try to reproduce some of our favorite dishes from the trip --it is really fun and extends the glow of the trip.
Recently, we started a little group who plan to get together a few times a year---some call it the Hopeless Francophiles--although I gave it a tonier name for our menu--Francophiles Ardents--and we each brought a French dish and had a great time--I will add that most in the group do not speak French much with the exception of myself and a French friend--but it makes no difference--we just love France! We brought home a wonderful liqueur from Alsace called liqueur pêche de vigne, made from the peaches which grow in the vineyards--we served kir made with that liqueur for our get together--now we much rush back to buy more--haha--I wish.
It's always great to meet people who love France--I'll follow up on your tips next trip.
Take care,
Robyn France
Jul 6th, 2003, 11:03 AM
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We have a group of French people and teachers who get together once a month, called Les 6 Gals (Cigales, get it?). I brought them all little cicada pins from Provence. It does help make the time between visits bearable.
Jul 6th, 2003, 01:45 PM
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Hi LVSue--absolutely love the pun name 6 gals. Do u do anything in particular when u get together? We had a great time but it was all eat and drink and party--which was fun--just wondering how your group works--we did put pins in a map as to where we had been lately--but 2 of the couples own homes in France, although they don't use them a whole lot. Thanks for the info.
Take care,
Robyn France
Take care,
Robyn France
Jul 6th, 2003, 08:46 PM
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Robyn, I'm wondering how you arranged to bring home the flatware--table knives and all--that you purchased at Diners en Ville. With the current security concerns, were you able to bring it in your carry-on bag, or did you place it in your (unlocked?) check-through luggage? Or did you ship those items?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Jul 6th, 2003, 10:40 PM
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Robyn, of course we have a nice French dinner--the hostess makes the main dish and others bring salad, dessert, pain et vin, etc. And since we all speak French, we play Trivial Pursuit in French, which gets to be pretty silly at times. But it keeps us speaking French.
Have you thought about renting French or French-location videos, or even having a bit of a book club, all reading Le Divorce or something? There are lots of good and funny (so it doesn't have to be all that serious) French films out. We watched Le diner des cons and hooted. There was a funny Depardieu movie out a year or so ago The Closet (Le Placard) that should be out on video.
Have you thought about renting French or French-location videos, or even having a bit of a book club, all reading Le Divorce or something? There are lots of good and funny (so it doesn't have to be all that serious) French films out. We watched Le diner des cons and hooted. There was a funny Depardieu movie out a year or so ago The Closet (Le Placard) that should be out on video.
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