Women Around Town: Travelogue, France, June 2024

Travelogue: France

I traveled  to France last month to celebrate my 70th birthday. (Note that I also celebrated my 60th birthday in Paris with friends.)  My traveling companion was my good friend and fellow art historian, Katherine Zoraster. How fortunate for me to have her by my side for 10 glorious days.

Day 1: We arrived at our Hotel, Relais Hotel Vieux in St. Germain de Pres. This is a very old structure that has had many incarnations.  In the 1950s and 60s, many “Beat Generation” poets stayed here including Burroughs, Kerouac, Ginsberg, and Corso. The hotel was small on a tiny street just steps from the Seine on the left bank. The elevator could only hold 2 people or your luggage. Our room however was ample with a living room separate from the bedroom and an updated bathroom. The walls and ceiling were upholstered in a rather bold fabric covering years of cracks and patches, drapes matched as well. Nevertheless it was charming, lovely breakfast, and great location. For our first night we went to a recommended nearby cafe, Cafe Atlas. We took a stroll along the Seine. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 2:

Musee D’Orsay to see the exhibit, Paris 1874: Inventing Impressionism. It is a celebration of 150th anniversary of the very first Impressionist exhibit. In Paris 1874,  a selection of works that were featured in the 1874 impressionist exhibition is put into perspective with paintings and sculptures displayed at the official Salon the same year. Many beloved Impressionist paintings were on view telling the story of that groundbreaking exhibit. The Monets, Morisots, and more.  The ‘Orsay is one of my favorite museums so after spending a lot of time at the exhibit, we visited some time-honored works by Manet, Fantin  Latour, Degas, et al.  We enjoyed a cruise along the Seine on the Bateaux Mouche. Paris was preparing for the upcoming Olympics, so everywhere you turned was evidence of the upcoming event, seen in various sports-themed exhibitions, bleachers being set up, and even on the Eiffel Tower. We dined outdoors in the shadows of Eiffel at Chez Francais Restaurant.

 

Claude Monet, Impression: Sunrise 1972

Day 3:  We visited the Fondation Louis Vuitton located in the Bois de Bologne. Formerly a hunting ground of the kings of France, the Bois de Boulogne is a wonderful park just west of Paris. It is home to many green spaces, two lakes, waterfalls, ponds, ponds and streams. This museum is a true masterpiece by Frank Gehry and I think his best.  There were 3 well-curated exhibits, Ellsworth Kelly: Shapes and Colors, 1949-2015, Matisse: The Red Studio, and an extraordinary exhibit of works (in honor of the Olympics) with the theme of sports. Among these were examples by Basquiat, Warhol et al.  We then headed over to the wonderful Musee Marmottan Monet. This gem houses the world’s largest collection of works by Monet, but also many by Berthe Morisot and others. Note that they also had a small but wonderful exhibit in honor of  the Olympics, Ee Jeu! Artists and Sport (1870-1930) with works by Monet, Degas, Caillebotte, Toulouse-Lautrec, Eakins, Maillol, Rodin, Bellows, et al.   We followed up with some shopping as I wanted to go to a shop called Marin Montagut that I had heard so much about. Of course, I left with some treasures including this vintage handkerchief. The Bon Marche food hall makes Harrods look tame, and was a true feast for the eyes.

 

 

Day 4: The Latin Quarter and a guided tour of Hemingway’s Paris (? Well, not exactly) We visited a church with an amazing reliquary and saw a few spots where the author lived and frequented. We  had lunch in a nearby cafe (see photo). After a short rest, we headed over the Louvre for a late afternoon visit (not recommended). It was a zoo, and is so poorly organized to handle the masses of tourists all clamoring to see one painting and not know why.  The line at the bathroom was almost as long as the elevator to see the “great paintings”. We have both been to the Louvre numerous times so we know which paintings to see. We visited our friends by David, Delacroix, Gericault and Ingres. When I asked for directions to see Veronese’s Wedding Feast at Cana, the largest painting in the museum, the guards looked at me with a blank stare. Note that this is hung in the same room as the Mona Lisa, which is swarmed with visitors anxious to catch a photo of the over-hyped painting. We could not wait to get out of there and likely will never return.

 

 

Day 5: My birthday began with the “best baguettes” procured by Katie early in the morning, followed by a beautiful card and charming work of art she purchased from an artist on the quai. (see below)

                             

We went to Montmartre and to the most magical place, The Musee de la Vie Romantique; this is a treasure with a lovely garden cafe. The museum was the home and studio of Ary Scheffer (1795-1858),  a renowned portrait painter, who, under the July Monarchy received all of Paris’ artistic and intellectual elite . Delacroix came as a neighbor, as did Chopin. I was most intrigued by the jewels, particularly the cameos that belonged to the writer, George Sand. Her lover, one of Chopin’s hands were in a nearby display case along with one of hers, both sculpted by August Clesinger.

And then for our chocolate and pastry tour in Montmartre. Ooh la la! This was so much fun and just when you think you have tasted the most delicious thing ever…there is another and another.  The best, chocolate you ever had, the best macaroon, the best crepe, and so on… We washed down our treats with some wine at a local cafe. We had wine in a local cafe to wash down all of our treats. My delicious birthday dinner was at a quintessential French bistro, Chez Fernand. …..Best tarte tartin ever!!!

 

Day 6: Nice: Train ride is long (several hours)….and getting that luggage on and off was a special feat. When we arrived there was a Triathalon happening on the Promenade and music and excitement went on until very late. There is great energy  here. Our hotel, Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée was on the Promenade des Anglais and our room had a balcony overlooking the pool with an ocean view of the Meditteranean…so beautiful.  We had a wonderful lunch at La Villa Massenet in Old Nice. This was followed by an evening stroll along the Promenade des Anglais and pizza al fresco completed the day.

Day 7: Full day driving and walking tour of the French Riviera. The tour took us to the many quaint villages along the Cote d’Azur including Eze, Antibes, Monaco, St. Paul de Vence, Cannes, and Villefranche-sur-Mer where I plan to have my future home (I wish). We also visited the Fragonard perfume factory in Eze. That evening we met some lively women from Brazil at dinner where we all enjoyed wine together, this added to the atmosphere and great food at La Femme du Boulanger.

 

Day 8: We began the day with a local and fantastic harbor cruise that offered us a view of the many villages along the Meditterranean coast.  We saw the yachts and homes that make you swoon. We rounded out the day at a brocante and shopping and strolling through old town. We encountered a wonderful artist, name Sylvie T whose atelier and galerie was so enchanting. An Italian lunch followed in Old Nice.  We were so fortunate with timing to see the Olympic torch being passed on the Promenade des Anglais  We returned to La Femme du Boulanger for dinner, so charming.

Day 9: A very long train return to Paris. For our last night, we stayed a very quaint hotel, Observatoire Luxembourg in the Latin Quarter.  The hotel is decorated with  Fornasetii everything everywhere!!!- I loved that!!! We strolled through the close-by Luxembourg gardens which are magnificent. Our final evening was dinner at Parruche on the 7th floor of the Printemps Dept. Store. This restaurant has the most spectacular view of all of Paris, wonderful ambience and even better food.

 

 

 

Day 10: Travel back to Los Angeles with memories in tow. Au revoir.