On Friday, Scooter and I paid a visit to The Louvre. We stopped in at Paul for a bit of breakfast - got a 'vennoise chocolat' - a kind of sweet half baguette studded with chocolate chips. Yum! Also got a ham and cheese baguette and a drink for lunch.
We took a leisurely walk, crossed over The Seine and arrived at the Louvre around noon. Luckily despite the hoards of tourists and screaming children (shouldn't they be in school?) it didn't take too long to queue up and get our tickets.
If I could say one bad thing about The Louvre, it would be: "It is too damn big". There's no way anyone could see everything on display in one day, not even if you were on rollerskates.
As I had been there about 13 years ago with my sister, I let Scott determine where we would go. I did make sure that we saw the three big things:
1. The Mona Lisa (which is lovely, although it is smaller than you'd think). Have a look at the link - on Wikipedia - loads of information on the painting, for example, its also known as "La Jaconde" which translates to "Lighthearted Woman".
2. Winged Victory of Samothrace which is just amazing and beautifully placed on the mezzanine of the Daru staircase. Its one of my favourite statues in the world. I will never forget seeing it 13 years ago and was just as awestuck today as then. Although the head and arms are missing (one hand is displayed near it), I think it gives the piece a more haunting feel.
3. The Venus De Milo which is probably one of the most famous statues in the world.
Of course we saw loads of other artwork as well. The Louvre doesn't just contain paintings either, but sculpture, carvings, and just about everything else you can think of.
The thing that strikes me about The Louvre is you could remove every single work and the building would still be worth a visit. Not least for the sheer size, but for the intricate architecture, from the modern glass pyramid at the main entrance to the stunning ceilings in many of the galleries. In many rooms, you'd think by the ceiling you were inside a cathedral.
So if you ever go in The Louvre, don't forget to look up each time you enter a room, you'll be glad you did!
After spending many hours inside we were worn out. All that culture was hurting our brains and it was getting to the point where we were saying "oh look, another painting of Christ, or look another painting of a naked women", so we took that as our cue to leave. I reckon we saw about one third, give or take, so that's pretty good. And of course it just means we have to visit Paris again - like you ever need an excuse to visit Paris!
We went back to Ash & Andrews and rested up for a bit as we were all going out to dinner at one of their favourite restaurants (and ours!), Fernand, just around the corner from their place. We went there last May so made sure we went again, esp. as it was much closer this time. Scooter and I both had fantastic steaks and mui-cui's for dessert - think of a half baked chocolate pudding, all gooey inside. Heaven I tell you.
We were suitably stuffed, Ash went home, and the three of us decided we needed a long walk to work off dinner. We headed into the Marais for a couple of drinks and then walked back home.
A lovely day.
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