Europe – “Riding the Rails” – Paris (15)

We are still riding the rails, but, it is now the Paris Metro rails. However, we did take a taxi from the Gare de Lyon train station to the Hotel d’Orsay which is almost next door to the Gare d’Orsay Museum. I was excited about this hotel as it is also part of the Espirit de France group as the prior two at which we have stayed and which we really liked. Unfortunately, we were quite disappointed. The rooms are too small, and, there is a different attitude at this hotel. This is one that will be crossed off our list. (I spoke too soon, more to follow.)

Something, however, that should be added to everyone’s list is a visit to L’Atelier des Lumieres. There is a logic in naming it after the Lumiere brothers who were among the first filmmakers. They held their first private screening of motion pictures in 1895. And, ateliers are places where artists work. The actual physical space is large; a foundry and then a tool manufacturing plant were once housed in this space that now houses L’Atelier des Lumieres. Images are projected on all the spaces, and, the ensuing show is spectacular. There were three different sections, but, the one that garnered the attention was the projections of Van Gogh’s paintings, all set to music.

I could add many more images as each one was magnificent, but, I will add only one more that catches the scale to some extent by seeing the people in the space. The rule was no flash, but, the people can be seen as the dark figures.

From L’Atelier des Lumieres it was to a favorite place for lunch, Laduree because of the macaroons. Lunch is eaten just to have the macaroons for dessert.

Giving Steve a break, I went to The Liberation of Paris Museum. It opened in August 2019 on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Paris from Nazi occupation. What made it particularly interesting to me was that it was presented from a French point of view. That seems only obvious, but, we Americans tend to think there is only one perspective. However, in this case, the history presented correlates with at least my understanding of events. The exhibits also included details about the lives of numerous French personalities who played roles in the events of the war.

As with many others, a very favorite activity in Paris is selecting a sidewalk cafe, grabbing a table with two (very) small chairs, ordering drinks and watching the world go by as you slowly consume those drinks. Then it is on to another cafe or selecting a dinner spot. If a measure of how well one adapts to this schedule is any indication of becoming more “Parisian,” then, we are well on our way.

Rue Cler is touted as one of the best market streets in Paris, so, we decided to see for ourselves following another great meal at Le Soufflé, which specializes, of course, in soufflés. Judging by the popularity of the restaurant, we were not the only ones who enjoy soufflés. This restaurant was recommended to me by Mimi Gregory some years ago (as was going to the Paris Liberation Museum recently), and, I thank her for that recommendation. Back to Rue Cler, I wish we had had somewhere to take the cheeses from the fromage (cheese in French) shop, wine from the wine shop, flowers from the flower shop, fruits and vegetables from the market, roasted chicken from Le Petit Poulet, etc.; you get the idea. The street lived up to its reputation. It made us want to rent an apartment just to go buy provisions to take “back home.”

And, finally, no visit to Paris could be complete without seeing the Eiffel Tower in all its splendor.

And, indeed, there are rainbows after showers, both figuratively and literally. We had resigned ourselves to our rather small room, but were very pleasantly surprised when we were upgraded to a very nice room for our last day here. And for real rainbows, we caught one of those, too! Au revoir, Paris.