Day 2 - Walking, eating, and Art

Today (Wednesday) was a great day.  First, we got the internet working in the apartment, which was no small accomplishment, I can tell you.  Speaking with a French speaking tech support guy who had an Indian accent was a challenge.....especially about technology of which I know very little.  Anyway, it works now, and I can blog to my heart's delight.  And better yet, Jerry can keep in touch with CNBC and all the sport scores.  Life is good.

That literally took all morning, so by the time we left the apartment it was close to noon.  We ventured out the door and took the bus #82 on Avenue Malakoff towards the Eiffel tower.  The Metro (underground) in Paris is great for getting around, but you can't beat a bus for just seeing what the neighborhoods look like.  We passed many famous sights and Jerry was snapping pics from the window of the bus.  Hey, we already look like hicks, so why not?  Unfortunately, the bus only got us "close" to our objective, and we had to walk several, many, long, hot blocks.  Another reason to cheer my ugly black walking shoes.

 We went to a near by Cafe and pointed to something on the menu.  I thought it was going to be crepes, but it was 2 thick slices of pate with fresh french bread.  What a treat for E7.00!!! We ordered a "pichet (pee-chay) of red wine for E5.00 (cheaper than diet coke) and got 3 glasses out of it.  Perfect.

Our destination was the d'Orsay Museum.  Set in the old Paris train station, this museum holds the art collection from the mid 1800's to the beginning of the 20th century.  Really amazing stuff, of which none was able to be photographed (they're fussy like that around here). The d'Orsay holds a priceless collection of impressionists, like Manet,  Renoir,  Cassat, Cezanne, Gauguin, and our favorite Van Gogh.  Also, lots of "pointalism" (is that a word, Kathleen?) which was really quite amazing.  But to stand in front of Renoir's "Dancing at the Moulin de la Gallet" is breathtaking.  Unfortunately, "Starry Night" was on loan and not there.  When we left the museum, there was a street performer playing the clarinet and people just hanging out listening.  Beauty is all around.

Well, after our 18,000 block walk and the entire d'Orsay, our dogs were barking (those of you too young to know what that means, ask a senior citizen). We found a Metro station and took it back to the apartment after walking another 10 or so blocks on both ends.  Needless to say, we both needed a rest, which we did until about 9:00 PM.  We walked up to the corner and had dinner at Des Papa's, an Italian bistro which has amazing and cheap food.  Had Antipasti, Spaghetti Carbonara, wine (of course) and lemon sorbet with decaf espresso.  What a great meal.

We are now just home, and while it is 11:10 P.M.here, you are all just getting out of school in the States.  Seems like a long way away, but it is fun to be able to talk to you through the blog.  Tomorrow is a shopping day at the big department store Printemps and Galleries Lafayette.  Yippee!  More later