France - Part 1, Paris

We recently returned from trip to France that lasted almost three weeks.  I took over 1,000 photos and have tried to whittle those down.  Mark is a great trip planner, and every day was jam-packed with things to see!

Mark and I met up with my brother, Morrie and his wife, Dawn for this adventure.  We began and ended in Paris, so for consistency, I am including all of the Paris photos in this blog post.

Our first day in Paris we took a train to the outskirts to visit the Palace of Fontainebleau.  It was first a medieval castle and then a chateau and was the residence of French monarchs from Louis VII through Napoleon III.  It was sort of a "getaway" palace and was a favorite hunting lodge.

The entrance was impressive and Mark took a moment to pause and survey the grounds from the top of the stairs.

Morrie & Dawn in front of Fontainebleau.

We visited many of the rooms as well as a long hall of portraits.  This is a portrait of Josephine, Napoleon's wife.

This room is the nursery and contains the cradle of the King of Rome (Napoleon II).

The Queen's bedroom.  Just a little too busy and ornate for my tastes, but nothing was understated in this palace!

 The Throne Room of Napoleon (former bedroom of the King).

I love ceilings and there were plenty of interesting ceilings in the palace.  

 Each of these little squares alternate with pictures of cherubs and medallion-type inserts, some with the initials of Henry II & Catherine de Medici.

 The Gallery of Diana was a tribute to the goddess of the hunt and created by Henry IV so the Queen would have a place to promenade.

Francois the 1st liked to put his initials on stuff, too.

 Francois I:

The grounds were beautiful.

 Mark enjoyed the snack bar.

 These horses seemed a little embarrassed by their headwear.

 Dawn & I enjoying the backyard with its fountains and canal.  I think everyone should have a canal in their yard.  The kings in France seemed to enjoy putting in canals in a lot of their chateaux.

 The town of Fontainebleau had a carousel, as did EVERY town we visited throughout our stay.  The French must love carousels.

Later that night, we walked over to Notre Dame to take some night shots.

At the end of our trip, we spent a couple of more days in Paris, staying at an apartment in the 9th Arrondissement.  This was our street.

 Morrie and Dawn pose in front of the door that led to the stairway to the apartments in the building.

In the evening, we took the metro to Les Invalides and walked from there to the Eiffel Tower.  It turned out to be farther that we thought.  Morrie and I had our tripods so we could do some night shots.

 Eiffel Tower:

One of the days, we met for a walking tour of the Montmartre area through Discover Walks.  The walking tour is free and led by fun, native tour guides.  They make money only through the tips they receive.  Our guide, Eddie, was training three other college students who accompanied us on our walk.  It was fun to talk to them and find out more about being a college student in Paris and about a local area that is sometimes missed by tourists.

 We met in front of the Moulin Rouge (above) and were told that the old Paris city wall used to run along the street we were on.  Food and alcohol was taxed as it came into the city, so the Montmartre area outside the city became a place where one could go for a cheaper meal and entertainment.  Poor, starving artists flocked to the area as well as entertainers. People didn't behave quite as proper there. Eddie said that in those days there was an unspoken motto, "What happens in the Montmartre, stays in the Montmartre."

 The above produce stand was used in the movie "Amelie."

 This house (above) belonged to an Italian pop singer who was extremely popular (1956-1986) in France (and the world) named Dalida.  She recorded and performed in 10 languages and ranks among the six most popular singers in the world.

Above is Montmartre's Moulin de la Galette.  (Moulin means windmill.) There is a courtyard just inside the entrance.  The Renoir painting below is called "Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette."  Renoir was one of the artists that spent time painting in the Montmartre.

Eddie showed us this statue of St. Denis in a local park.  He then told us the story of St. Denis.  He was Bishop of Paris.  Denis was said to have been decapitated and then walked 6 miles carrying his head while preaching repentance as he walked.  It is thought that the name Montmartre was derived from "The Martyr's Mountain."

 At the top of the hill, overlooking the city of Paris, is the Sacre Coeur Basilica.  Our guides took us the back way to the basilica, which many tourists miss.  There was a lovely park that was relatively empty.  The front was swarming with people, so I liked this shot better.

 I wanted to get a picture of me with our adorable guides before we said goodbye.  Eddie is in the pink vest.

In the afternoon, Mark and I decided that since it was such a beautiful day, we would take the one hour Seine River cruise.  We have done it a couple of times before, but usually in the evening.  We really enjoyed it.  I was able to get some shots of the city from the boat.

Here's a quick run-down.  The National Assembly:

 Eiffel Tower by day:

 Pont Alexandre III is the most ornate bridge in Paris.

 The Musee d'Orsay, a former train station:

 The smallest house in Paris:

 The Pont Neuf, built in the time of Henry IV.  There are faces all along the bridge.

Conciergerie, a former prison used during the French Revolution.  Marie Antoinette spent time here:

We dined our last evening in Paris at Le Grand Colbert.  It was used by Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson as a location in the filming of "Something's Gotta Give."  Mark enjoyed the 7 hour beef.

 Dawn and I enjoyed our meals as well.  I had the filet with bearnaise sauce.  Delicious!