"The only way of catching a train I have ever discovered is to miss the train before." -G.K. Chesterton
We left Paris for the 45 minute train ride to Versailles after a couple of shady characters offered to "help" buy our tickets in the Metro station. They entered information on the ticket machine resulting in a 120 euro total. Luckily, I have been so thorough in preparation, I knew this was about 3 times too much and convinced them to leave me alone and let me do it my way. Not sure what scam he was running. Armed with proper tickets, we got to the glorious palace and were immediately face to face with a LOOOOONG line of tourists. Fortunately, it was a lovely day and the line moved quickly. The palace is as extravagant and impressive as everyone says, and understandable as the envy of all European monarchs. The "chateau" was the dream of Louis XIV as not only a display of his power and wealth but as a place to gather the aristocracy and keep them distracted with the frivolities of court life so he could go ahead and govern as he wanted without interference. He spent half of France's annual GNP to get it built, so yeah. We toured the main wings of the palace, enjoying rich furnishings, stately architecture, dramatic neo-classical frescoes. The chapel and the hall of mirrors were stand-outs of the tour. Unfortunately, the Queen's quarters and coronation room are closed for restoration at this time. As ornate and fine as everything is, it felt too overly ornate and almost silly for my modern sensibilities. It's no wonder that in just 100 years, the Revolution would spark uproar over Royal oppression and extravagance.
We viewed the main gardens from the chateau, but skipped walking through them since you had to pay an additional entry for a fountain show we wouldn't be around in time for anyway. Instead, we visited the grounds of the Trianon and Petit Trianon on the edge of the palace grounds. To get away from the stresses and noise of Versailles, Louis had these more "modest" country homes on the perimeter of the estate to escape to. Marie Antoinette took up the smaller "Petit" as her special escape for family and friends. Eventually, self-crowned Emperor Napoleon would settle here with his family. I really enjoyed the more rustic charm of the grounds and gardens out here. It's still perfectly designed and contrived, but it feels more natural. There are streams, "fake" waterfalls, even a peasant village where Marie could dress up and pretend to be a simple farm girl. Learning more about Marie Antoinette on this trip has made me feel more sorry for her eventual fate. She was a sweet, clueless rich girl who didn't know anything but luxury and ease and never understood the world outside her gilded life.
While in Versailles, we were able to check off 2 culinary boxes. We had escargot with lunch. (It's okay as long as you don't look at it or think about it.) And we had the famously overpriced Angelina's hot chocolate (think a cup of melted dark chocolate candy bar.)
We walked from Versailles to the recently dedicated LDS Paris temple to do baptisms with the kids. It's a beautiful temple, but much smaller than I thought. Especially after Versailles, it's a shockingly modest building. There is no angel Moroni, a concession to the community building permit. The visitor's center is lovely, and there is gorgeous stained glass throughout the building. The gardens in the grounds are maintained by the church, but belong to the neighborhood as public gardens. There is no proselyting there, and people living in nearby apartments are free to enjoy their lunch or cafe on the benches surrounded by lovely gardens and a statue of the Christus. It was wonderful to be in the temple together with our children, a couple of other tourists, and French members to do service. After our appointment, we found some baguette and cheese, and hopped the late train home.
I fondly dubbed the next day, "Museum Day." It was our last day to use the 4 day Paris Museum pass, so I was determined to make the most of it. First stop, Napoleon's Tomb and the Army Museum. Housed in the golden-domed Invalides, Napoleon's final resting place is surrounded by all the pomp and glory I imagine his dictator heart could desire. I'm not entirely sure why he's so revered. He took over the Revolution for democracy and crowned himself emperor. He was a despot. I can only guess he's admired as someone who represents the last days of France as the most powerful and important empire in the world.
The Army Museum is housed directly behind the church tomb. We spent almost 3 hours here, mostly in the World War 1 and World War 2 wings. I learned a lot; the displays are well done, both interesting and informative. It helped me realize more than I have, the toll taken on France in the trenches. By the end of the war 3 out of 4 Frenchmen had been killed or wounded. An entire generation was lost -- a Pyrrhic victory. Some highlights of the museum include an enigma machine, a wonderful collection and display about the French Resistance, a blown up photo of paratroopers descending into France, the videos of D-Day and French liberation. One thing that seemed strangely absent to me was much of anything about the holocaust or concentration camps of the war. There is one tiny corner tucked away and easy to miss with a few photos and personal items.
We stopped for lunch in the Rue de Cler neighborhood and found the most delicious lemon tart in the world. We also picked up some epoissee cheese at the neighborhood Fromagerie to try at home. A favorite of France, we thought we'd give it a try. The strongest, stinkiest cheese I've ever had! It was good, but only in very small doses, and we actually threw much of it out because it made our whole apartment and outside foyer smell like sweaty feet.
We did the Rodin Museum next. A self-taught genius! It's a great museum where you can see his work in all its stages of production along with other media he used. He was a decent painter as well. After seeing the span of his work indoors, the tour of his sculpture in the gardens outside is wonderful. Highlights for me were of course "The Thinker" along with my favorite, "The Burghers of Calais" -- a truly amazing piece of sculpture! If anyone I know desires to see Rodin's work, never fear. I'm fairly certain Cory took a picture of every statue in the museum.
We had a break at home to eat stinky cheese before hitting our last museum of the day -- The Pompidou. Paris's Modern Art Museum is kooky from the outside "exo-skeleton" facade all the way to the displays inside and we loved it. It's a more lighthearted approach to modern art than we found in Spain's Reina Sofia. It feels fun and zany inside. We saw most of the renowned -- Picasso, Dali, Leger, Braque, Mondrian and Warhol -- along with many lesser known and some to us completely unknown. Anna was excited and delighted to see the "toilet" sculpture she'd learned about in art class this year. Phew! A lot of museum time for one day!
Church this week was translated better which made it easier to pay attention. The Bishop was excited to see us back, and with the help of a translator was ready to give us callings. He is a man that radiates kindness and love. We had a wonderful Sunday School lesson taught in English by a French member. She taught about Zions Camp and compared it with an experience she had recently when as a temple worker, they were given instruction not to pass out temple work cards in the temple or on the grounds. She felt to grumble at first, because as single woman, it's hard for her to do the work for her male ancestors. She realized this was a chance for her to seek understanding and to learn a lesson of obedience. I thought it was a wonderful setup for the lesson. Am I quick to observe? Do I seek to understand the Lord's will or impose my own? Do I have a testimony of prophets, seers, revelators? In Relief Society, the teacher was an English speaker as well. She started her lesson off without her usual translator, so was translating for herself. A woman, not a member, who had just happened to come in off the street when invited by a missionary that morning came up and translated into French for her. It was really cool. Sundays in Europe have really had some highlights for me.
In the late afternoon, we walked several blocks in front of the Tuileries to stake a place for the finish of the Tour de France. I can't say I've always been a huge fan of this event (or even a little fan), but you can't be staying so close to the finish line and NOT go watch, even if it means standing on the sidewalk for 2 1/2 hours. The sponsor parade was fun, as well as jets streaming colored smoke overhead keeping us entertained. Then, as the racers approach, you can feel the adrenaline around you and it's just so amazing to watch these incredible athletes speed past you at the end of such a long and painful endurance challenge. Definitely a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
We took another day excursion the following day. Choosing between the gardens of Giverny and our ultimate selection of Vaux le Vicomte, the weather decided things for us. A rainy day in Monet's gardens would still be lovely, but we opted, like Robert Frost, for the road less traveled. We are getting to be experts at the train system now and got to the chateau without incident. It's a marvelous chateau that looks like it belongs in a Jane Austen novel, but was actually the inspiration for Versailles. Its builder, Fouquet, figures strongly in Dumas' 3 Musketeers saga. A financier and noble of the day, he built this dream home as a place for respite from his labors. He invited nobles and a 22-year-old King Louis XIV here for his housewarming party, complete with lavish meals, walks in the garden, boats on his grand canal, and a finale of fireworks. He was arrested in the wee hours that morning, by the jealous king and spent the rest of his days in prison. (Some legends indicate he was the "man in the iron mask," but historians deem that unlikely.) With his rival in prison, Louis absconded with Fouquet's architect, gardener, and decorator/artist where he immediately put them to work on his new vision of turning his country hunting estate in Versailles into the envy of Europe. We enjoyed the grounds that were the first "French Formal Garden" in Europe that soon influenced gardens throughout the continent before heading back. It was a respite to be somewhere not thronged with crowds, a lovely little detour.
The following day, we took a walking tour of the Marais neighborhood. Originally home to the royal elite, we discovered veritable palaces hiding behind walls and courtyards in the middle of bustling, congested Paris. We also saw the plaza where the infamous Bastille once stood before being dismantled brick by brick by angry Revolutionaries. Along the tour, we stopped in Victor Hugo's home, a free museum where you can see his belongings, art inspired by his writing, and even the bed where he died. I have been grateful throughout this long tour for all of the literature I've read over the years set in these historical cities. It has enriched the experience for me greatly and provided context and insight.
We detoured a little from the neighborhood to hit the Picasso Museum. It has been fascinating to see Picasso from so many different countries and museums on this trip. The more I learn about and see his art, the more I appreciate it. The more I learn about the man, the less I like him. I think my favorite of his art is the work from his late years when he was an old man. It is child-like and happy and makes me smile.
We finished the Marais by wandering through the Jewish Quarter, stopping for amazing pastries to help tide us over for the 15 minute walk to our lunch stop. I think we're going to need some sort of food detox program when we get back to the States. Our lunch was at a tasty creperie where we enjoyed the fancier, buckwheat crepes that are filled with rich delicacies, wrapped in what is essentially tasty, crispy, edible lace.
In the afternoon, we took the Metro to see the Catacombs but discovered a 5 hour line so detoured to the Pantheon instead. The highlights here are some of the eminent men and women buried in the crypt of the "Temple of Reason." It's the final resting place of Victor Hugo, Alexander Dumas, Louis Braille (a personal hero), and the Curies. Above the vaults, the domed cathedral was originally built as a church but was commandeered during the Revolution and stripped of anything religious and became a "church of the rational." This leads to something of an empty feeling in a beautiful structure. In the middle, under the dome is Foucault's original pendulum, demonstrating still today, the earth's rotation.
Our final day in Paris, we got to the Catacombs 40 minutes early, but still ended up waiting in line nearly 3 hours. Not my first choice, we went to humor teenage boys, but it ended up being interesting if macabre. The remains of 7 million Parisians ended up down here in old mining tunnels, stacked into walls of bones. We discovered, once below, that Isaac is terrified of bones -- a fact that Noah, like all good older brothers, used to his advantage in creepy, sneaky, "gotcha-Isaac" ways. We actually all got the giggles pretty bad underground and were not maybe super respectful of millions of interred Parisians. Once the end was in sight, Isaac quite literally fled in terror, running up the stairs to the exit. He maybe has read one too many Zombie books.
After an afternoon of laundry, packing and cleaning, we made one last excursion to Paris's original Opera House, "L'Opera Garnier." Walking there, we discovered yet another grand boulevard in this marvelous city laid out by Haussmann and offered him a little thanks for his vision for this aesthetically beautiful place. The opera is gorgeous if not intended for the masses. We discovered that the story of "The Phantom of the Opera" takes root here, and suite number 5 stays empty for performances in his honor. There are 2 facts tied to the story's fiction in this building. First, there is actually a cistern found beneath the opera house, and secondly, a chandelier did actually fall and kill someone here. We bade farewell to the city of light with one more decadent, delicious, Parisian meal. Au revoir!
