Paris with Kater (Day 2)

Our second day in Paris was our day for Museums. We'd decided the Musee D'Orsay was necessary because Kate hadn't been and that we could piggie-back the L'Orangerie the that visit.

Waking up relatively sore from our crazy walk-fest the previous day we decided to grab the metro to the D'Orsay. So we visited our boulangerie patisserie and made our way to the lineless museum. 

yes.... so damn good

He goes to our boulangerie patisserie too! yesssss

 Our first stop was the museum cafe - its hard to appreciate large amounts of paintings and sculptures while yawning and massaging your quads. The cafe is of course beautiful and funky. You can look out of the giant clock onto the Seine, too cool!

so good :)

So, new deal with the D'Orsay (at least new since I went 7 years ago), they have 'no photos' signs everywhere now, which was not previously the case (cus i have so many damn photos from my first visit there!). I remembered that in certain collections no photography was allowed which i'm cool with - It means you're actually looking at the paintings AND not taking a photo that you tell yourself you will look at later (but never do). That being said I did take a few pictures because everyone was doing it and guards weren't saying anything. We started on the first floor with all the sculptures down the center and flanking rooms that are filled with paintings. The Manet works are just as breath taking as always. I love how sassy his women are. The Redon pastels pop right off of the work, almost like they're under a black light. After a good long while we realized... Shit this place is huge and we've only done one floor. We made our way to the second floor and took a breather next to Rodin's Balzac.

We entered the post-impressionism wing and continued to stare at the paintings with open-mouthed smiles. There is something about seeing a Van Gogh, whether its your 1st or 100th time, that moves you. The brush strokes, the colors, the people, the landscapes - I don't know how exactly to explain how much just even one of those topics makes you feel but that when you allow yourself to think of all of those things at once you are pulled so deeply into the piece you don't want to move for fear of losing that sensation. (Sorry the art historian/artist in me was on cloud 9 that day). Don't worry I won't attempt to describe how I felt when we made our way to the 5th floor with the Degas' dancers, Monet's Notre Dame and Toulouse-Lautrec everything (ok, now his women has some real sass too!).

At the end of the Impressionism exhibit was another large glass clock-face looking over the Seine... and next to that were two of the most fabulous giant leather octopus type chairs that I have ever seen. They were made for about 8 people to sit at a time in little nooks. But in true parisian fashion there were couples squeezed into a single nook all intertwined and kissing. Kate and I found two open slots and dove in. It was a beautiful thing.

so happy right there

Beautiful Kater!

On our way out of the museum a couple asked Kate to take their picture. So I took that as I could shamelessly take a few pictures too.

That guy on the left is strugglin!

 We walked out of the D'Orsay and headed to the Tuilleries Gardens on the other side of the river to eat our sandwiches. We found a few chairs right next to the Bassin Octogonal and set up shop for a little while. There was a little duck that floated close by and stared us down. Very hopeful fellow.

chilly but sunny! 

so focused

We walked up the hill to L'Orangerie to see Monet's waterlilies. There weren't too many people so it was easy to sit and take the rooms in. I'd forgotten how good the permanent collection is at L'Orangerie. It was much more manageable then the D'Orsay haha. Afterwards we walked through Place de la Concorde and caught the metro up to Montmarte. 

We thought the metro would save our legs a little but then I'd forgotten about the stairs to the Sacré-Cœur. It was an enjoyable walk with lots of graffiti along the buildings. Sacré-Cœur was crowded with people, but the view of Paris from that area is pretty amazing. We wandered around looking at paintings in an artists square. Montmarte was filled with people, its actually the neighborhood where I heard (then saw) the most American tourists.

such a french intersection

All 250 steps

huge!

oh i see you Eiffel

Dogs eating off the table too

We rounded a little corner and ended up at the Dali Museum. We figured Hell, why not! I knew it wasn't big and it was filled with a variety of his sculptures, drawings and paintings. We posed with the lobster phone and watched one of his movies. There was a photo booth at the end of the exhibit and you know we took advantage of that!

what!

After Dali, some drinks and chairs were needed. We found a cute little corner cafe with huge windows for people watching. My friend Julie, a true Parisian, told me that a typical Sunday in Paris consists of sitting at a cafe with your good friends and lots of people watching. And we were very successful people watchers! We ordered some drinks and some french fries and relaxed. We saw the typical and always beautiful french men. Their hair just right, their suits so chic, and their strong facial features displaying the smug/handsome/'I'm french' look. We saw french women with impeccable street fashion. Whether in boots or 6 inch heels, dresses or slacks, young or old, these women were working it. And then we saw Eddie Redmayne walking up the hill with his lady friend. He was looking right. Kate had to tell me his name (I only knew him as that good lookin' guy from Les Miserables previews) and of course I forgot to take a photo of him til we could only see his back. BUT he made eye contact with Kate and did a double take - thats a win.

Set for people watching

baseball cap = Eddie

that guys tongue is sticking out.."step one two, step one two!"

After our people watching we grabbed some beauty store supplies and a baguette and headed back to the Latin quarter. We rested for a little while then wandered around our neighborhood to search for dinner options. We found an American style diner and hit that up! They tried really hard with the decor, had movie scene stills of people in diners, typical diner booths, even milkshakes and all day breakfast options! Keep in mind - I live in Turkey, its hard to find some good Nachos here and Kate is living in England, its hard to find good non-Indian food there. SO I got a big plate of Nachos and Kate got a burger and we were happy... but we needed to walk for a while after that to help with the digestion.

baguette time

The metro tile work in Paris is sooo good

hit the spot

We decided to walk some - not too long a walk we told ourselves - apparently we don't listen too well to our bodies. We walked towards the original Shakespeare and Co. Bookstore and hung out there for a bit. It was so sweet, with rooms upstairs of books not for sale but customers to plop down in a chair and hangout for a few hours to read. Continuing east along the river we walked back north across the bridge to a building with flashing lights. It was Hotel de Ville and there was an ice skating rink and marry-go-round in front. I like this places style. A long winding walk took us back to our apartment. It was such an awesome art filled day.

Notre dame is look foine