The Louvre, The Seine and a "Wedding Cake"

10 April 2008

Today it got to 17C; a virtual heatwave and the first spring-like day since leaving Australia! We nearly sweltered but managed to survive.

For my 70th birthday, Janet, Vince and the girls gave me two tickets to the Louvre and today I used the first one. The museum is so vast it is impossible to do it all in one or two days so I decided to spend today looking at French art. Although the nineteenth century is not terribly well represented, there are a number of lovely works including a fair number by Sisley but what took my eye, more than any other, was a much earlier painting, early seventeenth century, called "The Cheater" by Georges La Tour. It is a picture of a young man cheating at cards and it is obvious that the woman in the picture is well aware that he is cheating. As you can see in the picture, he holds a card behind his back and she is rolling her eyes upward, clearly in disbelief.

The Cheater

While I was admiring French paintings, Virginia was admiring French grammar. On the advise of her French friend in Hobart she went to Librairie Gibert Joseph on Boulevard St Michel. I thought she was going off to look at clothes or shoes but no, Virginia's passion is French grammar. Boy, can she conjugate those irregular French Verbs! This shop is situated right in the centre of the student quarter and is seven floors of books of every description. Virginia would probably have spent longer in the quarter, but there was a student protest and while it was probably just being rowdy, she felt uncomfortable enough to move on.

We actually went into the city centre on the same bus and then separated to go our own ways. Riding on the buses is very interesting. Buses do have designated places to stop but because of traffic they are often at a standstill in the street. If someone comes up and bangs on the door it is usually opened so they can board. On board, no matter how crowded, people tend to help one another. For example, yesterday a woman with a baby in a stroller was getting off and the stroller started to pitch forward. Several people both aboard the bus and in the street grabbed the stroller to keep the child from tipping out.

Strollers are common on buses. This is because most Parisians live in apartments and do their shopping locally (there are no shopping malls here). People in the cities in Europe live upward rather than outward because of the high density which allows the cities to take up a smaller geographical area. Either people do not have cars or realise it would be impractical to use them in the city. The buses (and the Metro) are used by the very young and the very old. Because the Metro often requires maneuvering up and down great numbers of steps, the buses are the preferred mode of travel.

The apartments in which people live may, in the more modern or more expensive areas have elevators, but many do not. Our building, for example, is six stories high and there is no elevator. Last year we met an elderly couple sitting on the stairs and the woman said to Virginia J'ascende lentement. Stores here do deliver and this is, of course, a great help to those who have to maneuvre a child up six flights of narrow stairs or who are elderly and cannot carry shopping that far.

We discovered one problem with the apartments and the security which took us quite by surprise. Coming home we could not get into the building. All efforts failed. Then we realised there was a power failure. Fortunately one of our neighbours saw us and came down to open the doors for us. Just as we got in, the power came back on.

View of the Seine

Before going to the Louvre, I walked along the river and as always, ejoyed it immensely. Certainly there is no reason to ever be bored in Paris when one can stroll along the bank of the Seine. The bookstalls were open and doing a thriving business, the river was full of boats and the views were spectacular.

After leaving the Louvre I caught the Metro back to Abbesses and walked to the funicular so I could catch it to the top of Sacre-Coeur. It is a very short ride, but better than walking to the top. I wandered around and took some photographs before coming home. the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur is very photogenic, but I have to confess it does little for me. I am inclined to the view of one Parisian who described it as "a lunatic's confectionery dream." Virginia describes it as a wedding cake gone mad. It derives its name from what the devout believe is Christ's sacred heart in the crypt. If the Basilica itself does not impress, the view over Paris from the front of the building must.

Sacre Ceour