October in Paris

There was a burst of sunshine this morning and this time, it stayed with us until evening, when the last swaths of gold, dappled by pink puffs of cloud faded beyond the horizon. A day of brilliance. A day for which we can only be grateful.

These are the last hours that I am with Bee, my Warsaw friend, in Paris. We have a plan alright, but as before, we do not rush into it. Breakfast is first and it's a leisurely breakfast. (As always in France, I consume a lot of breads. Would I do this if I lived here? Would oatmeal be a thing of the past? Does anyone here not have a croissant or chunk of baguette for breakfast?)





We head out. Across the river again!

(Don't let the clouds fool you! They are a tease. Weak and wimpy. They quickly recede.)





We go to the Musee l'Orangeire in the Tuileries Gardens. I understand it's undergoing a renovation, but the important stuff is on full display.

This is the important stuff!





Monet's Waterlilies.





(Is it in the entirety, or in the detail?)






Eight long panels, filling two large rooms.






People come from far and wide to admire them...






You can't start too young...






You're never too old...






If you're not charmed by them, then you're tough! Really tough!






True, there is more to the Museum than just Monet. Here's a canvas with a picture of a spoon. Bee and I are in its reflection!






Alright, we did not take those quite seriously. But other canvases do draw you in.






Immensely.





It's a beautiful way to cap our explorations of the city's art treasures.

As we walk out (into that sunshine!) Bee gently suggests that you cannot visit Paris without taking a walk down the Champs Elysees. I'm a fan of democratic processes, so we brave the commercial nonsense and the tourist onlsaught to walk along this grand boulevard.






I have my 'musts' too: if you're going to photograph this city during your visits, you must include at least one grand view of this iconic tower:





And now it really is lunch time.

Back to the Left Bank. We're close to the Rue Cler Market with its oh so traditional Market Cafe Restaurant. Hey, when in Paris,  shouldn't we do that, which we never do at home?  For us, this means eat red meat!




(a charcuterie platter, followed by steak frittes)





After lunch, Bee suggests we do a selfie with the Eiffel Tower in it.
I say -- I know the perfect place for it! The view of the Tower is splendid!

We walk to this "perfect place" and take the picture. In case you want to know, the Tower is right behind our heads. Selfies are weird that way!






We take a meandering route along the more quiet streets of the city. A pop into a store, or two, or three and finally, in the late afternoon, we're back at the hotel.

We rest for a few minutes. Bee asks if I know that old Russian custom of sitting before travel. I listen as she explains it. (Read about it here.) We sit.

And then I walk Bee to the train station, where she catches the RER commuter train to the airport for her return flight to Warsaw.

(As we walk together for this one last time, we notice the steady stream of people, all heading to the gates of the Luxembourg Gardens.)





It's an incredible day! 68f (20c) with stubborn sunshine! A day that you cannot take for granted. Parisians have, I'm sure, read the forecast. It'll rain all day tomorrow. Why not push the park outing back to this exquisite late October Saturday?

I say good bye to Bee. That's hard. Friends who live nearly 5000 miles apart are keenly aware of how precious and rare time together can be. Three days, fully in each others company, in Paris or anywhere else on this vast planet, does not come easily. We had our time. We are so grateful for it!


She gets on the train, I go up the stairs, alighting in Paris once more, as if I had just come from the airport myself, only I have no suitcase, no backpack even. But I do have my camera. And it's clear that the most incredible Parisian sight on this late afternoon is the tableau before me: a sea of  humanity, out en masse to enjoy the beauty of this grand park on the most sublime autumnal day.






Even then, it's not impossible to find a quiet corner in the park...






Around the pond, the crowds are thick though. And why not? You can only smile when you look up and  see this good use of a beautifully tended public space!






Out on the streets once more, I pop into a few kids stores, I pop out again and I'm astonished to see how dark it is already. Tomorrow at 7 pm it will be pitch black. And wet! Tonight, the skies are ablaze with pink!






Bee and I had eaten an enormous lunch. I know I just want a good salad for dinner. Where to go? Oh, that's easy: Les Editeurs. It's in my neighborhood. It's solid. I have fond memories of dozens of breakfasts here and, too, a memory of several family lunches, to say nothing of my recent dinner there with Sparrow and Snowdrop.

A kir vin blanc, a salad with two or three prawns for good measure, a Badoit mineral water.






And now I am back in my hotel room, wondering if my wee suitcase will close (it always does!), and thinking about how important it is to sometimes make an effort, and how immensely glad I am that Bee made an effort to come to Paris to spend time with me here.