MARI: Very cool to see the Glass Pyramid when we entered this grandiose courtyard: all cobblestoned and surrounded on all sides by towering long buildings each festooned with decorative windows, historic statues and various embellishments of cherubs, winged angels and stone drapery. And, of course, what would a courtyard be withouts a grand hero astride his faithful stallion.
Once inside we were in an amazing crowd of people--all countries and races were represented, as well as the very young to the very old. People in general were hushed and respectful once we reached the paintings.
BRUCE: After buying a guidebook, we headed towards the Mona Lisa. After climbing a number of stairs, we viewed the famous Winged Victory statue, which dominated the landing at the top of the first floor. By the way, there are four floors covering all centuries and more than 12 miles. As expected, as we reached the Mona Lisa, the crowds pushed close to view the famous picture which is about the size of a large, framed poster. It is truly beautiful, but the people straining to see it, made the viewing experience quite stressful. One lady shoved me from behind and even used a knuckle to bore into my back. I spoke to her harshly, and she seemed chastened.
All the famous works of art we saw today were inspiring to be in their presence. There were a number of benches in each wing, so we could sit, rest, and people watch, while looking at the artwork above and around you. Some other works we saw were Athena, Venus de Milo, more DaVinci artwork, mostly religious, also the Greek gods: Hercules, Pan, Mercury and Psyche, as well as Mercury alone. And famous paintings by Raphael, Gaughin, Goya, El Greco... Some of the paintings were enormous almost covering the entire wall. I got tired of the idealistic images of cherubic babies, angels and biblical images and favored the realistic art and sculpture. The Greek sculpture was housed in rooms with Marble Walls.
How many Art museums could fit into this enormous museum. What an assault on the senses. I was left with a couple of impressions: one is that it is difficult to appreciate the beauty and technique you are witnessing with so many people around you, and two, I think Chicago's Art Institute is still a marvelous place to view original works.
MARI: When we entered the museum, we had to go down several flights of stairs and then we had to pick from an array of staircases which led to different galleries. We wished to get to the Mona Lisa before the area became too crowded. All we had to do was follow the crowd, as most were there to see the famous lady.
A crowd stopped on the staircase, and as we looked up we saw the awesome sculpture of winged victory. We were able to spend time with this fabulous figure by walking around her and looking at her from a 360 degree perspective. Truly inspiring.
The Mona Lisa is behind glass all alone on one wall. Even though it was not yet eleven a.m. there was a pushing and shoving crowd around the world famous painting. I was disappointed that crowd control was not better, as I wished for several minutes to inspect and enjoy viewing the famous painting by DaVinci. We saw a vast array of paintings, some very dark, some vibrant with color. It is difficult to concentrate on viewing because of the massive sensory overload: huge crowds of people everywhere we went and so many paintings it was difficult to appreciate the beauty of each one. One that we had walked by in a rush to see the Mona Lisa surprised us. When we slowed down we saw the grandeur, detail and amazing depth and perspective of the artist Giovanni Paulo Pannini. . During our time in the Renaissance Gallelry, Bruce discovered that by sitting down we could appreciate each gallery much more.
The Ancient Greek sculptures were so different than those of Rodin. Each person was depicted with normal (but idealized) physical structure and the faces were quite individual. I enjoyed the various depictions of Athena, which ranged from feminine to masculine and foreboding. Now I need to read up on my Greek Mythology.
BRUCE: We left the Louvre in the late afternoon for Lunch in the Latin Quarter. We had to cross the Seine to reach a bustling district of shops, restaurants, and novelty stands. After lunch, we returned to the Right Bank, just south of the Louvre where we visited enormous gardens of Tuillieres. We rested with a view of the fountain and found a cafe for dessert. Bruce had a huge banana split and Mari had here long-awaited apricot and lemon sorbet. Tips are normally included in the bill, but Bruce thought the waiter was very good, so he gave him another 5 Euros.
What is so nice about the fountains is that there are green chairs spread all around them and around the gardens for viewing. The chairs are movable, not bolted down. Somehow, nobody steals them in Paris. Unfortunately this does not happen in the U.S. Most gratifying is that everywhere we go, the grounds, walkways, etc., seem clean.
We has a romantic stroll down the Place du Concorde as the night began to fall.
MARI:
On the side of the Tuillieres is an amusement park. On my walk back up the hill, I noticed a ball with people in it attached to two elastic bands being bounced up into the sky and down. It looked like a lot like bungee jumping but more secure. Walking closer, I found the ball unused and noticed there were two seats in the ball. A sign said that there would positively be no refunds if you paid the 20E for the ride. Tempting, but I decided not to bite.
We found a really cute outdoor cafe that served dessert, so each of us ordered one. Bruce's banana split (of course I had to have one bite) was delicious. Of my apricot and lemon sorbet, I preferred the lemon.
A perfect end, to a wonderful day, we walked back as dusk fell, satisfied and a bit weary.
No comments:
Post a Comment