I love Paris in the... Wintertime

Our travels this year focused on cities -- someday it would be nice to come back and just drive through the European countryside. And insofar as we focused on cities, we tried to do five things. First, we wanted to visit some family and friends, like Vicki and Christian in London. Second, we wanted to hit some of the major cosmopolitan capitals. These would also serve as our main windows into European history. To that end, besides London, we had visited Rome by this point. Third, we wanted to see some of the most charming smaller and medium-sized European cities. We had so far visited Zurich and Basel. Fourth, we wanted to explore Spain, especially Andalucia. And so we had visited Granada and Cordoba. Fifth, we wanted to make sure we got over to Morocco, even if just briefly. That would come later.

For our Christmas trip, then, we decided to knock off two more big capitals: Paris and Berlin. And then we also threw into the mix three attractive Belgian cities: Brussels, Bruges, and Antwerp.  Belgium was initially motivated by two thoughts: 1. visiting Abby's great friend and former adviser Frieda in Antwerp and 2. visiting Bruges because my Uncle Ray had told me how much he liked it and recommended the 2008 crime caper In Bruges as an introduction to the city. I watched the movie and thought I'd take up Uncle Ray's advice.

But first stop was Paris. We arrived toward evening on December 23. Flying within the EU is so easy. No passport control, pop right out. I will always remember the very nice person at the airport info desk who was incredibly helpful advising us on Paris travel passes and transportation.

Our AirBnb was on Île Saint-Louis, the island in the middle of the Seine right next to the island where Notre-Dame is:

We are the red marker, and Notre-Dame is in the green rectangle near the middle of the image. So when we walked out our front door and turned right, we quickly encountered this view of the back of the cathedral.

 A quick walk over the first night revealed Christmas lights.

And Charlotte especially noted the statue of Charlemagne.

Ever since Pops decided we might have as an ancestor one of Charlemagne's out-of-wedlock children, she has felt connect to Charlemagne. Two things: first, this shows how helpful a personal connection is for making history come alive; second, just imagine how many people are connected to Charlemagne in a similar way!

The next morning our first stop was The Louvre, and we wanted to be near the front of the line to avoid a long wait. Did we succeed?

It was not quite as dark as this second photo suggests. And the main thing is we were happy listening to an audio guide to the museum as the day brightened up.

     

So, what do people do when they finally get through the doors? They all run straight for the Mona Lisa! We joined the wave, up the stairs past Winged Victory of Samothrace...

...and into the room with the Mona Lisa! So, what do all these excited people do when they get there? They take selfies! We joined the selfie wave as well. Abby seemed the most caught up in the moment, though Cy had already begun his selfies-with-famous-artworks project while in Rome.

We are not proud of this. But we are also not too proud to have taken selfies in the first place.

The painting itself, when you finally stop to look at it, is lovely--but there is a semi-circular barrier front of it, and it is behind a pane of glass. So it was not my favorite thing at the Louvre.

In the same area as the Mona Lisa was an amazing display of old Italian paintings. We we also found our way to see some of the other main pieces. Let me just say: many of the paintings looked painful, or were full of fantastical and weird creatures, which kept my interest.

     

Here is an early version of a superhero flying in:

Breastfeeding was a major theme, which I note only because how prudish people today can be about it.

 

After the Vatican museum, Charlotte especially likes sculpture, and especially sculpture based on Greek and Roman myths. Here are a few pics from our wanderings.

   

More fantastical creatures:

More pain:

Beautiful rooms:

At some point I looked over and Charlotte and Cyrus were deep in conversation:

Maybe they were discussing different periods of art, or maybe they were discussing Steven Universe. Either way nice to seem them just talking. And, truly, they could not have been more gung ho young art enthusiasts, and it is interesting to see them developing different interests. Cyrus has an eye for interesting design elements -- and the bolder the better, it seems -- rather than the historical or mythological context that draws in Charlotte.

I might be more like Charlotte. Perhaps my favorite parts of the Louvre were the ancient civilizations sections, especially the Babylonian bit.

  

 (seriously? looks like a cartoon from Mad Magazine.)

I loved seeing the Code of Hammurabi from 1750BC. Hard to see in the photo but it has an entire legal code carved into it.

Living in Europe this year has increased my appreciation of the interwovenness of cultures. Conquest, trade, exploration, religious zealotry, the arts and sciences -- all these things meant that there was influence not just over time but across great distances in a way that undermines any attempt to say in an essentialist way "this is who we are, or what we do, and that is who you are, and what you do." Just when you think you've got it pinned down, go one step further back.

We finished the Louvre around lunch time, tired but very satisfied. It lives up to its reputation, which is saying something--and even on a second visit. 

(I should also note: the way I've now backed up some photos on Google to make it easier to insert them into the blog quickly means the photos are all at a lower resolution than in most of my earlier posts. But at this point I need speed to finish the blog.)