Jeudi

Itinerary:

Contrary to our best laid plans, we slept late again.

Walked to the Arc de Triomphe, ate petit dejeuner at a cafe on Avenue de la Grande Armee, next door to the cafe from the previous day.

Rode the Metro to Notre-Dame-des-Champs.

Walked through Luxembourg Gardens, lay down in the sunshine on the grass by the explorers fountain.

Conducted our own Hemingway walk, pulled straight from the pages of A Moveable Feast, down Place de l'Observatoire to Rue de Vaugirard to Luxembourg Museum down Rue Ferou to Place St. Sulpice to Rue de l'Odeon.

Stopped by:
12 Rue de l'Odeon (site of original Shakespeare & Co.)
27 Rue de Fleurus (Gertrude Stein's Paris apartment)
113 Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs (Hemingway's second Paris apartment)
14 Rue de Tilsitt (where Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald lived for a brief time)
74 Rue Cardinal Lemoine (Hemingway's first Paris apartment)
Closerie de Lilas (Hemingway's favorite cafe for a time)

Ate Greek food in the Latin Quarter near Rue Cardinal Lemoine.

Took the Metro to Musee D'Orsay and looked at the Impressionists.

Went back to the hotel to rest and freshen up.

Asked concierge for a seafood restaurant recommendation.

Ate dinner at Le Coq on Kleber.

Walked to the Champs Elysees, bought two chocolate eclairs, a tarte fraise, and a bottle of Moet & Chandon champagne and went back to the hotel room to share our treats.

Notes:

Since Hemingway regularly walked from Rue Cardinal Lemoine to Rue de l'Odeon to visit Sylvia Beach at Shakespeare & Co., I figured that they couldn't've been too far from each other. But, no, in fact, it was several miles. And when we finally reached Rue Cardinal Lemoine, we were faced with an enormous hill.

Maybe it's the jet lag, but I never know when to stop saying "bonjour" and start saying "bonsoir."

The highest number Chad knows in French is 4, quatre, because it's pronounced "cat." He kept asking for me to give him "cat kisses."

Le Jardin du Luxembourg was my favorite spot in all of Paris.

Pictures:

Me at 27 Rue de Fleurus, Gertrude Stein's Paris apartment, which was frequented by some of the best artists and writers of the 20th century.

The Closerie des Lilas, Hemingway's favorite cafe for a time.

A neon sign outside the Closerie des Lilas.

And a statue outside the Closerie des Lilas.

The Explorers Fountain, in the Jardin du Marco Polo, just south of Jardin du Luxembourg.

A shot of Jardin R Cavelier-de-la-Salle, facing north all the way to Luxembourg Palace.

The famous chestnut trees at the Luxembourg Gardens. Hemingway writes about collecting the fallen chestnuts and roasting them in his fireplace at home.

Chad, contemplating a big face at the Luxembourg Gardens.

Overlooking the gardens proper.

I decided that these ducks chose a fantastic place to live.

The gardens just outside the palace.

And a beautiful fountain just outside the palace.

Chad at 74 Rue Cardinal Lemoine, Hemingway's first Paris residence. It's located in the Latin Quarter and is still not a great part of town.

An incredible, enormous painting at Musee D'Orsay. I can't remember the artist or the title, but I stood for a long time in front of it, mostly focusing on what's happening in the bottom left corner.

Some more, you know, famous ones THAT I SAW WITH MY OWN EYES included:

Renoir.

Caillebotte.

Monet.

Van Gogh.

Rodin.

And Manet, my favorite work in the whole museum.

The interior of Musee D'Orsay. While we were there, I remarked that it looks like a train station. It wasn't until we got back that we learned that it was, in fact, a large train station at one time, Gare D'Orsay. I guess that'd explain the clock.

The exterior of Musee D'Orsay.