Art-people overload

Friday, July 6th 2018

Paris, France 

It’s 10am CES and we are slowly getting ready for another full day of Paris. Having knocked out 70% of our to-do list on Day 1, we are looking forward to a leisurely day of wandering the city. We start off at our neighborhood cafe. The sidewalk tables are empty and we take up two little tables by sitting on the same side. Almost immediately our server comes out and tells not to do that. So many rules here. 

Ever since we started planning this trip, we’ve been debating whether or not to go to the Louvre. Around the middle of our second cup, we decide to go. We agree to only spend a few hours and to skip the artifacts and really old art. 

It takes about 30 minutes to get into Louvre. It is very crowded and already a vastly different experience than the Musee d’Orsay. We grab a guide and determine that we should spend our time on the top 2 floors, where the most recent work is located. Almost immediately we run into the Winged Victory of Samothrace. Sarah has to explain to me that it’s from 200 BC and I have to admit that I am pretty impressed. Some people are taking photos, but most are just glancing nonchalantly on their way past. The stage is pretty much set for the rest of the morning. 

We pass by piece after piece of incredibly important paintings and sculptures with little to no fanfare. It’s weird that so many relics are so close together; I feel a great sense of inadequacy on behalf of the US. 

At one point we accidentally wander into Napoleon's apartment. Honestly, I did not know this was here and I am pretty excited about it. We spend almost 30 minutes walking around various rooms covered in red velvet and gold. It’s so decadent and fun in here. 

Eventually we decide to make our way back to the main entrance. It takes almost 20 minutes to get out of the current wing. I swear that we are going in one direction, but we keep circling back to the same spot. This place is too much. 

Around 3pm we are done with Louvre and have successfully navigated out of a completely different door than where we entered. It’s okay though, we’re back outside and I am secretly relieved. We immediately find a cafe to sit and relax. When the server comes I blurt out an order for a Sauvignon Blanc. I was not planning on day drinking during this trip, but the art-people overload has driven me here. Sarah agrees and orders a Cotes du Rhone. Once again we are faced with a menu dominated by sandwiches. We agree to get a few appetizers instead, ultimately resulting in a cheese plate and lox. Now, this is what I envisioned for a cheese plate in France. Everything is excellent and we are appropriately tipsy for 4pm. 

We notice the world cup playing in the background. Today is the quarter-final and France is playing Uruguay. We both hope that France wins. 

After our very late lunch, we we decide to make one more art-related stop at the Musee de l’Orangerie, which I call the museum of Orange Lingerie in my head. On the way there, Sarah suggests that we duck into what looks like a small courtyard and are greeted by a large square of black and white striped columns of all different heights. This is an outdoor installation at the Palais de Tokyo and there is a couple taking wedding photos at the far end. We each take at least 30 pictures of the different columns and each other. I'm still a little wine buzzed and having an awesome time. 

Soon we arrive at Orange Lingerie and I am excited to see what happens next. As we enter there is a small gift shop and some sketches of water lilies. The first room is large, white, round and covered in nearly 365 degrees of Monet’s water lilies. Wow, this is pretty cool. There are a lot of visitors, but the room is almost completely silent and everyone is taking turns approaching the painting for pictures. 

After a while we wonder into the next room, which has the same set up. Sometimes I think that seeing art in person has only marginal value over seeing it in a book, but this work is completely different in person. I am really happy that we came here. 

As we are about to leave, we realize there are a few more galleries downstairs. We take about 30 minutes to walk through several room featuring Matisse, Picasso, and Renoir. There is so much to see here that I feel dumbfounded.     

Now that early evening is settling in, we take a walk over to the Champs Elysees. It’s very crowded and the game is playing in every cafe. This part of town looks very different than our neighborhood. I am happy that we are seeing it, but deep down inside I think it looks a little bit like Downtown Disney. We walk to the end of the avenue and get our obligatory photos of the Arc de Triomphe. Just as we snapping our 3rd round of selfies, the street burst into yelling and the sound of many car horns. The French police have lined the street in such volume that they are almost standing shoulder to shoulder. It looks like France won the game.     

As time progresses the fervor only grows. Herds of drunk guys march around yelling the national anthem; cars drive up and down the avenue relentlessly bearing down on their horns. There are small bursts of blue confetti. 

We walk back to a quieter neighborhood and are not completely sure what to do next. We need to kill two hours or so before dinner and don’t really have anything else on our list. We duck into a small sidewalk cafe / bar to sit and people watch. I have a few rounds of Rosé and Sarah has some beer. We tear through the small plate of peanuts on our table and the server has to refill it three times. Around 7pm we walk back to our hotel to change for dinner. 

For dinner we walk to Le Relais de l’Entrecote. Recommended by Sarah’s parents, this place serves only steak and fries and sounds fantastic. When we arrive there is only a small line. We happily line up and I unconsciously open up my Pokemon Go app. I am able to get onto the city wifi and immediately a Mr. Mime appears. I squeal in joy and immediately shove my phone in Sarah’s face to show her. Mr. Mime is a special Pokemon that can only be caught in Europe. It takes a few attempts but I eventually add Mr. Mime to my Pokedex. This moment just made my day. 

After only a few more minutes we are seated inside. We get a bottle house wine and the server asks how we would like our steak. I say medium-rare and she says that I’ll have it rare. For the next hour we are served endless little pieces of steak, french fries and a green sauce that tastes like nothing I have ever had. I love this place so much. 

After dinner we walk back to the Seine. We sit next to the water and watch groups of teenagers, locals and tourists enjoy the long summer evening. I am starting to understand why people love Paris and hate the Louvre.