Fountains and Cafes just in front of the Sorbonne and around the corner from our flat. I had a lovely time eating my "Panini Napoli" here for lunch, watching the crowd pass by.
The same fountains as the previous photo, looking down the little street heading to our flat (6 Rue Victor Cousin).
Same as the last photo, but with more of the Sorbonne in view.
Standing in the courtyard looking up at the balcony of our flat (4th floor).
Looking straight out from our balcony.
Looking down into the courtyard from the flat.
Inside "Le Fournil" - the friendliest little creperie in Paris. Just my opinion of course, but this was my favorite place to stop by for a panini and dessert crepe. It also happened to be about 45 seconds from our flat, and then about 45 more seconds to the Luxembourg Gardens.
My first jaunt into "Jardin de Luxembourg".
A statue in the gardens. He looks very thoughtful!
Palais de Luxembourg.
A view of the Gardens.
More of the Palais de Luxembourg.
Still walking through the Gardens (they're very big!!).
A full view of the Palais de Luxembourg (which was apparently built in Italian style for a king's mother...who was later banished from France).
The Big Head. I have no idea why this is here. But it does tend to catch the eye.
A cute little plant sculpture in the kid's part of the Gardens.
Beautiful fountain, with a bust of Delacroix, the French Romantic artist.
Another view of the Delacroix fountain.
Isn't it a beautiful day?
I really enjoyed spending time in the Gardens during the week, when the only other people there were eating their lunches or strolling with babies.
The famous little sailboats on a pond in front of the Palais de Luxembourg.
Fountain and sailboats.
I sat and read here for a little while, listening to the fountain behind me. Jon was busy at the Acoustics Conference.
A closer view of the fountain in the previous picture. It's in kind of a secluded area of the Luxembourg Gardens.
This fountain is apparently renowned for the optical illusion seen here, where the water looks like it's sloping downhill.
Jon joined me here on another excursion, and decided to record my presence.
So I returned the favor. I love the incredulous expression on Jon's face in this photo - it's a perfect reflection of my feelings about the crazy legs-in-a-cup sculpture.
I walked past this street from our flat several times, heading to the RER station, before I looked up and realized the Pantheon was there.
Yes, even Paris has McDonald's. And, yes, Jon ate there once.
The Pantheon, claimed by the French Revolution to honor the fallen heroes of the Revolution. Originally built as a shrine to St. Genevieve. If you want to read an interesting story, do a search on the rogue group that fixed the clock in the Pantheon.
The square around the Pantheon has a lot of pretty buildings.
Here's another view from in front of the Pantheon.
And another pretty church.
Here's the sign in front of the church. Break out the French-English dictionary if you want to learn more.
This is the true "front" of the Palais de Luxembourg, which now serves as a museum and as the Senate House.
A broader view of the front of the Luxembourg Palace.
The School of Medicine.
Continuing along the Rue d'Ecoles. (Street of Schools)
Jon sporting his handsome suit, getting ready to celebrate the completion of his presentation at the Acoustics Conference.
The menu (carte) of the restaurant we ate at to celebrate. Fantastic salmon, and the creme brulee was amazing.
On the street in front of the restaurant...yes, that's the Arc de Triomphe behind me.
Less me, more Arc de Triomphe.
I promised to take a picture of Jon in his suit - here it is!
Parallel parking in Paris is something else. To get out of a spot, you pretty much have to push the cars you're wedged between. Apparently this mini cooper owner thought his car needed a little bit more protection.
Close enough for you?
A very creative beggar. (He has a friend he comes over to collect money from anyone who stops to take a picture).
I don't remember what this building is, but it was very ornate!
The River Seine, dividing the city in half.
Across the river, you can see the Statue of St. Michel.
Notre Dame. The cathedral is so distinctive, we could pick it out from any of the high places in Paris.
Jon in front of Notre Dame.
All of the metro and train stations have their own distinctive flair, for better or worse. This one had pretty (glass?) murals on the ceiling.
Here comes the metro to take us to the Louvre on Sunday morning.
What's he thinking about? Sitting on the metro.
I always get a kink in my neck walking around in old buildings in Paris.
Inside the Louvre, Greek Mythology section.
More beautiful ceilings.
This is just a close-up of one small detail of the ceiling.
And one more view of the ceiling. Ok, so there are more coming. But this is the last one for now.
I keep meaning to look up the reason for this, but notice that baby Jesus in this painting is holding up two fingers. This was the same in all of the Italian and Spanish religious paintings we saw in the Louvre.
Can you spot the Mona Lisa?
Jon and I both remembered this painting from our last visit to the Louvre, 10 years ago. You can't quite get all of the details from this photograph, but it actually tells the story from Jesus' birth to His ascension.
Mary presenting Jesus at the Temple.
Look in the bottom center of this painting. Jon and I loved the detail of the two little critters staring cautiously at each other. I guess having tiny dogs as pampered pets is not a new phenomenon.
This trifecta of Italian paintings was very striking.
A description of the previous trifecta.
The coronation of Napoleon's queen.
Another angle of the coronation scene.
Time to look up again!
"La Jeune Martyre" (The Young Martyr) - one of my favorite paintings.
I just love this guy's saddle pad. I need one of those.
Under the glass pyramid in the main entry of the Louvre.
Looking out of a window into the inner courtyard of the Louvre.
Now that could hold a large bouquet.
The immense size of these paintings is bewildering.
Some more perspective on size.
We ran across a tiny side alcove with a display of old scientific instruments - very interesting! Getting lost isn't always a bad thing.
Some more old instruments.
These instruments make the ones in the previous photos seem brand-new and cutting edge! Part of the Ancient Egyptian exhibit.
I took these photographs just for Amancia - from what I've heard, she can tell you precisely how each one was used, and give a thorough lesson on mummification.
It's hard to imagine how old some of these relics are.
The mysterious and wise Sphinx.
Remnants of the medieval Louvre.
A model of the Louvre during the Middle Ages.
Jon holding an ice cream "flower" from the Amarino (note the Pantheon in the background).
I can barely stand to look at this picture. The ice cream was so delicious!
A beautiful mosque in Paris.
A closer view of the tower.
Walking around Paris, you run across a lot of old statues and artwork.
A small hedge maze in the Jardin des Plantes. Which translates to "Garden of Plants." They were running short on creative names, I suppose.
Looking down from the center of the maze.
Another view in the Plant Garden. (It was actually named the Garden of Plants because it started out as the herb garden for the School of Medicine).
After a brief excursion in the Plant Garden, we strolled along the Seine River and enjoyed the bridges.
One of the four shiny towers of the French National Library.
A view from the steps below the museum.
On the wooden steps, looking down at the Seine River.
Is that a sign from above, telling us to head home???
Several of the moored boats along the Seine serve as cafes, stores, or anchors for open-air dance clubs ("ginguettes").
The crowd in front of the well-known "Light House" dance club.
Standing on the newest bridge in Paris. Notice the grass-covered building in the background.
The rectangular building on the water is an athletic center, with a swimming pool that uses treated water from the Seine River running through it.
A view of the new pedestrian bridge leading to Parc Monceau.
More me, less bridge.
Ahoy! A pirate ship!
A pretty view of the sun shining down on the river.
More of the pedestrian bridge.
Is that a delivery truck for gnomes?
The remnants of an ancient Roman arena, over 2000 years old. Only about 2/3 of the seating still exists, but it would have once held 20,000 spectators (the entire population of the city during that era).
Taking a break from our marathon walk through the Left Bank of Paris (we walked at least 10 miles that day!).
A statue near the Arena.
The cages on the Arena floor held wild animals to be released into a fight. There are also ducts to allow the flooding of the arena with water from the Seine.
Now the Arena is used for less bloody games! (I think they're playing Bocce).
Standing near one of the gates of the Arena.
A plaque describing the Arena.
I thought this staircase was rather pretty.
The beautiful white dome of the Sacre Coeur.
Looking down the crowded alley on Montmartre, the highest hill in Paris. We walked up this road from the Metro stop to Sacre Coeur.
A view across the city.
Can you find the Eiffel Tower in this photo?
There it is!
Jon, now in casual dress.
We ran into a rainstorm heading out of Sacre Coeur, and ducked into this little cafe. The coffee and "chocolat chaud" were delicious! Just like getting lost, gettting rained on is sometimes a blessing in disguise!
"La Maison Rose", the cafe that sheltered us from the rain.
Au Lapin Agile (Fast Rabbit) - apparently named as a joke when the artist who painted their sign depicted a rabbit jumping out of a cookpot.
Montmartre used to be a hill covered in vineyards. This last little vineyard is symbolic of the district's past, and one can purchase wine from the vineyard for about 50 euros/bottle.
Another view of the vineyard.
Along with vineyards, windmills (used for irrigating the plants) used to cover the hill. This is one of the last that still stands, and houses a restaurant.
I don't remember the name of the chapel, but we ducked into another beautiful old church and snapped this photo.
The (in?)famous Moulin Rouge.
Another view of the bright red windmill that marks the most famous cabaret in Paris.
A sign for the Metro. Time to give our feet a break and hitch a ride back to our flat!
The Iron Maiden.
Jon's take on the Eiffel Tower - a little crooked!
Quite a large crowd can fit under the base of the Tower.
Each "leg" contains an elevator to take tourists up to the viewing platforms.
It's hard to capture the impressive size of the Eiffel Tower
...but we kept trying.
We have a painting of the Eiffel Tower from this perspective, so we couldn't resist taking a picture to match!
Imitation is the greatest flattery??
A kind tourist snapped this shot of both of us standing in front of the Eiffel Tower.
Jon's turn to pose!
And just one more...
An interesting facade we passed on one of our many walks.
Jon in front of the columns of the Pantheon, our last day in Paris.
Looking up at the front wall of the Pantheon.
Foucalt's pendulum.
A closer view of the pendulum, marking the time and proving the rotation of the earth.
The pendulum hangs a few hundred feet, attached to the highest part of the Pantheon's dome.
One of the many statues honoring the heroes of the French Revolution.
A description of Foucalt's pendulum. In retrospect, perhaps we should have taken a picture of the English version.
The Crypt in the basement of the Pantheon. This room houses the bodies of Victor Hugo and Alexander Dumas.
Wall murals depict the life of St. Genevieve.
Joan of Arc also has her life story painted along the Pantheon's walls.
Waiting for the next tour of the upper reaches of the Pantheon.
Still waiting...
Finally, we're on the first upper level of the Pantheon, getting a closer view of the ceiling.
Looking down...
And looking up again...
Straight across this time.
There are some spectacular views of Paris from the walkways around the Pantheon's dome.
A closer look at the dome.
Looking down at the entryway to the Pantheon.
Time for another ceiling shot! We're up one more level, back inside the Pantheon.
I caught a smile!
Outside again, on the highest walkway of the Pantheon.
Not a place for those afraid of heights.
The green hill on the horizon is Montmartre, with Sacre Coeur at the pinnacle.
Notre Dame.
There she is again! The Eiffel Tower dominates the cityscape.
Jon looking across the city, picking out where we've walked.
You can almost see our apartment from here!
The four towers of the French National Library.
They named a car after me! How nice!
Interesting pizza delivery vehicles...
And, finally, one of the many beautiful stained glass windows we admired in the chapels and cathedrals of Paris.
