23 - 31 January 2024 With the weather a bit milder we are getting out and about a bit more. We saw quite a range of things over this last days of January. Concert at the Philharmonie de Paris We booked some guided tours in English at a couple of art galleries. The first was the Centre Pompidou, a museum for modern and compempory art. However when we arrived there, we were told that our guide was on strike. I was especially disappointed as I wanted to understand more about modern art and thought this might be a start. However, it wasn't to be on that day, so we decided to do the gallery on our own instead. I have to admit that I didn't understand much of the work after 1970. The Centre Pompidou is an interesting building which is quite different from anything else in Paris. We took the lift up to the fifth floor but had to walk outside to get to the gallery entrance, and we'd already left our coats at the Vestiare. Even though it was milder than before it was fairly chilly. Nice views though, across the roofs of Paris. The other art gallery we visited was the Orangerie, where Monet's famous Water Lilies are installed. There we did have a guided tour in English. I have been twice before but am always happy to go again. It was Howard's first time and he loved it too. Just the perfect sized gallery. The second part of the tour was the Walter-Guillame Collection. Paul Guillame was an art dealer and his widow sold, for a greatly discounted price, his collection to the state, and it is now also housed in the Orangerie. It is a wonderful collection, and the guided tour was very interesting too. Another day we rode up to Saint Denis, just to the North of Paris to visit the Basilica Cathedral of Saint Denis. This church is famous, because it is one of the first and most complete examples of Gothic Architecture, and also because it is the burial place for many of the Kings and Queens of France. We learned of this basilica when reading Ken Follett's Kingsbridge novels and were keen to see it in person. The church is spectacular. And the graves were interesting. Many graves were quite decorative, with statues and decoration, but more recent ones were more sombre and simple, especially those buried after the revolution including Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette who were re-interred here after the restoration. Within a couple of days we also visited another resting place. This time the Pantheon where the great men (and women) of France are interred. The building was originally built as a church for St Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris. We also went to see a classical concert by the Orchestre de Paris, conducted by Klaus Makela, at the Philharmonie de Paris. We took the metro and had a short walk to the concert hall. It was magnificent. The first piece was the french premier of Archora by Anna Thorvaldsdottir, a contemporary Icelandic composer. It seemed to me to have more sound effects than melodie, and was really interesting. The second piece was Frederic Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op 11. The soloist was Daniil Trifonov. After the interval where they removed the piano and moved in a lot more chairs and 2 harps, we had Richard Strauss' A Hero's Life, symphonic poem, op 40. A great and different night out for us. We have also been visiting other neighbourhoods. On day we headed to the 13th to visit a burger restaurant listed as the best in Paris. On the way home we stopped in Place d'Italie, and to see the brand new Rue David Bowie. Another day we headed up to the 20th, stopping at Obekampf on the way, and Jourdain on the way home. Oberkampf Jourdain And of course, I have my camera with me when I am walking around our local streets in the 12th and 4th, including the day we visited the Pavillion Arsenal which has a history of Paris urbanisation.
2 Comments
Janet Case
1/2/2024 09:33:46 pm
More great photos of a great city. I especially like your night photos!
Reply
Johanna Hersey
1/2/2024 10:09:42 pm
I am a big fan of Danii Trifonov!
Reply
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWe are sharing stories about and travels on our barge Moondance. Archives
August 2023
|