The Phillips arrive in Paris

Thursday and Friday, April 10 and 11, 2014
Jilayne, Rob, Madison and Jocelyn arrived in Paris at 7:30 Thursday morning. We took the train from Paris to the airport to pick them up and took them back to our apartment by train. Our apartment is on the River Seine. We can see Notre Dame Cathedral about a quarter mile upstream. As rustic as our apartment in Apt was, this one is modern. It is filled with art work, much of it small statuary. By Rob's count there are almost 20 of the statues that are nudes. Madi and Jocey are more impressed with the small replica of Rodin's The Thinker, which is actually a skeleton. We may need to inspect Madi's bags when we leave to make sure she has not packed it. While the Phillips unpacked and napped we went exploring our new neighborhood specifically looking for a grocery store to lay in some basic supplies. We are very pleased with our location. It is a short walk to the Place St. Michel where we can catch either a bus or the Metro, Paris' subway. In the other direction it is a short walk to a vibrant neighborhood nestled between the Blvd. St. Germain and the Seine. This neighborhood has a wide choice of cafes and restaurants, several interesting art galleries and several markets and grocery stores.
In the afternoon we all traveled by bus to Montmartre. Montmartre is a neighborhood of Paris that sits on a hill overlooking the rest of the city. It has long been the home of artists including Picasso and Toulouse Letrec. At the very top of the hill sits the Basilique de Sacre Couer, the church of the Sacred Heart. It was built in the late 1800's during a time of increased growth in the Protestant churches to show that the Catholic Church still dominates Paris both literally and figuratively. Its architecture is totally different then the great cathedrals of Europe built during the early part of the last millennium. One of the domes is even an onion dome of sorts. It is very traditional on the inside and beautiful. At any time of the day there will be hundreds of people gathered, sitting on the steps enjoying the stunning view from the front of the church of Paris at your feet. There is a small plaza a block or two from Sacre Couer with many restaurants and souvenir shops and lots of struggling artists anxious to sketch your portrait. It is a fun place to visit.
Friday morning Lynda woke up with an awful cough and a sore throat which she probably caught from the Johnson's while we were in Provence. She stayed in bed while the rest of the family ventured out. She did instruct Tim before we left to keep her informed through text messages as to what we were doing. We were able to catch a bus right outside our door that took us directly to the Musee D'Orsay. Originally a train station, the shell of the building was retained and the interior was remodeled to house one of the many outstanding art exhibits in Paris. We like this museum because the building itself is as much a part of the art as the works themselves. The art spans all of the different periods of art. We have always been partial to the impressionists so that is where Tim headed with Jocey and Madi joining him. It is a standing joke with us that when we see a piece of art in a museum that we are particularly taken with, Tim will ask Lynda to create a diversion while he steals the painting. This time Jocey created the diversion when Tim saw a Pissaro of special interest.
The five of us met up at the agreed upon time and took a bus to the Champs Eylsees, the most famous boulevard in Paris, if not all of Europe. The Champs, as we Parisians say, is anchored at one end by the Arc de Triomphe and the other by the Place de la Concorde. Most of you have undoubtedly seen the famous photograph of the German army marching through the Arc de Triomphe down the Champs Elysees when Germany first captured Paris during World War II. We ate at an outdoor cafe on the Champs in brilliant sunshine and luxuriated in the Parisian atmosphere. After lunch we strolled up the Champs to the Arc de Triomphe. It took us several visits to Paris before we finally found the underground passageway to the base of the Arc. The Arc sits in the middle of a roundabout with 8 lanes of traffic and 12 different streets feeding into this circle making it impossible to cross to the Arc on the surface. Once you reach the Arc you are able to either climb or take an elevator to the top where you have a commanding view looking down the Champs Elysees as well as great views of the Eiffel Tower and Sacre Couer. The Phillips were unanimous in naming the Arc de Triomphe their favorite site so far.
Madi and Jocey have been quick to remind us that this is there Spring Vacation from school and with the remnants of jet lag still affecting all the Phillips we went back to the apartment for naps. In the evening Lynda felt well enough to join us as we strolled through the St. Germain neighborhood and enjoyed a delightful dinner at an Italian cafe. After dinner Rob and Jil took the girls back to the apartment and then joined us as we sat at a sidewalk cafe, sipping a pastis and watching the interesting parade of people walking by.Thursday and Friday, April 10 and 11, 2014