Epic Honeymoon - Day 37 - Paris

No time to rest today, because we have museums to get to! Let the record show that the next time I go to Paris, I won’t go to a single museum – I’m just going to drink coffee and eat tasty Parisian food! But no… that’s not to say that the museums are bad… just that it is possible to become “museumed-out”. But we hadn’t quite reached this point by this stage of our epic journey, so we will press on! First stop was the Parisian museum which needs no introduction (but I will introduce it anyway)… The Louvre.

The dedication to detail in curly hair and beards is quite astounding.

You could easily spend days, or weeks, exploring through this gigantic phenomenon. The Louvre holds sculptures and artworks from across the globe, from many different time periods stretching from ancient Greece and Middle East through until modern-day America and Britain.

Some halls are plain...

...and some are ridiculously ornate.

Of course, there are one or two pieces that everybody goes there to see, with number one being the infamous Mona Lisa. Anyone that has already seen it will likely tell you one thing: it’s fricken tiny. If you were expecting some huge portrait, prepare to be disappointed. But even more disappointing is that it will be constantly surrounded by a crowd, all with cellphones and cameras raised – nobody just stands back and appreciates it. But you can’t really get close enough to do so, anyway. Of course, being 6’3” or thereabouts means I’m not too bothered by the annoying crowd; I just stand at the back and lift my own phone or camera up to snap a shot!

"Alright everyone. Cells phones out."

Perhaps her infamous look is her attitude to constantly staring at cell phones?

The Louvre is really a bit of a “choose-your-own-adventure”, with regards to what you can see and where you can go. We spent a good few hours wandering through most of the major areas, and tried to locate a few of the notable items marked on the map (with varying success). It’s definitely a must-see at least once in your life, even if you’re not a big art fan.

And here I was thinking the beards were intricate; check out this marble lace!

"Mmm, gummy Venus de Milo..."

Heading back out to the world.

From there, we moved along to Musee D’Orsay, which is about 10 minutes’ walk, across the Seine to the south. This one hosts a bit more of an eclectic collection, but is also surprisingly big. It doesn’t look like much at first, as you browse through the ground floor of statues and paintings. But then you realise there are many little side rooms, and several other levels to explore.

A wide variety of styles; this one is apparently quite famous in Taiwan.

The style of pieces varies quite widely from room to room, and I certainly saw a few pieces that I enjoyed simply due to how different they were to others.

The difference in painting style was quite evident in this piece.

Right up the top, you can delve into Impressionist territory – there’s also some Art Nouveau on display if you feel like getting a little bit weird! There are several Monet paintings, including of course the iconic bridge over the water in his garden.

And then, of course, you have the classic styles.

We had planned to visit the actual Monet garden.

Back downstairs, there are a couple of rooms dedicated to Van Gogh which I found quite interesting. I never knew much about him, so it was interesting to read up on some of his life story as we progressed through his work.

After D’Orsay, we aimed for one more stop before closing time set in, heading for Musee Rodin. We arrived less than an hour before the gates closed, so we didn’t really get a detailed visit in, but we did have a very pleasant wander through the gardens which are home to some of his more famous statues. This, of course, includes Le Penseur, a.k.a The Thinker. Why this fella is buck naked while he is contemplating the world, I don’t know, but it’s probably one of my favourite sculptures.

The Thinker, A.K.A. "went to the toilet and forgot my cellphone".

This fella was standing naked in the garden.

Not a bad backyard.

Take a trip to see Louis and Marie on Day 38!