A Day at the Louvre

After 4 months in Paris we finally got to the Louvre.  For 8 hours - and still did not see all of it.  It was John's first visit since 1978, so a few things had changed... 

But Mona was still there...

Most interesting thing we saw - the brass candlestick hammered from a single piece of copper, with hundreds of designs hammered from the inside out.  See the pix.

Paris Trivia

1. There are toilets at the top of the Arc de Triumph.

2. There are no working elevators to the top of the Arc de Triumph

3. There are about a million steps to the top of the Arc de Triumph (actually 197 in the main spiral staircase and about 50 more in the last two sets of stairs to the top).

4. The view is a wow.

Arrival in NYC

Pix coming into New York Harbor at dawn on Tuesday.  Freedom Tower with lit up Chrysler Building on far right. Statue of Liberty is always awe-inspiring.  Passengers were speaking in whispers as we passed her.  

Shipboard Life

Life in mid-Atlantic aboard QM2.  Formal nights are fun followed by floor show and dancing.  There are some GOOD dancers on this ship!  

Afternoon tea at sea

3:30 pm is tea time aboard QM2. One quickly realizes just how civilized this custom is...

Sunny October days at sea

 Last day aboard on Monday 14th and a sunny October afternoon being taken advantage of by the passengers on the Promenade Deck.  New York tomorrow and on to Virginia.

All aboard QM2

Aboard QM2 with Joanna & Ron Clark, heading back to NYC and Virginia.  (We brought our French books!) Pix is Madame in the Golden Lion Pub aboard and waving farewell as we left the dock.

London

In London with inlaws Joanna & Ron.  Went to the Old Vic tonite to see James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave in Much Ado About Nothing.

La rue sous la pluie

One of the things we most love about living in Paris is sitting in a cafe and watching the people.  But we love sitting in a cafe watching the rain too! Pix from a recent rainy afternoon and evening.  

The melody of the subject line is another reason I love French!

Versailles

Got to Versailles Friday with bro and sis in law Ron and Joanna Clark.  A great day.  Pix are the Hall of Mirrors, front of the palace and on the lane to the Trianon palaces. 

Sunset in Paris

Sunset from the Pont Neuf with the Eiffel Tower and the Dome of the Institute de France in the background.

Neat windows in Paris

These are displays in two windows in Paris. Loved the zebra...tres imaginative!

The bakery is in our neighborhood.