Category: Travel

It’s almost Tuesday and I haven’t had the time to write for a few days. Here’s a recap:

Saturday we visited the country home of Sir John Soanes, known as one of the greatest English architects ( think Bank of England). Some of you may have visited his museum / home in London, but there’s also another home that was very important to him. He longed to get away from the pressures of the city and found a place in the country called Pitzhanger Manor, where he could spend more time with his family. He had two sons, whom he hoped would follow in his footsteps as architects, but neither did: one turned out to be quite sickly and the other was a party animal. Sadly, he sold the home and lived full time in the city but the building is now being brought back to its former glory with the help of preservationists.

The building has become a gallery space and joins Walpole Park in Ealing.

That evening we ate at a nearby Italian restaurant and met two sisters from Sweden. We had quite a lively conversation

Sunday was our leaving day but we had time for a quick excursion. We decided to visit nearby Kensington Palace.

The visit was divided between the following: the Queen’s State Apartments, the King’s State Apartments, Victoria, a royal childhood and Life Through a Royal Lens. All were fascinating. I especially enjoyed the photo exhibits of the royal families, through the ages, especially the current one. Victoria’s doll house was intricate and it was fun to play pretend cards in one of the salons Can you imagine wearing those outfits, especially before modern plumbing?

This last photo was chosen by the Queen herself to share with the public, as shes always been an avid photographer.

Our lasr stop? Dessert!

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee seemed like the appropriate time to indulge in this tasty morsel called Victoria sponge cake, with blueberry frosting.

We raced back to the hotel, got our bags, got a taxi and were off to the airport!! Actually, we took the taxi to Paddington station to catch the Heathrow Express train to the airport.

Our flight to Casablanca was for 6:15. We entered an almost empty terminal 4, had a celebratory libation, and got on the plane. After we landed, we were greeted by Samir, who arranged a driver for us . We are joining the pre-tour of the Overseas Adventure Tours Moroccan Sahara Odyssey , staying overnight in Casablanca. We got on the road this morning to the blue city of Chefchouan

We’ve been on the road most of the day and saw dramatic changes in culture. We arrived late afternoon Our guest house, called a riad, is gorgeous Check out the view from my room. We’ll be here three nights. We did an orientation tour and had dinner in the center of town.

More to come!

I can report that we had a good night’s sleep. I woke at 3:00 AM Friday morning but the next thing I knew it was 7:30. I finished the post and we had breakfast, then had a bit of free time to relax . Ann did Wordle in two tries! I didn’t know she also played the game. I worked on the New York Times spelling bee.

I’m so fortunate that Ann decided to join me and that we decided to meet in London, because she lived here during and after her university years and knows the city well. She looked up the bus map and was able to direct us to the best way to get there. We only had a short walk to catch the bus for our 11:45 Royal Tour.

We were to start at the Queen’s Gallery, then go to the Royal Mews and finish up with a visit the State Rooms inside Buckingham Palace. As in Paris, we were able to ” jump the queue” because she brought her walking stick, which, as it turned out, was very convenient for our sightseeing..

But the best laid plans…you know the quote. We didn’t account for the 11:00 military parade or the crowds of tourists when we arrived there!

We mingled among the crowd of tourists to find the ticket office, where we picked up our tickets and began our visit to the Queen’s Gallery. We thought that the selection would include pictures from the Royal Collection, but were surprised to discover that there was a special exhibition about the culture of Japan. We were given free audio headsets with commentary and went on our way.

The exhibition dealt with the arts of Japan but also showed the relationship between Japan and the UK over the years. We were allowed to take photographs in this exhibition.

Our second stop was to the Royal Mews, where we saw the Royal Stables, harnassing rooms, and a wonderful collection of carriages. The crystal coach, made in Australia, was a sight to behold, and the coronation carriage was over the top in terms of size and opulence.

Our last visit was to the state rooms inside Buckingham Palace. No photography was allowed.

The massive structure and opulence of the building, designed by John Nash, is difficult to imagine unless you’ve been there to experience it in person. The fact that there is actually a family living there adds to the experience , as the viewer can see that it is not merely a historical monument but a family home and state house, where activities such as garden parties, visits of dignitaries and entertaining others goes on.

The tour ended outside in the garden and we immediately stopped by the cafe for tea for Ann, a sparkling lemon drink for me and cakes for both of us .Touring can be tiring.

The exit from the palace to the real world of contemporary London took us through Buckingham Palace gardens, where we admired the flora, fauna and water features.

We found a bus that returned us to our neighborhood and hunger overtook us The charming Italian restaurant owner beckoned and we checked the menu. We couldn’t refuse. I had lamb shanks, Ann had sardines, and we split a tiramisu.

We talked about our day and chuckled about the items at the gift shops, which were at all three venues, of course. The merchandising was clever, tasteful , and not cheap. Proceeds from the sales at the gift shops help to maintain and preserve the palace.

Tomorrow? We’re not sure. Perhaps a museum? We also have to prepare for our next journey. We’re flying away to our next destination Sunday.

I started today at 6:30 AM CA time and I’m ending it at 10:30 PM. Tomorrow is September 2 What’s wrong with this picture? I’m in London

I was driven to the airport by my local driver Larry who said it would take an hour. Rush hour and school traffic made me doubt his word but Larry knew the short cuts to the Bay Bridge and on the freeway, I felt as if I were on the Indy 500 race track I closed my eyes, crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. We left at 8:30 and pulled up to the International Terminal at 9:35! I was amazed that I wasn’t road kill and also realized that this was the beginning of possibly more drama. Travel days are exhausting.

SFO International terminal was quiet. I’d already checked in online and uploaded my passport so a friendly United employee got my boarding pass and tagged my bag. Security took five minutes.I chilled out at the United Club lounge and had a sandwich, grapes, chips and a mimosa. Boarding was swift and efficient.

New United aircraft have a small section called Premier Plus. It’s not nearly as nice as business class but there’s quite a bit more legroom and its own excellent cuisine. Yes, I was pleasantly surprised too. We sailed smoothly through the air as I finished my airplane novel and watched several episodes of Hacks, a Jean Smart series from HBO Plus. We landed early.

Went through passport control quickly after our long hike from the plane. The plane landed at 6:30 AM By 7:45 I got into the Heathrow Express train and by 8:00 I was meeting Ann at Paddington station. we walk to the hotel. She’d arrived the day before from Cornwall. after putting my bags in the room, we went to our hotel breakfast, then I got organized in the room while she took a walk.

We’re staying in Kensington so it made sense to see the gardens, which were close to our hotel at Lancaster Gate. We explored the gardens most of the afternoon and enjoyed perfect mid 70 degree walking weather.

Yes, it’s Peter Pan, who now will speak, thanks to a QR code that’s displayed on the fence. Brilliant!

We had a break to see the Serpentine Gallery, get some light refreshments, then wend our way back to the hotel.

We rested a bit, then decided to drop by the neighborhood pub for dinner.

This neighborhood pub, the Mitre, around the corner from the church, was quite lively though we managed to find a spot in a quiet room, away from the crowds.

It’s taken me hours to get this post written, because of slow internet and wonky photo delivery. Many photos were upside down or sideways I quit at midnight and am finishing up before breakfast. It’s now Friday September 2.

Today we visit Buckingham Palace for a royal day out. Unfortunately the Queen is in Scotland but we will no doubt find interesting company.

To be continued.

As I’m sure you remember, I waited for my flight to Paris at an empty international terminal at San Francisco International.

I arrived, three hours early, at Charles DeGaulle International, with all my documents preloaded to Air France the night before. I had my ReadyToFly Sky Priority boarding pass, which I would print out at the airport, as usual. My lovely and courteous driver was on time, there was no traffic and I had visions of lingering over a macaron and a cup of tea or decaf while waiting for my flight.

My dream ended and the nightmare began as I entered the airport.

It was chaos.

We were stopped at the door. What was needed? My passe sanitaire? I pulled it out. Non. My Covid negative test result? Non. My boarding pass! I didn’t have a paper copy but there was a picture on my phone.

Get out phone. Show it to the attendant. I’m in.

I found AIR FRANCE and the computers, where I printed out my boarding pass with READY2FLY and SKY PRIORITY listed on it and my luggage tag. I was at an empty section 5. I rolled my suitcases over to an attendant, who put the luggage tag on, looked carefully at my boarding pass, and pointed toward a large group of people at section 10. I got in line. This is the baggage dropoff line.

After a few minutes I noticed a section called LA PREMIERE for first class passrngers and thought there might be a priority line. There was an attendant. She examined my pass. Non. Back in line, but now the line was longer. I chatted with a nice young couple behind me who were also on our flight. He’s French, she’s Romanian, they met working at a ski resort on the French Alps. They explained that the reason the airport was so crowded was because as of November 7 Europeans were allowed to fly to the US. Everyone wanted to go to the US!

It took 45 minutes to get through the baggage dropoff line. Before we were allowed to put our luggage on the ramp and self check them, we had to speak to an Air France person, who examined our passport, boarding pass and Covid test. Many people were fumbling with all the papers, which we had to put away before we checked our bags, of course. No one helped us when we used the scanning tool to check our bags in but it wasn’t that difficult.

Now to boarding!

I was getting worried. There was a huge throng of people heading toward the boarding area, where passports had to be checked and stamped. I was surrounded by people. I kept walking and walking, looking for Sky Priority. It was nowhere to be found. I discreetly cut in the long line. The lady was cooperative so that was good. I waited and waited. No movement. I looked ahead. I could barely see the PASSPORT sign, where we would be checked. I’ll never make it.
The line didn’t seem to move.

Tick tock.

I was sweating. I could feel the stress. So did others. People started fighting. There was not ONE Air France person to come along to answer questions. The security guards were bullies. People were fighting and screaming in line. Everyone started watching when a client and security guard went head to head.

All of a sudden, when I got to a corner of the line, I saw a sign – literally – that said PRIORITY. I unhooked the little barrier, stepped over the line, and got in the PRIORITY line. I was through passport control in three minutes.

But I was still late. The doors were supposed to be closed by now. I raced. Had to take a people mover to go from K to M. I waited. It came. I got off at M.

Then I had to go through security.

There was a long line. A fellow in front of me said he was sure that they would be holding the planes because there were so many people who couldn’t get to their flights. I hoped so but was still nervous.

I put my carry on bag on the conveyor belt, my coat with documents in one tray and iPad in a separate one.

I got pulled over. Of course. I had kleenex in my pocket. I was still wanded. I was frantic.

I grabbed my stuff and did a power walk to the gate, which was the last one, M48. There were two other couples in the priority line. The attendant was slow but I told him that I was “ READY2FLY”, showed him the designated boarding pass and he let me through without making me take out my documents again! He also took my attestation form, which is a form swearing I was feeling fine and hadn’t been with anyone who had Covid.

I got to my seat.

Suddenly it dawned on me.
I left my iPad at security.

Panic.

Went to the flight attendant, who took me to another flight attendant, who walked me to the gate so I could go back and get it. I did the same power walk, went down the escalator, back to security, explained my dilemma and YES, found my iPad.

I hurried back to the gate but I didn’t have to, because they were still waiting for other passengers , who were in much worse straits than I’d been.

GOOD NEWS. I was in a row of four with one other lady at the other end. I noticed that the two middle seats were Xed out on the seat map so I didn’t think anyone would be seated there. All the passengers finally arrived . The doors were bolted. No one was in our row! Hooray!

A guy came and sat in the seat next to me. How could this happen? At least he was small. Turned out he was an Air France employee and was treated with deference. At least the economy plus seats on Air France are roomy.

We were supposed to leave at 10:25. We left at noon.

After all that chaos, the flight was fine. The food was mediocre but I managed to get two glasses of champagne. I spent the entire time watching movies. I started out with “ Mystery at Saint Tropez,” a goofy French mystery which took place in the 70s in Saint Tropez, with a bumbling detective. It was a little like Inspector Clouseau only more slapstick, and a very corpulent Gerard Depardieu was one of the characters. I actually fell asleep during part of it but didn’t feel the need to see it again. I also fell asleep during a silly Russian gun- toting detective series, but then woke up and watched a really good British film about the Woman’s liberation movement and the protest at the 1970 Miss World pageant called “ Misbehaviour.” Starring Kiera Knightly and featuring Phyllis Logan ( whom you’ll recognize as the housekeeper in the “ Downton Abbey” series) it is definitely worth seeing. Another good one was Clint Eastwood’s “ Richard Jewell,” a very good character study of the security guard who discovered a bomb at the Atlantic Olympics, and who was later pilloried by the a hunky FBI guy and an over ambitious female reporter from CNN. Jon Hamm ( from “ Mad Men”) and Olivia Wilde make good villains. Kathy Bates did a good job as Richard’s devoted mother. I finished off my viewing by watching a documentary from the Discovery channel called “Saving Notre Dame.”

We landed at 2:00 pm CA time and went through automatic passport control without a hitch. The line was sort of long because we were on a big flight. I heard a fellow say that he arrived at the airport at 6:00 am and he still was one of the last to board our flight.

No one checked our Covid test results, which were required for reentry, or vaccination cards.

Our bags were waiting for us, all in a jumble. A kind man got mine for me.

I waited five minutes for the BART train. I got off at Orinda station an hour later and waited 15 minutes for the bus that dropped me off at the entrance of my complex.

it’s good to be home but I’ll always be grateful to Christiane and Diego for the invitation to spend two weeks in Paris and to Ann for jumping over the pond to hang out with me for a few days.

I will post something on the Russian exhibit because it’s just too important to miss and hope to include tips for travel as well.

I must say it was a joy to travel to a place where immunizations are required. I wish every places would be as strict. France has a high rate of vaccination and life goes on as normal with those who are vaccinated. People who aren’t vaccinated don’t get to mingle in society. It’s only fair during a pandemic. . They were able to achieve this. I wish we could.

Today started out bright and early: up at 7:15, met Ann for breakfast at 8:15 and said good bye as her cab whisked her off to the Gare du Nord to take the Eurostar back to London and finally to Truro, in Cornwall.

My next stop was to the pharmacy for a Covid antigen test. I had never been tested before so I was pleasantly surprised that it was a mainly painless experience. I was to return to get the results.

The two ladies who work in the pharmacy were exceedingly pleasant. They asked me about California, mentioning that it must be warm there. That’s the most common comment that I get. I said it’s a bit warmer but we’re very concerned about the drought and desperately need rain. They’ve heard about the rains and the fires.

Now to the post office. I love the French post office. There are wonderful boxes for you to load up all your treasures, or maybe even old unwanted clothes to ship back to the US so you’re not a beast of burden on the day of your flight. I have done this several times and have always felt it was worth the cost (59€ for the XL sleek Italian-designed Collisimo green box). There have been times when the box arrived home before I did – not this time, of course. The postman helped me with the entire procedure and the only hiccup was that he didn’t have online access to customs so I had to fill out three paper forms. No biggie. I told him how much I enjoyed coming to the post office and enjoyed his help. He actually blushed. Maybe postal employees are not used to getting compliments.

Back to the pharmacy. I tested negative – hooray! – and got the necessary forms needed by Air France to get me on the airplane.

It was almost noon but I knew that the cleaning lady was still working on the apartment, so I decided a decaf cappuccino was in order at the corner café.

The last few days have been quite active; in fact, Ann and I logged in over eight miles yesterday and between seven and eight most days. We were also on art overload, though the Hockney show was much less exhausting as the Russian show at the Louis Vuitton or the Orsay. I felt I needed to do a little slo-mo today and stick to the neighborhood.

And what a neighborhood it is. It’s very close to the two big department stores, Au Printemps and Galéries Lafayette, started during the turn of the century. The architecture and windows always fascinated me and reminded me of going to the Emporium in San Francisco every Christmas for Christmas visiting, shoppinf and gazing at the beautiful displays.

The French expression, faire du lèche-vitrine means to go window shopping. It literally means to go window licking, which totally grossed me out when I first learned of it. I decided to stroll the ‘ hood and go window shopping. Both stores have domes which are also quite spectacular.

The dome at the Printemps has what appears to be an art deco eating establishment.

It’s difficult to capture the entire dome in its completed form so I had to photograph bits and pieces.

On to Galéries Lafayette next door. Actually both stores are composed of several buildings but the dome is clearly marked or one of the ever-present beautifully dressed employees will direct you to the right spot.

The dome is used as a focal point on the third floor.

There were other delights in the gourmet shop at Galéries Lafayette:

Getting hungry? I wandered over to the Café de la Paix for some sustenance. Ended up with a delicious chicken Caesar salad with an egg in it. I was tempted to just get a millefeuille but I had pancakes for breakfast and needed a bit of nutrition .

The lunch was substantial so I took my dessert home!

Tomorrow is my last day. What will I do? You’ll find out after I do.

Like many cities, the museums are open for free to anyone on the first Sunday of the month. However, it can be quite crowded. Covid has dealt the problem of crowding by issuing timed tickets to ease congestion. I got reservations a month in advance for our free tickets because there was a special David Hockney show. The only time available was 9:30 so we were up bright and early and had the museum almost to ourselves. As always, we were asked for our health passes, or vaccination card for Ann. Her QR code didn’t scan on the French system, so they readily accepted her vaccination card.

David Hockney is an English painter that Ann and I have long admired. I have seen his work in London and Los Angeles and have seen his stage sets for the opera Turandot in San Francisco. He was an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 60s and is considered one of the most influential painters of the 20th century. He lives in London and the Los Angeles area. He also has a refuge in Normandy and when he saw the Bayeux tapistry he was inspired to do a scrolled version of a work of a scene. He was living there during Covid, so decided to recreate the change of scenes on his property. He did it on his iPad and printed it out. It’s a truly innovative work of art.

It’s the kind of work that can be seen again and again.

We also visited the permanent display of Monet’s Water Lillies murals that he made for the museum between 1920-1926.

The museum has also made these images available online.
We stopped for a coffee and a little retail therapy before going on to the Bastille market for some people watching and a crepe!

I like this market because they sell not only food products but clothing. Here a man is trying out a sweater and being inspected by his wife. I remember my sister once bought a frock here!

We walked down the boulevard Richard Lenoir all the way to the Canal Saint Martin. We saw some interesting outfits on people strolling by.

and even a boules tournament in progress on the way.

We finally arrive at the Canal Saint Martin.

Paris is the city for lovers. I’ve seen evidence of this throughout my trips here.
Enough romance. Time to eat!

We took the bus back to the rue de Rivoli and walked through the tourist shopes. Angelina’s tea room had a very long line but we weren’t going there. We had our meal at Brasserie Flottus, an excellent recommendation. I opted for the French onion soup and Ann had cassoulet. We were both pleased with our meals.

This is Ann’s last night. She’ll return to England tomorrow. I’m sad to see her go but we’ll meet up in less than a year, again, in Paris, for a few days before embarking on the Moroccan Sahara Odyssey in 2022 with Overseas Adventures Tours.

Tomorrow we mert for breakfast and I begin the plans for my return to the U.S. early Wednesday morning. What should I do before I leave Paris? Any ideas?

Today was our day at the Orsay museum, one of my favorite spots in Paris. The old Gare d’ Orsay, the Orsay beaux-arts train station, was built to bring visitors to the 1900 World’s Fair, but fell into disuse over the years and instead of being torn down, was reformed as the museum. It is located on the Left Bank of the Seine.

The museum was built to bridge the gap between the works at the Louvre and the Regional National Museum of Modern Art at the Georges Pompidou Center and holds mainly French art dating from 1898 and 1900. A competition was held and the project was awarded to a female Italian architect, Gae Autenti.

Theew are remnants of the train station throughout, especially in the many huge clocks that one finds throughout the building. The visitor has space to spend time contemplating the sculptures on the ground floor. There is light throughout.

My favorite paintings are here. It was so nice to see these works in this gorgeous spot. The last time I was here, all the Renoirs were on tour in Japan. It’s nice to have them back.

The clock motif is found throughout the building, with views of the Seine and surrounding buildings.

Degas and his dancers continue to delight.

Eventually we had to sit down, have some food and fortify outselves before going on to the next show.

Ann’s dessert was the best!

After the Impressionists and post-impressionists, we saw Art Nouveau furnishings and a special exhibit on the history of French cinema.

After spending most of the day inside, we strolled through the Tuileries, down to the Place de la Concorde to the Madeleine and returned. Ann wanted to take pictures from the top of the Printemps department store and I needed to put my feet up for a while. We met at 7:00 and had a light dinner across the street at the Café Sud, a warm, welcoming and popular place.

Tomorrow we leave early for a 9:30 appointment at the Orangerie to see a David Hockney exhibition. It will be much smaller and less strenuous than the adventures of the last two days. We have early tickets because it’s a free Sunday and tickets go fast! When I ordered them from home a while back, it was the only time available. The weather is holding up, in the 50s, with no rain forecast. We’ll see what happens eith the rest of the day. Brunch? Possibly..

My friend Ann from Cornwall, England arrived here Thursday afternoon. We met at her hotel 1/2 block down the street and started our adventures by having a French onion soup across the street at Le Week-End. It was warm and bracing on a cool day.

We walked the neighborhood and went to the Exxpiatory Chapel in the Square Louis XVI. It’s a small pavillion, considered a place of prayer, and is surrounded by a lovely garden.

We got caught in the rain so decided to come back here for tea and macarons. She left to unpack and we met up again for a light unmemorable dinner at a nearby café on the Place de la Madeleine.

Today we met up at 9:00 and went to the boulangerie for breakfast. We got lovely croissants but didn’t eat there because they didn’t serve decaf and I can’t have caffeine so we had breakfast here. We took a taxi to the Fondation Louis Vuitton to see the Morozov Collection: icons of Modern Art.

The Frank Gehry designed building is also a work of art. Designed to look like a sailing ship, he sought to “ design, in Paris, a magnificent vessel symbolizing the cultural calling of France.” This glass iconic building is constructed for the 21st century. It is situated at the edge of the Jardin d’ Acclimatation in the Bois de Boulogne, the Parisian equivalent of Nee York’s Central Park, west of the city.

The exhibit was so vast that it took most of the day. We were lucky to get tickets but I ordered early. There’s much to tell about the Morozov family and their collection but I must stop since I’m out of energy. The collection was extensive and exhausting.

I’ll pick this up when I can.

Just to give you an example…details will follow when I have more time to devote to more information about the family and their collection.

After the exhibit we visited the park, took the metro to Notre Dame to see the progress on the reconstruction, and had had dinner at a delightful restaurant next door to Shakespeare & Company bookstore called Le Petit Chatelet.

I’ll be back. Promise. Sleep calls.

After Tuesday’s walking, Wednesday was more of a kick-back day. Christiane left for Venice in the morning and I had a hair appointment at 10:30 and a tour of the newly refurbished Hôtel de la Marine at the Place de la Concorde at 5:45 pm. Today the best part of the day was the tour.

It was an indulgence, and a nice one, to have my hair shampooed in Paris and the commute was geeat. The Salon de Sandy was across the street! The chair where I was shampooed even had a massage feature, which was quite relaxing.

After my newly coiffed hair, I stopped off at the pharmacy around the corner to check on Covid tests for my return on the 10th. I will need an antigen test, which I’ll get at the pharmacy Monday between 10-12. Results will be given to me in twenty minutes, and I’ll have a paper to show to the authorities two days later when I get on the plane.

On to Monoprix to pick up a few items: tea, shopping bags, yogurt and wine – all the essentials.

I couldn’t resist taking a selfie with these hearts to send to my sister and Marilyn. We text hearts daily. Why? Who knows. We find them everywhere. This was the beauty department of Monoprix.

I found an interesting looking Italian place called Pastis so I stopped by for lunch. The staff was very welcoming and my eggplant with parmasan was to die for – beautiful and healthy too! The fries? Not so healthy. I never eat them at home but have had them many times here, as you can tell by the photographic evidence.

One last stop: Paul for macarons for tonight’s dessert!

I got home loaded down with goodies and relaxed a while with Diego. He likes to zoom aroumd the rooms. He’s not a toy boy but loves looking in bags and investigating. He doesn’t understand the concept of social distancing when he’s looking at new things! I left again at 4:30 to check out the Opera house and go to my appointment. It was busy as people were getting off work and shopping at the department stores, Printemps and Galeries Lafayette.

Then I made my way to the Place de la Concorde for my tour of the fabulous Hôtel de la Marine.

Yes, Paris is for lovers and I found another heart, courtesy of the Banksy tote while waiting at the stop light. The building is to the upper left.

The restoration of this building is big news in Paris. Built between 1757 and 1774 by the architect to the king at what was then the Place Louis XV, it was one of the highlights of the square. If you Google “renovation hotel de la marine,” you will find a site called sortiraparis.com that gives you a nice article called “The Magnificent Venue to Discover in Paris.” You can also go to wikipedia for more information. These articles do it better than I can. I know my limits.

The tour that I took , the historic tour, covered the rooms that had period renovation features from the 18th crntury and the grand loggia, where diplomatic receptions were held. The headsets “ know” when the visitor in a room and gives the correct information. Amazing!

Before we began the tour, we waited in the inner courtyard and enjoyed the new touches. The glass ceiling was designed by Hugh Dutton and Associés. The ancient melding with the modern is a frequent feature of Parisian architecture.

We were taken up three flights of stairs with ghosts of the past whispering in our ears. This tour is only for the fit and hardy!

We began our tour in the anteroom. I’ll only show you a few rooms, so you get the idea.

I thought the bathtub and the couch- bed in the same room was a nice idea. Bathrooms were meant to be spacious, since the bather often had company to conduct business and therefore needed more space!

Since the windows of these rooms give a good view of the Place de la Concorde, it was difficult to decide whether to photograph the ancient building or the modern world whizzing around outside the windows.

We now begin our tour of the loggia, rooms comprising a very long hall, where many public events took place, such as diplomatic signings, balls and entertainment.

The tour ends at the balcony, where we see today’s Paris.

I finished my evening with dessert with Diego and wrote yesterday’s blog. I’m now caught up! It’s Thursday and my friend Ann from England is arriving. You who read this blog may remember her from our adventures in Tuscany and Umbria. She’s staying down the street, taking the night train then Eurostar from London. We facetimed two days ago but I haven’t heard from her so I may walk down and see if she’s at the hotel.

I now know of a place where there’s great French onion soup, just a short metro ride away. I hope she’s up for it. She’s been my partner in crime for many food adventures since we met on a tour in the mid 80s, and I’m sure she’ll be happy into getting into a little mischief. It’s her first trip out since Covid so it’s sure to seem strange.

I walked to the Opera and the Café de la Paix because I learned that the best millefeuille – a multi-layered pastry – are to be found there. Think we can fit it in? Maybe…it’s good to be prepared.

Of course I’ll report back but we’ll be busy. We have museum reservations for Friday, Saturday and Sunday and she leaves Monday. There will be lots to see and do. Be patient, dear readers.