Sunday in Paris

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?