Journal #62 - France
Bonjour from France!
Paris, Reims, Marseille, Nice, Cannes, and Lyon - we called each of these cities home for our stay. Our visit has been stacked with amazing friends traveling alongside us, beautiful sights all around us, and plates of delicious food before us. So read along and enjoy our journey through France!
We began in the capital, the City of Lights, and (with some of our friends) ran around the Paris streets. This meant hitting the major tourist highlights like the Eiffel Tower, Sacred Heart Basilica, and a cabaret show. We had a good time strolling along the many lovely Jardins. The group also packed in tours along the Seine and visits to the Paris Catacombs.
The city was a perfect first stop because it gave us access to the many restaurants, boulangeries, patisseries, and more that helped us eat our way through The List*. And not just the savory entrees and snacks, but also the whole dedicated section necessary to cover such a wide variety of pastries and baked goods. We ate something buttered, daily. Frequently we used a baguette and a hunk of French cheese as a mid-work snack to supplement the other delicious meals.
We visited the Musée d'Orsay, The Louvre, and the Musée Rodin. Each of these offered an entirely different experience. We of course caught sight of the iconic Mona Lisa and The Winged Victory of Samothrace. Our visits included meandering through acrylic art, marbled sculpture, and everything in between. Truly, there is so much to see that you could get lost and never find your way out - trapped in an eternal maze of portraits and frames.
The Musée Rodin was especially unique. It is not nearly as extensive as the other art museums we visited - its scope is limited to a singular artist. The building is centered around Rodin's Gates of Hell construction and the individual pieces made in inspiration from and in practice for it. There are sketches, rough clay work, plaster casts, and even bronze-cast finished art all modeled on these gates. To get a more thorough idea of what an artist must put into a master creation, this was a phenomenal deep-dive into one man's creative process.
It was a blast walking around the city and seeing so many icons that the media has shown me or that Francophiles have touted as the pinnacle of romance. It was a charming highlight of our trip to amble through the streets across several different neighborhoods. There was something beautiful about catching a gorgeous springtime weekend day and seeing the scores of young folk who emerged in the evenings to lounge with their friends on the steps of the Seine, with a book or a bottle of wine, and just enjoy. The energy was contented and artistic, and it is something I would like to bring back home with me - that simple pleasure of doing nothing, somewhere beautiful, with your friends.
Now, what would a trip to France be without a visit to wine country - and what better or more French countryside than Champagne? We traveled with our friends to the city of Reims to do some sparkling wine tastings that are allowed to be called Champagne because of the geographic location of their vines and production. These tastings involved white and rosé, visits to extensive wine cellars, and a tour through some of the grape vines. It made for an adorable day trip and a cute chance to celebrate life with our friends.
After the wine, it was time to venture further south to the Côte d'Azur. We started our time on the French Riviera in Marseille. This delightful seaside town is known for its beautiful harbor, lovely basilica overlooking the city, and proximity to Parc National Des Calanques. We visited each of these, but the National Park stole our hearts. Accessible via bus from the city, we spent time hiking through the Calanques near some gorgeous water. This was a beautiful day and made me appreciate the good fortune of all the French folk who live so close to such magnificent beauty.
After our trip to the National Park, our group progressed on to Nice. This is a town known for its connection to the rich and famous. We saw a yacht docked that was so large and ostentatious that we could look up its ownership history by the ship's name alone. Being so close to the water made us want to get out to sea, so we hopped on a boat that brought us up and down the beautiful coast. We got to spot some of the stunning villas located along the seaside, ones used to film famous movies, and others owned by the stars in those movies. Many homes were designed in French, Italian, and English architectural styles. They also spanned the rainbow of colors reflecting in the glistening seaside; and, adding some appreciated beauty to our day.
From Nice, we progressed on to Cannes. Most notable for its annual film festival, this town is built around movie tourism. Mr. Wanderer and I had to visit the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès and stand on the very same red carpet as the stars. Additionally, since we were not invited to the official festival, we made a mini-fest of our own. We constructed this by getting tickets to multiple new movies, in theaters, while in Cannes. Which, while not the same, was fun for us and made the visit feel even more personal.
The last stop on our tour of France was up to the city of Lyon. Set on the Rhone River this town was filled with beautiful churches on hills and lots of Lyonnais restaurants. We used our time here to fully round out The List and get in many extras of our favorite pastries before leaving the country - and depart we must. Our bags are packed and we are off next to the home of the famous Monte Carlo casino - which, you may or may not know, the citizens of this country are not allowed to gamble in. Any guesses where we are off to next?
