Marjorie goes to Paris and the Heart of France
a Rick Steves tour 2023
FRANCE 2023 PART 2
Welcome to the second part of my digital scrapbook documenting my trip to France in the summer of 2023.
I ran out of space on my first wixsite, so I'm hoping you never see this page! But if you're here, find a link to get back on track!
Day 7: Le Pelerinage
Day 8: Le Bocage
Day 9: Le Jour J
Day 10: Les Nympheas
Days 11+: Bon Voyage
Day 10
To Giverny
I wake up this morning with a heavy feeling because I know that this is my last day in France. We are leaving Bayeux and driving back to Paris.
It's the final chapter for Jean and Marie. Don't worry, it's not that final chapter. Jean and Marie are fictional characters who will live in my heart forever. But they're ready to retire. Like all working people in France, they've been working 35 hours a week with 5 weeks of vacation each year. They almost always take their vacation in France, from Saturday to Saturday, exploring the magnificent country they call home.
And they pay taxes. Average working adults like Jean and Marie pay about 30% of their income, and people with more income pay a higher percentage. Taxes cover the same things they do in the US like schools and roads, and also healthcare and retirement. Jean and Marie have been working and contributing, so now they get a decent pension. Fin.
After our last pause pipi, Virginie passes out madeleines and quotes French author Marcel Proust. Proust writes that tasting a madeleine brought back deep memories, and Virginie encourages us to remember our time in France as we taste these little cakes.
Today:
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leaving Bayeux
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Giverny
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return to Paris
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farewell dinner
“No sooner had the warm liquid mixed with the crumbs touched my palate than a shudder ran through me and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary thing that was happening to me. An exquisite pleasure had invaded my senses, something isolated, detached, with no suggestion of its origin. And at once the vicissitudes of life had become indifferent to me, its disasters innocuous, its brevity illusory – this new sensation having had on me the effect which love has of filling me with a precious essence; or rather this essence was not in me it was me. ... Whence did it come? What did it mean? How could I seize and apprehend it? ... And suddenly the memory revealed itself. The taste was that of the little piece of madeleine which on Sunday mornings at Combray (because on those mornings I did not go out before mass), when I went to say good morning to her in her bedroom, my aunt Léonie used to give me, dipping it first in her own cup of tea or tisane. The sight of the little madeleine had recalled nothing to my mind before I tasted it. And all from my cup of tea.”
--Marcel Proust, In Search of Lost Time
Les Nymphéas
Les Nymphéas, or Monet's Water Lilies have been on my mind the whole trip. I started my trip to France seeing the paintings at the Orangerie, I've been working on Claude here and there throughout the trip, and now we're going to visit Monet's home and gardens at Giverny.
I actually started with low expectations. I remember some photos from a friend who visited a few years ago and they weren't particularly impressive. I remember reading that it's crowded. Today is cloudy and drizzly, so I'm not excited about spending several hours outdoors. I'm certain if I set my expectations too high then I will be disappointed. But as we get closer I can't help getting excited.
Once we're off the bus Virginie guides us through the small village of Giverny as we walk to the gardens. She passes out tickets, and it's recommended we head to the water garden first. The clouds have kept the crowds low right now, so we should visit the more popular garden first in case it gets busier later.
We have to walk in a tunnel under the road and through some bamboo-lined paths. My anticipation is building with every step.
When I finally see the pond and the water lilies, even my highest expectations are met. This is a gorgeous garden, and it's easy to understand why Monet was so inspired by Giverny.
And I'm happy to report that one of my expectations has not been met. The crowds are not at all what I was expecting. There are a lot of people here, but it doesn't feel crowded. We're all moving at the same pace, pausing to take photos of every beautiful thing. It's hard to get a photo without any people in it, but the people are just flecks of color in this impressionist landscape. And it's definitely not as noisy as you would expect from this many visitors. We are all admiring this natural beauty with a hushed reverence.
At first, I sit down in the water garden with plans to work on Claude. I make some notes in my journal about the reverence of the garden, and then decide it's better to explore the rest of the property (there's a whole flower garden and Monet's house to see) first. Then I can spend all the rest of my time with the water lilies. So I walk back under the road and past where we entered, and then I'm greeted with an explosion of color. The sun is even starting to come out!
And nestled into the colorful bouquets is Monet's house. It's pink with green shutters and Monet actually lived here with his family.
After I finish visiting Monet's house, I return to the water garden to work on Claude and spend the rest of my time soaking up the beauty of the gardens.
And I never want to leave. I stay in the garden as long as I can, leaving forty minutes to visit the gift shop, find the toilets, explore Giverny, pick up a sandwich, and get back to the bus.
even the ticket stub is beautiful
my first water lily sighting
the water garden >
the flower garden >
Monet's living room
then and now
Monet was a collector and fan of Japanese prints
Back to Paris
Forty minutes is not long enough. I'm good for the gift shop and the toilets, but I have about a nanosecond to explore the rest of Giverny and no time for lunch. At this point I'm counting on Virginie to have some bus snacks.
But she doesn't! Because this is our last time meeting the bus, we return our whisper systems and give busdriver Peter a thank you card. Oh well, I doubt I'll die of starvation before we reach Paris.
Virginie tells us it's time for our test. She's smirking a bit, so I'm expecting questions along the lines of "Did you have a nice vacation?" But like a good teacher, she's seriously quizzing us on what we've learned! And if we answer correctly we get a chocolate! I'm not going to starve after all! My hand shoots into the air because I know the answer to every question (I've been taking notes), but like a good teacher, Virginie doesn't let me answer them all. I still get more chocolate than anyone else, and when I mention I skipped lunch she passes me a leftover madeleine too. I was always a show-off student, and if you study my scrapbook and end up on Virginie's tour, you can show off too!
It's less than an hour before we're back in Paris, with the Arc de Triomphe ahead of us. In the rain. We circle the arch and drive down the Champs-Élysées. Virginie plays a song and I learn a new phrase, sous la pluie, or under the rain.
Once we leave the Champs-Élysées we sit in traffic for a long time before we get to our hotel. We have a good chunk of time to take in more of Paris. I set out sous la pluie to go back to the Museum of the Middle Ages to finally see the Unicorn Tapestries.
They were all out of both English and French maps. Luckily, yo hablo español un poco!
And it is very rainy. The museum is not far away, and I only make one wrong turn, but I am completely soaked through. I am very thankful the museum offers free lockers! I can shed my coat and bag so I don't drip all over the tapestries. Though the clothes under my coat are pretty soggy too. Yikes.
We don't have our museum passes anymore, but I don't mind paying the reasonable entrance fee. The girl at the desk warns me that the museum is closing in an hour, but I'm fine with that because I've already seen half of it! I go straight to the second floor.
And wow, the second floor holds some beautiful medieval art! Some have religious themes:
and others don't:
And because I went to Spain earlier this year, I enjoy the "meanwhile, in the Arab world" exhibits:
the village of Giverny
The tapestries that are now called The Lady and the Unicorn were definitely worth the effort it took to see them. After the introductory scene that says My Only Desire, the others represent the five senses.
smell
hearing
sight
taste
touch
Women are well-represented in the museum's collection. I especially like this female accountant and the tapestry of a woman making a tapestry
Saying Goodbye
After the museum I return to the hotel to walk with the group to dinner. I'm happy to sit at a nice, big, round table with Virgine, Kristina, Julie, David, and Linda. What is it about sharing a meal with good friends that makes the food taste better?
During dinner I mention that I plan to say goodbye to France by going to see the Eiffel Tower after dinner. Virginie explains to me that the lights sparkle for five minutes every hour on the hour. We open a google map and she points out the most convenient spot to see it (the bridge Pont de l'Alma). I map out a route, and if I wanna see the 10:00 sparkle I should leave...right now!
I don't even have time for Virginie's goodbye speech. I guess it's fitting that I'm both the last person to arrive and the first person to leave. I'm even the first one flying home tomorrow!
A little gift from Virginie. This bookmark matches my Claude exactly!
A sparkling Eiffel Tower is indeed the perfect way to say farewell to France. Totally worth missing Virginie's speech.
Au revoir Paris!
