Paris...yes, the city!

I have just spent four days in Paris with my cousin! As always it is a whirlwind deal because we like to do and see so many things and over the years we have developed a few "tradition" places we go to just because.

There were a few new things on the list this trip one of which was the exhibit of Jeanne Lanvin at the Palais Galliera which was newly refurbished.

The exhibit was amazing...we were NOT allowed photos inside sadly but the dresses and embroidery work of this designer were exceptional. I think we spent well over two hours oohing and ahhing over each piece and deciding if it was a gown we would/could wear today...mostly the answer was yes. What a wonderful designer she was.

It was a pretty chilly day in Paris but we decided to walk along the Champs Elysées and avenue Montaigne to check out the windows and the people going by.

I loved this beautiful necklace like a bejeweled bow in the window at Chanel. Also...what a lovely bracelet!! Diamonds of course!

The new Frank Gehry building for the Louis Vuitton Foundation was the afternoon destination. You can take a little electric shuttle bus out to the Bois de Boulogne which takes you to the door of the fantastic building. It looks like a ship with glass sails. This is the "sketch" the architect made as his first idea!

The shuttle bus dropped us off here and when we saw the line to go in we said...no way!!! But...we found a very quick way to go in and before we knew it there we were...

A food cart with security guards on horseback...I think the horse in the back was ordering something to eat!

A view of the Eiffel tower from the top floor of the building...

 The water flowing down this slanted fountain gave the impression of waves on the shore...I spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out how they got it to look so irregular and like real ocean waves.

 The building seen from the side of the Jardin d'Acclimatation which is a park our children loved to go to when we came to see Nini in Paris...the park has really changed too!

 This view of the building is from the exterior of either level three or level four...really gives the impression of "sails" I think.

The art exhibit called "Keys to a passion"(Les Clefs d'une passion) was incredible too. It presented major works of 20th century modern art by artists who contributed to the changes in art. "Scream" by Munch and works by Bacon, Matisse, Mondrian, Monet to name just a few. Besides the special exhibits the Fondation has many activities going on on regular basis dealing with art and architecture and especially things for children and families. I was really impressed. We also had a delicious tiny Tarte au citron and a great cup of espresso in the café/restaurant! If you are going to Paris any time soon I would recommend a visit here!

We did a little bit of shopping too...I love these droguerie shops where you can find some of the most fantastic household items... 

This is a photo of the new café/restaurant located in the Bon Marché grocery store l'Epicerie de Paris...(this place has a wall of bottled water I photographed last year with  Bling water costing 10 euros a bottle!!) I like how the skylight here goes up about two or three floors. You feel like you are outside. I took this from the escalator!

I caught a glimpse of this deux chevaux Citroën from the bus window on Rue de Rivoli.

On my list was to go to the Dreyfus fabric store in Montmartre and the day was perfect! Sunny, blue sky and just the right temperature.

We walked down to the metro station Abbesses, the church of Saint Jean de Montmartre is across the street...I found the brick structure interesting in the sea of pale yellow sandstone buildings here. It has a rather "art nouveau" look to it. What do you think about the great contrast with the redhead in the foreground??

 This is the metro station you see on so many postcards....

Behind the station in the greenery there is a small park and there is a wall in the park where you can write messages with a sort of white "pen." The wall is occasionally washed off to start again...like a blackboard. There is Rita Hayworth...

More later!

A nice Sunday in the neighborhood

It was nice to be back from the long drive. We spent the first few days back doing laundry and since the weather has been terrific we had our things dry almost before we got them all clothes pinned out! Sunday was a day to meet in the park in Avignon.

It was Mother's Day is USA but in France it does not come until the end of the month...we decided everybody needed a stroll in the park on the rock (boulder is more like it) above the Pope's Palace.

Maya got to ride the same type of pedal horse that JC rode as a little boy in Nice.

Then there was some gymnastics demonstration on the grass behind the statue of Henri Althen an Armenian who escaped from the Turkish massacre and brought Garance....the natural red dye so prized in the early 1800's...to Provence. Garance is Madder and was new to this area.

Earlier in the day JC and I went over to the market in Isle sur la Sorgue. Don't you love these great stuffed chickens??? They are used to store plastic bags! What an idea! There is so much color in this town!

More colors I like to see!

...and back to the Café de France where we had hot chocolate with Maya on that very cold day back in February.

It was fun to be outside in the sunshine as the temperature climbed. Everyone was smiling but they all wanted to sit in the shady part of the cafe terrace!! Can you see JC in the photo? He is back near the tree trunk in a blue polo shirt.

After the windy and rainy days in Bretagne I was happy to be in the sun...mostly!! Yes, I had on my 50+ sunblock!!!
I found this woman's magenta hair color quite surprising especially in contrast with the gray hair of the fellow at the next table.

This is my cup of espresso...can you read the backwards words on the cup??? I had one just like this in Arles several years back with Betty! They gave us galet breton with coffee...must have known we just got back!!

They have replanted all of the sick platanes trees in Isle sur la Sorgue so the street still looks pretty bare but this poster for the evening famers market was very cheerful.

Here is another nice poster...this one for MacDonald's...they have  a series of them with different shapes and themes around the area. Those are all little hearts that make up the house. Can you see my reflection in the glass??

A pottery studio along the avenue...

Back home near our studio the local farmer has planted out his lettuces

and the artichokes are almost ready for market.

I am going to include a few random photos here because I like them. First a small fountain near the outdoor market in Pernes les Fontaines.

And here...to give you a smile...another great colored deux chevaux Citroen in Bretagne!

Have a great day. This coming Thursday I get to go to Paris to see my cousin. I will have more to say when I come back.

Farewell Bretagne...en route home via Royan

Although the sky was often cloudy while we were in Bretagne we did have some pretty nice sun breaks and that meant that we were all on the beach gathering all sorts of treasures from the sea!
Across from our Pierre et Vacances bungalow

there was a long boardwalk which meant we could stroll along even if the waves were beating up on the shore (which they were most of the time).

Anton and Maya set off along the shore during this particular sunny moment heading to the rocks of granite on the beach at the end of the boardwalk.

 We could see a little red roofed tower in the distance which to me looked like a lighthouse. Also, in the water was a very brave swimmer!!!!

Lots of sea shells and great little rocks were collected in the nooks and crannies of the granite boulders. By the end of the walk all of our pockets were bulging with treasures to bring home to Carpentras.

Along the return walk on the boardwalk a friendly dog smiled down on us from a balcony. We called out "hi Sheeva" and the dog wagged its tail!

Some "follow the leader" on the way back before we went to meet Nini.

These brilliant ice plants were blooming along the way...almost hurts your eyes to look at the vibrant color. A very nice contrast to the dark granite rocks and bleached wood.

This is an evening view from our window out to the ocean...this came after a very heavy downpour.

We left early in the morning and decided to take the route via Bordeaux and stop in Royan where the temperature was warmer and the beach less rocky.

We found this incredible and affordable place to stay called the Hotel Family Golf (?) we are up on the balcony of our room.

We set off to the beach right away.

 It was windy but just enough so out came the kite.

We spent the rest of the afternoon running in and out of the waves...here is a beach "still life"...

We all slept like logs and met the sunrise ready to head home. About a six-seven hour drive.

This collection of snail sculptures was in a roundabout on the way to Bordeaux.

We also passed by several windmills and once again began to see vineyards.

After Toulouse this marvelous view of Carcassonne came into view. I took this photo from the back seat of a moving car on the autoroute and I think it could be called "stunt photography!!"

Carcassonne has always been a mystery place for me. In high school I had a French text with the story of a boy named Alain Charpentier who lived in Carcassonne and it has stayed with me all these years! I don't even think I much LIKED French at the time!

We were happy to arrive back home...what a long drive but also a great time to spend together. It was a good road trip!