France I: Paris with Grandma and Grandpa!

In late March and early April, we went to France for a three-week family holiday. Grandma and Grandpa met us for a week in Paris, and then we headed west into Bretagne for two more weeks. It was cold, windy, rainy, and very different from both Bujumbura and Estacada.

Grandma and Grandpa on the Turibus!

Bertie was not such a fan of the Turibus, but he slept through parts of it.

He was a bit happier in the stroller...

And he finally understood that we were having fun at the Place des Vosges where there was a space to sit and draw in the gravel!

All over Europe, cities are removing these padlocks because of their weight and concerns about structural damage to the bridges they are on.

The Eiffel Tower!

Beautiful stained glass

We visited Montmartre for lunch and then walked up to the Basilica. There is a merry-go-round halfway up, and Bertie was not such a fan.

He didn't like sitting with Dada either.

He only relaxed a little when allowed to hold on and stand up a little, naughty boy.

Paris as seen from Montmartre. It's beautiful even in the clouds!

The Sacred Heart Basilica in all its glory.

We also visited the Louvre, of course. This is the (in)famous glass pyramid as seen from inside the building.

This is looking straight up the glass pyramid from the entrance hall.

We waited in the queue mostly patiently, but Bertie did some exploring. Here we are at the base of one of the glass pyramids.

We brought some modern and interpretive dance to the waiting area.

From within the Louvre looking roughly west across the Tuilleries to the Arc de Triomphe (middle ground) and the Arc de la Defense (background) in Paris' business district.

Bertie konked out eventually, but Ian - tourist extraordinaire - kept going!


















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Versailles

A string of Louis (14, 15, and 16) converted Versailles from a hunting lodge into the symbol of repression and inequality over the course of about a century. Now, however, people exercise in the grounds and visit it for history. The areas to the west and south of Paris are sprinkled with these amazing chateaux, and all of them are worth visiting for the architecture, stained glass, and grounds!

Grandpa carried the backpack and did some good bonding with Bertie!

Baby Dragon Bertie found it all very restful.

The Hall of Mirrors: 17 floor-length windows are opposite 17 floor-length mirrors giving this hall an openness and light that is still remarkable.

There's one of the window-mirror pairs and documentation of the small miracle of a break in the throngs of tourists!

Most of the famous chateaux were sacked, robbed, and burned in the late 18th century, but there are funds to recover what was stolen (rather than destroyed) from Versailles. It is filled with art and furnishings from the era of its heyday.

The rear facade as seen from the gardens. In my French architecture history class, the professor said that the French are uncomfortable with nature and this is reflected in their formal gardens. The big pleasure palaces (like Versailles, Fontainebleau, Chambord, and others) have gravel (no nature) up to their foundations. After a suitable distance, there is a very close-cropped lawn, then a sculpted shrubbery, and then things are allowed to be a little bit bigger. Wilderness is not welcome, and you'll note the straight lines of trees along the garden paths in later photos.

It was pre-season, so they were doing some maintenance work and the grounds were a little scruffy.

The big fountain - Apollo, Sun God, and symbol of Louis XIV, the Sun King.

Swans like the Apollo fountain as well.

A straight avenue with regimented trees.

Marie Antoinette's Austrian house on the grounds for when she felt homesick. It's nice to be queen....

Bertie spent some time in the grass stretching his legs and arms while others viewed the Marie Antoinette village. He enjoyed himself at Versailles!

Not highly effective exclusion, but a powerful reminder of Versailles' dark past.