Paris, Île-de-France, France
Wow. It's been an incredible four weeks of honeymoon. Four countries. Twelve cities. Countless temples. Tons of Buddha statues. Elephants. Pad thai. Noodle soup. And a couple of days in Paris to put an exclamation point on it all.
But, as they say, all good things must end. And so it was for this trip. But first, we had one more day in Paris. And, despite the chilly, drizzly weather, we weren't about to let it go to waste.
To the Louvre!
We woke up in the dark again this morning, still tired from our long day yesterday. But, no rest for the weary; we had one more day of vacation to spend, places to be, and art to see. Yep, our final morning was spent visiting priceless works of art in perhaps the most famous art museum in the world, the Louvre.
After another coffee and croissant breakfast, we walked over to the Louvre's gardens and courtyard with its iconic pyramid entrance. Now, it's been 20 years since I've been to the Louvre, and the last time I was here, the place was packed and I had to wait over 45 minutes in line to get in. This time, on a chilly Thursday morning in January, we'd booked 9am tickets for the first timeslot, and we were among the first dozen people allowed into the museum. It was practically like having the place to ourselves. Amazing!
We took advantage of the low crowds and first made a beeline to the Mona Lisa, just to get that over with. Yes, there's far more impressive art in the Louvre. But it was Ryan's first visit here, and far better to see the iconic painting without crowds and tour groups blocking her.
From there, we took our time. We saw all the highlights, of course: The Winged Victory, the Venus de Milo, everything from the French crown jewels to the Greek sculptures (many of which do have arms) to Northern European Renaissance Art (so many depictions of Jesus!) to the temporary exhibit on Uzbekistan (brought back memories of my 2015 trip). All told, we spent a couple of hours gawking at priceless works of art, which was a pretty good way to wrap up our epic trip.
Full of crepes (and eclairs)
After that, we had a bit of time to kill. We debated trying to squeeze in another museum, but we were a bit arted out. Instead, we decided to go walk around and find a cafe for some lunch.
We ended up at a small creperie bretonne on a lovely little pedestrianized cobblestone street in the 2e Arrondissement lined with cafes, little shops and restaurants, patisseries, fromageries... very Paris. The waiter seemed a little surprised we weren't ordering cider with our crepes, even though it was barely noon. Gotta love the French. Still, the crepes were delicious and it seemed like the thing to do.
After lunch, we walked around the area a little bit, just taking in the atmosphere and checking out some of the small shops. Just down the street, we found a lineup outside a patisserie that turned out to be the oldest patisserie in Paris. Stohrer has been around since 1730, which means it's been serving up pastry for nearly 300 years. Never one to pass that up, we got in line and bought some delicious chocolate eclairs. The perfect end to our Paris visit.
From there, we headed slowly back to the hotel to pick up our bags, and then it was time to catch the train back to the airport. Obviously there was still a lot of Paris we could've seen, but I think we did alright for a day and a half. And hey, we'll be back someday.
Back to reality
Now we're at Charles de Gaulle Airport, sitting at the gate, waiting to board our flight back to Montreal and (ugh) reality. The flight is delayed by an hour and a half or so, which is small potatoes compared to the days-long delays that people in sun destinations have been experiencing lately. When you consider that this is our 9th flight of the trip and it's the first one with any kind of issues, that's a small miracle. Way to go, Watarimono. Oh, and Xang the elephant, who's now helping him, I guess.
It will be many more months before we can emerge again to eat on terrasses and socialize outdoors. Meanwhile, there's winter, a freezing rain storm in the forecast, bills to pay, work to catch up on, and all the unpleasant realities of daily life. And, after an appropriate quarantine period, family and friends to catch up with. It's been absolutely phenomenal to escape for a while. But it's time to come home.
Thanks so much for reading, commenting, and following us along our travels. I know they say a honeymoon is just for two people, but I loved sharing our experiences with all of you. The honeymoon may be over, but our life of travel and adventure together is just beginning. Watch this space for many more destinations and amazing experiences in the future.
Joanne
2023-01-12
Safe trip back. I am going to miss these daily reads!!!!
Your cuz LA
2023-01-12
I read some of your entries. Sounds like you had a most beautiful trip together! If you're still on land, then I wish you a safe trip home xo