L'Arc de Triomphe

In the middle of the Place Charles de Gaulle at the very top of the Champs-Elysee stands the famous Arc de Triomphe. This incredible monument, standing 50 meters high, was commissioned by Napoleon in 1806. Visitors can cross beneath the dangerous and scary rotary to visit the inside of the monument, and to witness the incredible views from the top! We made this one of our cultural events this weekend.

A view of the Champs-Elysee

The tomb of an Unknown Soldier from WWI

Père Lachaise

This week American children probably dressed up as ghosts and goblins and Trick-or-Treated in their neighborhoods, collecting sackfuls of sugar-highs. While this tradition hasn't really made it to France, the tradition of paying respects to the dead on All Saint's Day is very important. Our plan was to visit the Père Lachaise cemetery on this special day, November 1st. However, yesterday brought a torrent of rain and a dark sky. So when Peter headed to class this morning and I saw a beautiful blue sky, I called my friend Emily to head up to the cemetery with me. We were so happy we went. The sky was clear, the leaves on the trees were golden and because of the holiday, most of the gravesites were covered in gorgeous, fresh-cut flowers. This cemetery is famous for being the final resting place to many famous people.

Gertrude Stein's Grave

Jim Morrison's grave

An interesting gravestone

Like an illustration from a children's picture book at Halloween

Frederic Chopin's grave receiving some TLC

Chocolate and Oysters

So Chocolate and Oysters...No, we didn't eat them at the same time. But today was the annual Salon du Chocolat at the Porte de Versailles convention center. I joined a group of girls for a fun afternoon of free samples and chocolate shopping while Peter and the guys watched France lose the rugby finals to New Zealand at a local bar (8-7!).

The festival was just as much fun as last year. There was a lot to see, and to eat, and we all had a great time.

Yes, that's a Chocolate Mousse Bar.

A chocolate Snoopy!

A Classic...did you expect anything less?

Gooey and delicious...chocolate-orange cookies

 There are a few things we've learned about foodie events in Paris. No matter what the theme of the event, you can count on wine being available, as well as fois gras (duck or goose liver...very popular).

New macaron flavor- Fois Gras and Chocolate

These Bûches looked very tempting!

Interesting, yes...appetizing, no.

There was even a section for sweets from other countries. These Moroccan treats were enticing but by the time we found them, we were so overloaded on chocolate, we had no room for more sticky desserts.

We had a great time, and definitely recommend this event to any chocolate lovers in Paris!

After getting our sugar fill for the day, I headed up to meet Peter in the 12th arrondissement to a cool wine bar called Le Baron Rouge. It was time to say goodbye to a good friend of ours, Alex, who is leaving for Israel tomorrow on an exchange program. It was sad to say goodbye, but the blue sky, warm sun, and briny oysters served out on the sidewalk made it a little better :-)

A cold glass of white Cotes du Rhone went beautifully with the oysters!

Peter snapped this photo of Alex and I enjoying our last "meal" together.

Bellota-Bellota

On Wednesday, Peter and I went to the Grand Palais to see a new exhibit showing the collection of art owned by the Stein family. Yes, that's as in "Gertrude Stein" and her family of art collectors who lived in Paris in the early 1900's and who befriended artists like Picasso and Matisse. It was a fantastic collection.

Picasso's Painting of Gertrude Stein

We walked there and back, in order to get some exercise. But on the way home, we were definitely ready for an afternoon snack. We passed by Bellota-Bellota on Rue Jean Nicot, and stopped in for a quick bite to eat. There is really nothing on the menu but ham, which is what makes this place so great. Its focus is on quality, and the quality of the ham we ordered was top-notch: some of the best ham we've ever eaten!

La Conciergerie and Sainte-Chapelle

After Peter finished class this morning, we met on the Ile de la Cite for a little sightseeing. We decided to visit the Conciergerie which was originally used as a royal residence. The Ile de la Cite was the official center of Paris even back in the 6th century with the first French king, Clovis. Five centuries later, Hugues Capet established the government on the same island. At the end of the 1300's, Charles V moved his royal residence from this spot, and began to use it as a palace and prison. A "concierge" was left to run the prison and palace. Years later, this prison would house Marie-Antoinette for 76 days until her beheading at the Place de la Concord.

The Conciergerie under scaffolding

The entry to this site leads visitors through the Hall of Men-At-Arms, which was built in 1302 and is an example of Gothic secular architecture. This hall was used by kings and nobles.

 A fragment of a black marble table dating from the 11th century remains in the hall on display.

A beautiful winding staircase behind which is the kitchen.

The line indicates the water level during a 1910 flood.

Original keys and locks from the prison

A plaque commemorating Robespierre's last moments spent in this prison before his death.

A painting depicting the last supper of 21 revolutionary leaders, "Les Girondins", before their deaths in 1793.

The Women's Courtyard was where prisoners were allowed to walk during "free time". They also used the basin below to wash their clothes and a stone table remains in the courtyard where women would wait in groups of 12 for the cart that would carry them to the scaffold.

An original stone table used by prisoners apparently now serves as a seat for tired tourists.

 Marie-Antoinette's original prison cell was turned into a chapel at the request of Louis XVII. This is a reconstruction of what her cell would have looked like.

 Sainte-Chapelle is one of the most famous churches in Paris, and is built within the same compound as the Conciergerie. This magnificent church supposedly housed the relic of Christ's crown of thornes, which was lost or destroyed during the French revolution.

The stained glass windows are some of the most magnificent we've seen.

 

 The Lower Chapel is exquisitely painted, as we learned from our tour guide Malcolm Miller, like many or most medieval churches were painted in bright colors.

At the front of the chapel stands a statue of Louis IX, who became Saint-Louis for whom the Ile Saint-Louis (and St. Louis, Missouri) was named.

 The Palais de Justice which houses the courts of Paris, is also a beautiful building. This block houses the Conciergerie, Sainte-Chapelle and the Palais de Justice together. Sainte-Chapelle's steeple can be seen just to the left in the photo below.