For our first big news, someone special is here with us on this trip! The guy in this photo is Ryan Adams, and the girl is....Duncan, you tell us! After we got off the plane in Paris, I went to talk to them, and Kate said, "Um, are you Duncan's mom?" And I said, "I know you!" Anyway, Kate and Ryan have a little girl named Emmaline, and she is six months old. I really like Kate, and her husband Ryan is a really good guy. (Ryan is in the MBA program, which is why they're both here with us.)
In other news, we've spent a lot of our time in the last couple of days in the metro, trying to buy tickets, figure out where to go, find the exit, etc. When there are 44 people trying to get around Paris on the metro, it can get a little complicated, but luckily, we are SUPER FLEXIBLE so it's working out great. This is Baptiste helping 44 of us buy tickets from the metro machines.
Yesterday Baptiste did an incredible walking tour of Notre Dame and surrounding areas, and it began to pour! It's pretty warm this week so it was fine, but my hair was pretty much shot for the day. A great Paris experience, though.
As you know, Notre Dame has a lot of interesting architectural features, so we spent a lot of time looking up at them. I have never seen so many people and critters built into a building in my life!
This is Meredith, Baptiste's wife, who also has a MS in Art History and used to teach art for BYU in the Louvre. She is smart! She gave us a special tour of the Louvre and it was fantastic. Who knew there was so much behind these paintings? If you haven't had a Louvre tour with someone who knows what they are talking about, I highly recommend it. Now I want to take an art history class.
And, of course, the Louvre has a lot of incredible things painted on the ceiling, so we spent a lot of time looking up at them, too. These ceiling paintings were done when royalty lived in the Louvre; can you imagine waking up in the morning and seeing something like this?
This last comment is for Napolean: One of the rooms Meredith took us through today was filled with paintings she called "Napolean propoganda." The paintings were not historically accurate, she said; they were intended soley to present Napolean in a positive light. And, tonight we ate at the oldest restaurant in Paris, and guess whose hat is framed and sitting in the entrance? (You can probably figure it out. Hint: He was very short.)
Awesome! I haven't seen Kate in years (I didn't even know she was married AND had a kid) but it's good to see she's doing well!
ReplyDeleteAlso, when I was in Paris I was so mesmerized by the architecture, especially of buildings that were now cell phone shops or simple grocery stores but had amazingly intricate artwork and stone on them. Walking around Paris gives you an idea of its history and the evolution of design eras - so cooooool!
Glad to see y'all are managing well in ol' Paris! Can't wait to see more pics!
Oh, and Napoleon (my Napoleon) says he is NOT short! He's vertically challenged.
That sounds like so much fun! When I was last in Paris, I was still a high schooler, so much of the history, art, and beauty were lost on me. Hope you and Bob are having a FABULOUS time!
ReplyDeleteLooks like you're having a fabulous time! SO smart to go with a French-speaking person. We knew, like, 4 words in French and everyone there pretended not to know English. Have you eaten at least 4 crepes and baguettes for me (and Pumpkin) yet??
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