Carly's Ramblings Blog - Style

Paris! - Day 23 Virtual Europe

30 Day Blogging Challenge

Day 23 - Paris, France
WooHoo! Paris, at last! Can you tell I am excited? I am so glad I got to bed at a reasonable time last night because I am dancing as we get ready to head to Paris! I quite literally buzzed the whole three and a half hour train ride to Paris.
Home to the expatriates - Hemingway, Fitzgerald, even our Morley Callaghan (That Summer In Paris), Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Beach, James Joyce.... and so many others.
It is going to be such a Moveable Feast!

Lyn's a Witchy Woman has us staying at Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris, She'd been told this hotel is superb and she twisted some arms to get us in here. Can you say 'opulence' drips from this place.
We are in the 8th arrondissement of the city with a stunning view of Arc de Triumphe.
http://www.fourseasons.com/paris/landing_3/?source=taparisblhotel

We have 4 days in Paris.... oh, will it be enough? I hope so. I am itching to go to the Shakespeare and Company bookshop.... but I will hold off as Lyn has us going to the Louvre Museum. This place is amazing!
We take a small group walking tour of the Louvre Museum in Paris. We also get to skip the line so that we can explore the collection of paintings, sculpture, and architecture with an expert local guide. It was only our group in our tour.
This tour was specifically designed to highlight the most famous works of the Louvre Museum. Entering the Louvre through the original Medieval structure from the 12th century, join your guide on a journey from one breathtaking gallery to the next as you travel through time visiting works from 450 BCE through to the 1800s.
The Louvre hosts over 35,000 pieces of artwork spanning over 60,000 square meters of exhibition space.
On this walking Tour we got to see:
•Sully Wing
•Roman Sculpture Hall
•Venus de Milo
•Frieze of the Parthenon
•Etruscan Artifacts
•Winged Victory of Samothrace
•The Apollo Gallery (crowns of Louis XV and Napoleon)
•Italian Renaissance Wing (DaVinci’s Madonna on the Rocks and Mona Lisa)
•French Wing (David’s Coronation of Napoleon; Delacroix’s Victory Leading the People)
•Michelangelo’s Slaves
•Canova’s Psyche and Cupid
Once our official tour is over I stay and just soak it all in. If there is only one art gallery to get to in Europe... this would be it. Eventually my stomach claimed mutiny if I did not satisfy it soon, so I found one of the many cafés within the building to go to.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductDetail?product=3731LOUVRE&d=188...
http://www.louvre.fr/en


This evening we are in for a huge treat. Off to the 7th arrondissement because we've got VIP tickets for the Moulin Rouge experience with exclusive seating on a private balcony. We were able to skip-the-line into the Moulin Rouge. We got to sip on Champagne before our 4-course French dinner which is also accompanied by wine. We got to watch the show from a private balcony with only 24 VIP seats. We enjoyed unobstructed views of the fabulous Moulin Rouge costumes, dancing and sets. We even received a Macaron bag and a chocolate box.

We got to enjoy such specialties as duck fois gras, sea bass fillet with a mushroom sauce and a typically delectable French dessert. I am glad I walked around a lot today!

At 9pm, the spectacular Moulin Rouge show began. This legendary French cabaret was made famous by the cancan and the paintings of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and since it opened in 1889 at the beginning of the Belle Epoque, the Moulin Rouge has captivated audiences with its extravagant, often risqué performances.

Moulin Rouge's current revue — ’Féerie’ – features a troupe of 100 artists, including 60 legendary ‘Doriss Girls,’ dressed in spectacular costumes of feathers, rhinestones and sequins. The sumptuous sets and vibrant lights of ’Féerie’ provide a colorful backdrop for brilliantly choreographed performances on moving staircases, in a gigantic aquarium, on swings and in garden settings.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductDetail?product=5022MOULINVIP&d=...

It was after eleven when we ventured back out to the street. I made sure to get another photo of the place - now blazing in its night glory. I convinced a few of the gang to head over to the Le Chat Noir 1881 - a café with a guy playing acoustic guitar and singing lovely French songs. The hours are from 7 am to 6 am! Who needs sleep! Well, we don't stay too late, but it is nice to soak up the atmosphere and people watch as we enjoy a nip of more wine and yummy snacks.
https://www.facebook.com/leChatNoir1881#_=_
https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g187147-d5503450-Reviews-Le_Chat_no...