L'Orangerie et Mariage Freres

One sunny afternoon, Danielle met me in the Tuileries to go see the L’Orangerie, Jeu de Paume, and the Louvre. The Tuileries and the Louvre courtyard actually houses 5 museums; Louvre, L’Orangerie, Jeu de Paume, Les Arts Decoratifs, and Musée de la Mode et du Textile. We started at L’Orangerie, which is a small building with two viewing rooms of Monets. There are four Monet paintings in each viewing room that are stretched out along the walls, making them giant panoramic paintings. They were absolutely gorgeous! Downstairs housed another exhibit of famous artists during the same movement as Monet.

We headed to Jeu de Paume, museums of photography and contemporary art, but ultimately had no interest to go in. So instead we walked over to Mariage Freres, a famous tea shop in the Marias (new site: in the carousel de Louvre!). We sat for tea and ordered a pot of peach/apricot tea and a tray of desserts. The waiters flirted with us a little as they poured our tea. We were hugely outnumbered by Parisian business people and bridge clubs, so it was probably nice to see some younger girls. The dessert tray was a few mini classically French desserts: chocolat-framboise mousse, violet macaron, Madeline, gateau pistache, and crème brule. Delicious! The Mariage Freres shop also has a store in the front, which smells absolutely amazing. Even as we walked out, I could smell the herbal and fruit teas all the way down the street.

We headed back to the Louvre for my final visit! We walked through the statue courtyards and viewed all of the Italian, French, and Greek statues. Now, I haven’t seen ALL of the Louvre, but I saw what I was interested in and can honestly can that I’m satisfied with the completion of the Louvre Challenge.

Boule

Weaving through the Parisian parks are gravel/sand pathways and courtyards, which make running a little difficult, but they provide the perfect location for “Boule Lyonnaise.” Boule is the French version of Bocce, which is the Italian version of American bowling. If you’ve spent some time with my family at the lake, you know that Bocce is a social, fun sport with a hint of hardcore competition and a keen sense of ball positioning. As the sun set later and later and the days grew warmer, more and more Parisian Papas lined up along the gravel to play Boule. I would see tons lively games going on in every park. One night after work, I spotted a group of young business men gathered in the Tuileries, stripped of their jackets, with one hand full of beer and the other hand grasping the Boule ball. Seems like a nice way to unwind…