Paris Business Trip January 2010

I've sort of lost count of the number of times I have had the wonderful occasion to spend time in Paris, more than 4, but probably less than 8, however I never tire of it. There is something magical about the city, its beautiful buildings and grand boulevards, the Seine meandering along with houseboats tied up along the banks, the outdoor cafes (full even on a cold winter's day!), the art, the statues, the window-shopping and oh! the food!

Pat and I left Barcelona on Saturday, January 23rd on a morning flight to Charles de Gaulle airport and checked into the Hotel de Noailles near the Opera, an area that I didn't know very well, but which I found to be central and close to the Metro. The hotel is just down the street from Coty's head office. After an expensive (and not so very good) lunch at the famous Cafe de la Paix, we spent an hour at the Musee de L'Orangerie to see Claude Monet's renowned "Waterlilies".






























The following morning we attended mass at Notre Dame Cathedral at 11:30 a.m., spending time afterwards exploring the Church.







































The Christmas Creche








After Church, a delicious lunch at the Brasserie de St. Louis (2 pictures below) on the adjacent island. We walked along the main street to get ice cream at the famous Berthillon ice cream shop (despite the gray damp 3 degree temperature) then caught a taxi to bring us up to the Dali Espece Museum at Montmartre. Living in Spain near "Dali Country", we were keen to see what was there! Definitely a worthwhile visit if you like Dali's quirky art and sculptures!





























One afternoon while Pat was in meetings, I toured the beautiful Opera House. Our guide was excellent and gave an entertaining 1 1/2 hour tour with some good stories. Definitely a "must-see"! Because of on-going rehearsals in the main theatre, we were unable to peek inside on that afternoon, however, our tickets were good to return the following day, which I did.






The Palais Garnier








The main staircase inside the Opera















Inside the theatre















The beautiful ceiling















And afterwards, tea at the famous and very posh "foodie" shop, Hediard, on Place de la Madeleine, behind the Church. (14.50 Euros for a pot of tea and a fancy pastry!)

















The next day I spent the morning touring the mid-19th century Jacquemart-Andre House with its collection of antiques and art (Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Bernini, Botticelli and Donatello among others) as collected by Edouard Andre and his portraitist wife, Nellie Jacquemart. Lunch afterwards in the popular tearoom was a delight and full of local Parisiens (shh! don't tell the tourists!). After dinner I made my way out to the airport to meet Pat for our flight overseas to New Orleans and on to Fredericton to check on our lakehouse construction. Thankfully, it was considerably warmer in NOLA than in Paris!

Until next time...