DAY 4

Finally, the clouds have gone and the day is bright. Paris, in full sunlight, is stunning.

I went to Musee de L Armee. It is another big and bold structure.  There are maps, paintings, and tanks on display.  Also, for 5£ one can visit the tomb of Napoleon.  I chose not to.  Why bother when there is a perfectly good, large-sized picture of the tomb near the ticket stand.

Then i walked towards Place de la Concord and chilled a bit by the glorious green an gold fountains.  As i was about to take off, and Indian guy stopped me and asked me to take his picture.  I did his bidding, and then we began to talk.  He was from UCSD, an engineering PH.d. candidate on vacation in Europe.  We buddied-up and walked along the river towards the Louvre and Palais Royal.  After all this walking and talking i became tired and decided to visit the Louvre later on in the day.  The advantage of this decision was two-fold.  First, i could take a nap with my birds flying around the room.  And secondly, i could save the admission fee for the Louvre (Free Mondays After 6). So, I exchanged e-mails and parted with my new friend.

The Louvre

The mother of them all. Truly the biggest single building i have seen in my life, so far.  But the collection is less than impressive.

Before you mock my taste, let me explain.  Art, for me, is impressive and worth my time only if it speaks to me in the language of feelings.  I care not for trivia and why the artist chose to paint the hands slightly bigger then the subjects head.  I want to be overwhelmed by he work.  I want it to grab my attention, hold me near, and make me feel something. Anything.

The Mona Lisa is certainly one such work.  However there were so many people around it, flashing there cameras, that one could not begin to concentrate.

There were a few others, handful, that caught my eye, but overall it seemed like a lot of wasted space.  This statement is further amplified by the fact that 2/3 of the collection is stored below ground because there is lack of space in the gallery itself.  Oh, well.  At least it was free.

Below the exhibits is a wonderful restaurant.  Here i had my first, official, French sit down and eat experience.  Up to this point i have mostly been feeding on pastries and sandwiches.

The food was great, and very reasonably priced. I had duck with a salad, and a glass of awesome Montballziac desert wine. 30£ including tip.

Tip of the day:  In Paris wine can be cheaper than Cola.