getting outside

i am in a transition stage, of course. moving to paris is a big change. i feel that i had gotten a bit suburban and i see that now as i hang out in the apt. in belmont, i would hang out in the house. all of paris is at my feet, and we are in the apt. i know these are the last few days of summer vacation for j, and she is happy just hanging out, inside. strange, but it is an effort to go out. so i have made that effort.

yesterday, i lured her out to go to a fun “shopping” area – around the odeon. we took the metro, and then we wandered around, exploring little windy, ancient streets. this is one of the things i love most about paris - just walking around and looking at things. she enjoyed it. we made our way home. (p has been working diligently in his makeshift office in the bedroom.)

today, we went to the “orangerie museum” at the base of the tuileries guardens – which used to be the green house for the gardens. we went to see monet’s water lilies that are resident there. they are always beautiful. jj loved seeing them too. they are amazing for several reasons. firstly, monet’s eyesight was deteriorating from cataracts when he was painting them. up close they seem very abstract, with lots of big brushstrokes in various vibrant colors, seemingly random. as you step back you see a beautiful rendition of water lilies in a pond with reflections of trees and sky and clouds. often the reflections are painted in vertical strokes and the lilies in horizontals – so the brushstroke directions differentiate them. it is very clear that the lilies are sitting on top of the water. he did 250-300 canvases of lilies. in the past i had gotten overexposed to monet and thought i didn’t care about his stuff anymore. then i went to see the water lilies, and was blown away. now every time i see them, i am amazed at how beautiful they are. good job, claude. (there’s another group of them at the musee marmottan in the 16th arrondissement) Print this post