This is a pretty cool shot of the little arch with the Arc de Triumph in the background. This is just outside of the museum
Outside the Louvre. I must say that French security is pretty laughable. I was not surprised that our purses needed to go though an xray machine but there were three people sitting there talking and they didn't even look at the screen as the purses were being scanned....and just a few days before there had been an art theft in Paris at a different location.
Of course I had to get my picture taken in front of the Venus de Milo.....seeing as our bodies are so very much alike. Yes......I have a rock hard abdomen.......ha ha.....don't I wish.....and I am often referred to as the goddess of love.....ha ha......ya right.
The paintings by the Italian artists were my very favorite. I was surprised at how many of the pictures depicted Christ's birth or cruxifiction. This painting is the Madonna of the Angels. During the 1200's almost every church in Europe had a painting like this. Mary was a cult like figure....adored and prayed to by the faithful for bringing Jesus into the world.
The louvre was packed with tourists and school groups. Walking into the grand gallery there were so many people.
We were trying to find the Mona Lisa and we came upon a room that was so crowded just off from the grand gallery. I knew it had to be in there. Yep.....this is us.....with the Mona Lisa in the distance.
I'm not going to lie. I was a bit disappointed in the painting. It wasn't as big as we were expecting. It was beautiful......but I think there is a lot of hype. I saw many beautiful works of art that day including other Davinci's which I thought were equal in beauty. This was the only piece in the museum that was flanked by guards and had a roped off area so you could not get to close and she was behind glass so it was hard to get a good picture. We were packed in there like sardines. One guy yelled out "Mona Lisa....can I have your autograph?" Another yelled "Mona Lisa.....look at me?" Scott and I both looked at each other and decided that we were missing something.
From the Mona Lisa we headed into the French section. This also had beautiful paintings but I preferred the Italian artists. I liked the vibrant colors that the Italians used. Several of the french paintings depicted Napolean. I tried to get Scott to put his hand inside his shirt to take a picture.
We stood and watched this artist making a copy of one of the paintings in the french section. He was very talented. It looked just like the original to me.
One of my favorite exhibits was the African one. One reason was that it was a newer exhibit and it was downstairs and there was hardly a soul in sight. After being crammed into the gallery upstairs it was nice to have some peace and quiet to explore this section. I was intrigued by the magnificent works of art created from a piece of wood.
We found a sculpture of Scott. Pretty good likeness.
The lighting in the Louvre is very dark but we came around the corner into the french sculptures and there was daylight coming in and we were surrounded by gigantic sculptures. The entire room was beautiful. While we were in that section we ran into 4 sister missionaries. I walked up to them and said "Hello sisters. It must be P-day." They knew immediately that we must be members of the church since we knew what P-day was. They smiled and we talked to them for a few minutes. No surprise that three of them were from Utah and the other girl was from Virginia. I told them how lucky they were to be in the Louvre on their preparation day. I told them our son was serving in Mexico and on his P-days he is trying to get cockroaches out of his apartment.
We saw Napoleans apartments as our last stop in the Louvre. He sure enjoyed the finer things of life. There was about an hour left before closing time....but we were through. Our feet and backs were aching. We headed ended our day just as it began.....under the glass pyramid.
After a short rest at the hotel we went out for a late dinner. I ordered chicken and potatoes and was surprised when it came in a souffle bowl with a heavy rich cream sauce. It was quite tasty. Dessert was delicious. I had upside down apple pie and Scott had a waffle drenched in chocolate sauce and whip cream. He was in heaven. We headed up the the Champs Elysees for a late night walk to see the Arc at night. It was a tiring but amazing day. I have never seen so many magnificent pieces of artwork assembled in one place. What a treat!
This morning we decided to take on the Louvre. I can honestly say that it kicked our butts. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine the size of that museum. We spent 6 1/2 hours there and we still didn't see everything....and we were rushing through everything that we did see.
Outside the Louvre. I must say that French security is pretty laughable. I was not surprised that our purses needed to go though an xray machine but there were three people sitting there talking and they didn't even look at the screen as the purses were being scanned....and just a few days before there had been an art theft in Paris at a different location.
We got a map when we got our tickets and did we ever need it. So we just picked a place and ended up in the Eygptian exhibit first.....but we got turned around in there and ended up in one of the sculpture rooms.
Of course I had to get my picture taken in front of the Venus de Milo.....seeing as our bodies are so very much alike. Yes......I have a rock hard abdomen.......ha ha.....don't I wish.....and I am often referred to as the goddess of love.....ha ha......ya right.
The paintings by the Italian artists were my very favorite. I was surprised at how many of the pictures depicted Christ's birth or cruxifiction. This painting is the Madonna of the Angels. During the 1200's almost every church in Europe had a painting like this. Mary was a cult like figure....adored and prayed to by the faithful for bringing Jesus into the world.
The louvre was packed with tourists and school groups. Walking into the grand gallery there were so many people.
We were trying to find the Mona Lisa and we came upon a room that was so crowded just off from the grand gallery. I knew it had to be in there. Yep.....this is us.....with the Mona Lisa in the distance.
I'm not going to lie. I was a bit disappointed in the painting. It wasn't as big as we were expecting. It was beautiful......but I think there is a lot of hype. I saw many beautiful works of art that day including other Davinci's which I thought were equal in beauty. This was the only piece in the museum that was flanked by guards and had a roped off area so you could not get to close and she was behind glass so it was hard to get a good picture. We were packed in there like sardines. One guy yelled out "Mona Lisa....can I have your autograph?" Another yelled "Mona Lisa.....look at me?" Scott and I both looked at each other and decided that we were missing something.
From the Mona Lisa we headed into the French section. This also had beautiful paintings but I preferred the Italian artists. I liked the vibrant colors that the Italians used. Several of the french paintings depicted Napolean. I tried to get Scott to put his hand inside his shirt to take a picture.
We stood and watched this artist making a copy of one of the paintings in the french section. He was very talented. It looked just like the original to me.
One of my favorite exhibits was the African one. One reason was that it was a newer exhibit and it was downstairs and there was hardly a soul in sight. After being crammed into the gallery upstairs it was nice to have some peace and quiet to explore this section. I was intrigued by the magnificent works of art created from a piece of wood.
We found a sculpture of Scott. Pretty good likeness.
The lighting in the Louvre is very dark but we came around the corner into the french sculptures and there was daylight coming in and we were surrounded by gigantic sculptures. The entire room was beautiful. While we were in that section we ran into 4 sister missionaries. I walked up to them and said "Hello sisters. It must be P-day." They knew immediately that we must be members of the church since we knew what P-day was. They smiled and we talked to them for a few minutes. No surprise that three of them were from Utah and the other girl was from Virginia. I told them how lucky they were to be in the Louvre on their preparation day. I told them our son was serving in Mexico and on his P-days he is trying to get cockroaches out of his apartment.
This was a touching sculpture of a french soldier clinging to a wounded child.
Thses next 2 sculptures bring all new meaning to the term "Bite Me!"
We saw Napoleans apartments as our last stop in the Louvre. He sure enjoyed the finer things of life. There was about an hour left before closing time....but we were through. Our feet and backs were aching. We headed ended our day just as it began.....under the glass pyramid.
After a short rest at the hotel we went out for a late dinner. I ordered chicken and potatoes and was surprised when it came in a souffle bowl with a heavy rich cream sauce. It was quite tasty. Dessert was delicious. I had upside down apple pie and Scott had a waffle drenched in chocolate sauce and whip cream. He was in heaven. We headed up the the Champs Elysees for a late night walk to see the Arc at night. It was a tiring but amazing day. I have never seen so many magnificent pieces of artwork assembled in one place. What a treat!
2 comments:
Ah yes.
You didn't mention that after the museum, dad and I discussed penis sculptures over the phone. From across the Atlantic...that was a first.
Oh the Louvre....we studied for weeks prior to going. It was 1000 percent overwhelming. Our minds were whirling. It was one of the best days of my life. Yes, Mona was smaller than I thought. Some of the room sized paintings were bigger than I ever imagined. I was plum tuckered out that is for sure. I sat down on a chair I found. A lady asked me in French if I knew where the bathroom was. I said yes over there...and I told her politely that I did not speak French. She laughed and said "yes you do" in English to me. I was just a tired girl. So much walking, so much to learn and soak in. Your photographs and comments brought a smile to my face today. Thanks for sharing.
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