Merci beaucoup...Au Revoir, Paris..for now.

As I sit here in Jackson Hole, my home, I want you to know how much I have been procrastinating on writing my final post.  Without being completely maudlin, saying goodbye to Paris last Thursday, December 29th was not an easy thing for me to do.  I have titled my last post accordingly...no matter where I went...to the super marche, the outdoor marche, a bistro, a cafe, a boutique, a museum...every encounter ended with the same response....merci beaucoup...au revoir. 

October, November and December 2011 were a dream come true for me and I want everyone to know how much I appreciate my employer, the Jackson Hole Land Trust, for making that all possible.  I had the opportunity to wake up every morning and decide where I wanted to go and what I wanted to see and where I wanted to eat...and that is such a gift and such a luxury.  I have walked and climbed steps like never before...Pat and I referred to the Metro steps as the endless stairmaster!  The list of what to do and what to see in a city like Paris is endless....whether it was art or architecture or a park or the river Seine or just aimlessly wandering to see what I might come across.  I tried to document my time with photos from my wanderings and I hope you enjoyed them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

I loved taking my French classes at Lutece Langue on Sebastopol and loved having the opportunity to take a few cooking classes at L'atelier des Chefs and La Cuisine.  My dear friends who visited each brought a different dimension to each day, Pat, Plat, Peggy, Gene, Nancy W., Susie, Babs, Nancy G., Pete S., Jeanie, Pete W., Barb O., Dieter, LeeAnna, Mark, Sarah, Michael, Jackie, Nick, Bill, Barbara A., Barb B., Larry, Mimi and Dore.  Each made my time that much more special so merci.

I look forward to returning to my very special apartment at 21 Rue du Pont Louis Philippe and in the meantime, will keep my wonderful memories close to my heart.  I will hope that each time I return I will find this stunning city as overwhelmingly beautiful as I did this time. 

So, with a tear in my eye and a smile on my face, I say merci beaucoup...au revoir....for now.

Christmas in Nice

A room with a view....quite a view I must say!

Visiting our dear friends, Mimi and Dore Gormezano, living now in Nice, we enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Hotel Negresco. 

Mimi and Dore showed us a great time in this wonderful city bestowed with incredible weather and natural beauty.

This view was part of our morning walk each day....

Built in the mid 1800's , La Reserve, is the home of Mimi and Dore.  Their apartment has a spectacular 180 degree view of the villa studded cliffs to the blue azur color of the Mediterranean.  It almost seems as if they are floating on the water.

Le Corbusier

Designed and built in the 1920s, Corbusier has several homes he designed scattered around Paris, primarily on the outskirts of the city.  We first attempted to reach this home by bus with no success and then finally succeeded the following day traveling by metro to the end of Line 4 in the 14th.

Another example of his work located in the 13th on the periphery of the city.

We visited the Le Corbusier Foundation (Maison Jeanneret) in the 16th and had an opportunity to go inside one of his homes adjacent to the Foundation called Maison La Roche.

Raoul La Roche set up an outstanding collection of modern art, including works by Picasso, Braque, Leger, Gris and Lipchitz.

To house his collection, he commissioned from Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret a combined house and art gallery, which was built in Square du Docteur Blanche.

When Le Corbusier was given the commission for Maisons La Roche and Jeanneret, he was 36 years old and had already completed several buildings in the town of his birth, la Chaux-de-Fonds, in Switzerland.  He was an architect, town planner, painter and theorist and deeply committed to developing housing for the working man but, paradoxically, what established his reputation  as an avant-garde architect was the work he undertook for an enlightened middle-class clientele. 

All dressed up for the holidays....Notre Dame.

Does anyone ever get tired of this view????

or what about the view from the back....takes your breath away every time. 

 

Larry arrived....finally

and what is an arrival without a lunch at les philosophes???...the neighborhood hang out.

Fromage......

Those who know me well have always said that I should work in a cheese shop........I love everything about a fromagerie and have a hard time walking past all the wonderful ones here in Paris without going in and taking a look.....this particular goat cheese was dried on a chestnut leaf. 

Isn't it beautiful....tres beau?

Musee Jacquemart Andre

Relatively small museum in the 8th housing the family's personal collection which included Rembrandts and Botticellis.