The Seine is Flooding and a Visit to our Old Quartier

Everybody has been talking about the movie The Greatest Showman.  We've been patiently waiting for it to come to Paris.  Kelly and I went to the 10:30 am showing today.  The movies during the 10:00 hour are the only ones that are discounted here-we saved about 5 euros each going so early.  On the way we saw this ad for raclette pizza.  Raclette pizza sounds so crazy but Kelly really wants to try it.  Ham, raclette cheese, and maybe those are potato slices?  And don't forget the little cornichon on top!

Raclette Pizza

The Greatest Showman

The theatres and screens here seem to be pretty small.  But then there were only five of us there this morning.  We can see why they discount that time to draw in more movie goers.  We really enjoyed the movie and the music and choreography. 
We were surprised to see blue sky after the movie and celebrated with a Nutella banane crêpe on the way home.  We took a detour to check out the Seine.  The flooding has continued and the river still has not crested.  Maybe tomorrow.  The Seine is expected to crest at 20 feet.  Four feet is normal.  The worst flooding was recorded in 1910 at 28 feet.  The lower level of the Louvre with Islamic Art is closed and items in storage in the basement have been moved to safety.  I read that we have had twice as much rain as normal in January so I am not crazy when I say it is always raining.  I never go out without an umbrella, even when the forecast says no rain.  I never believe it!

The Seine Climbing up the
Stairs by Nôtre Dame

Kelly and the Seine

In Paris, there is a statue of a Zouave soldier on the side of the pont de l'Alma not far from the Eiffel Tower.  According to tradition, when the Seine covers the feet of the Zouave, the Seine is flooded.  As you can see, it has gone way past his feet and is approaching his waist!

Zouave on Pont de l'Alma

Seine up to the Zouave's hips

You may wonder what a Zouave is.  A Zouave was a French light infantry soldier originally from Algeria serving between 1830 and 1962.  They retained their oriental uniform for years.  This particular statue represents those who fought in the Battle of the Alma during the Crimean War in 1854.  The bateaux mouches are all docked and there is no river traffic except for small police boats.

Docked Boats

Beautiful Sky this Afternoon above
the Bateaux Mouches



La Grande Roue et le Pont Alexandre III



The sky this evening was amazing.  You can see the Eiffel Tower above the onion domes of the new Russian Orthodox Church near the Pont de l'Alma.

La Grand Palais and la Grande Roue

Russian Orthodox Church and the Eiffel Tower

I headed down avenue Rapp and then over to see what our students affectionately called Li'l Eiffie.  This was the first I had been here since we arrived a month ago.  We so miss our old neighborhood.  Being back there felt like I was home.  But we like our new neighborhood, too, and take advantage of being so close to the Seine and Nôtre Dame.





 

 

 

I walked down the Champ de Mars to the BYU apartment and our old quartier and caught a glimpse of the dome of Les Invalides where Napoleon is buried.

Les Invalides

The BYU apartment is just above the awning of the Papeterie.  The red geraniums were still blooming in the apartment windows.  We would water them every week for the woman who owned the building.  She was proud of her window boxes.

BYU Apartment Just Above
the Papeterie



41 avenue de la Motte-Picquet

I couldn't resist stopping at our favorite boulangerie a few doors down.  Unfortunately that late in the day I did not see anyone working who I recognized.  But I picked up Kelly's favorite chocolate éclair to bring home to him.

The "White Bakery"

La Boulangerie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I crossed the street to check out the rue Cler.  This is the pedestrian street where we did a lot of our shopping at the produce stands and the bargain grocery store-Leader Price.  The Leader Price signage was new and the boulangerie we used to call the Red Bakery is now lavender.  Of course even though no rain was in the forecast, it did start to rain on my way to the bus.  But remember-I never leave home without an umbrella!

Kelly and I savored the éclair when I got home-I should have bought two.  Next time....

rue Cler

Flower Shop

 

 

 

 

The "Red Bakery"

Rue Cler looking towards
avenue de la Motte-Picquet



Leader Price

 

Rue d'Assas

Today I went to the neighborhood where I lived in 1980 when I was on Study Abroad to see the Musée Zadkine on rue d'Assas near the Jardin du Luxembourg.  Ossip Zadkine (1890-1967) was a Russian sculptor who lived in France. The museum is in his former home and studio.



Entrance to the Museum

Zadkine's Garden



In 1920 he married an artist, Valentine Prax, and they moved to 100bis rue d'Assas in 1928.  He lived and worked here until his death in 1967.  It was interesting to see the contrast between his earliest works, which had a cubist or African feel to them, and the later sculptures in the garden.

Early Works

1965 Sculpture

His studio let in a lot of light.  It was across the garden from his apartment where he also worked.

Inside the Studio

Shutter Window Open on his Studio

It was such a contrast between this modern artist's home and studio and that of Gustave Moreau I saw yesterday.  Zadkine was born 8 years before Moreau died, and the contrast in their art is stunning.

After visiting the museum, I walked down the street to 76 rue d'Assas and the pension where I lived when I first met Kelly.  So many memories!

Le Pension Pédron on Rue d'Assas

Someone was leaning out the window cleaning the shutters on the third (US fourth) floor.  I think that was my room, or maybe the one next to it.  I really just wanted to peek inside!  The building looked like it had been recently painted and spruced up.
Our building was across the street from the marionette theatre in the Jardin du Luxembourg.  There were lots of runners in park even though it was gray and drizzly.

Marionette Theatre

Across rue Vavin from our pension was the building where we had our dinners every evening at 7 pm.  We were always excited when we had steak frites for dinner.  But we did sometimes get less appetizing meals such as beef tongue (I tried but couldn't eat the tip of the tongue I was served with all those taste buds) or brains (I escaped that meal because I was staying with a family in Pau in the Pyrenées for the week but Kelly was there).  For breakfast every morning we were given 1/3 of a baguette, jam and a bowl of milk or chocolat chaud served to us in our rooms.  Lunch was on our own.

Dinners at 78 Rue d'Assas

The neighborhood still has a lot of students around with several universities nearby.  But the neighborhood shops were definitely more upscale than in 1980.  Lots of expensive children's clothing boutiques and even a vegan hot dog joint.  But our boulangerie was still there.  That is where we learned to avoid pastries offered in little paper cups.  The cup meant the pastry was doused in liquor!

Boulangerie on Rue Vavin

It was fun walking down memory lane in the old neighborhood and seeing how Paris has stayed the same and changed in 38 years.

Musée National Gustave Moreau

I have really enjoyed my time in Paris to explore museums off the beaten path.  Yesterday I visited my favorite one so far.  It is the family home and studio of the artist Gustave Moreau (1826-1898), the master of French Symbolism.

One flight up were the rooms where Moreau lived.  Every wall was covered with paintings and drawings by Moreau and others.  The rooms were filled with objects he had meticulously collected or inherited.  Everything is arranged just as Moreau had it when he lived there.

Moreau's Study

Dining Room

End Table in Dining Room
with Extendable Candelabra Arms

I loved his bedroom filled with family photos and paintings.  It had a beautiful bed and a chess set.


Moreau's Bedroom




Moreau and his Mother

Cute Little Chair in the Bedroom

Upstairs were two huge open studios, the walls covered with his paintings, both finished and unfinished.  The studios were connected by a beautiful spiral staircase.

Studio

Moreau's Palette

Paint box

View from the spiral staircase

School Group in Upstairs Studio



Moreau mainly painted mythological or biblical figures and scenes.  My favorite was a painting of the Three Magi, which was unfinished. 

The Three Magi

This is definitely a museum I would recommend if you have the time.  There is so much to see in such a relatively small mansion.  A feast for the eyes!
I went back to the museum when Sue, Tom and Claire came to visit a couple of weeks later.  These are two of my favorite pictures.

Claire at Moreau's Studio

Analyzing a Painting

And I took my parents to the museum in April.  Mom loved the cute old sink in the bathroom.  No hot water, only cold.

Dad in the Dining Room

Mom and Dad on the Staircase Between Studios

Bathroom Sink

As I walked back to the metro I stopped in the Eglise Sainte Trinité - Church of the Holy Trinity.  Notice the blue sky that appeared yesterday afternoon after driving rain all day.

Eglise Sainte Trinité

The church just celebrated 150 years in November.

The church still had its Nativity set up- it was a modern one all in white.  And I loved the statue of Joan of Arc near the apse.  She's one of my favorite figures from French history.  It is fun to stumble on these pretty little churches all over Paris.

Nativity

Jeanne d'Arc