Le Marmottan Monet Musée

Saturday, after visiting the local market, Boulevard Charonne, we finally got to the Marmottan Monet Museum, the largest collection of Monet works, and also of Berthe Morisot works, but also presently featuring an exhibit of many Impressionist paintings from private collections around the world. Les impressionistes en privee. The place was packed--Saturday afternoon, duh--but certainly delivered both on the fame and quality and extensiveness of the collections. This was a no fotos place, and, in view of the crush of humanity, etc., we pretty much complied. Pretty much.

On the way, Place de la Nation, a view I like very much

Musee Marmottan Monet

One Vicki really liked 

Bras de Seine a Giverny--one we both really liked

Impression, soleil levant--the picture that gave Impressionism its name; well,
a hostile critic helped; Monet had spent 1870-71 in London and, no doubt, had
seen a few Turners; the Marmottan has a decent website and gallery, and much
else to look at...

Journée dans le 16e arrondissement

Thursday we had planned an ambitious walk in the 16th, taking in sights there, concluding our quest for the Eau de Paris carafe we wanted, and finishing up with a visit to the Marmottan Monet museum and its exhibition of Impressionist paintings from private collections around the world. As we got finally to La Muette, close to the museum, the hour was late, our feet were tired, and we decided we'd save Impressionism for another day.

We Metro'd to the Passy bridge, now the Pont Bir-Hakeim
(a WWII battle in North Africa), which is Paris' only bridge
over the Seine to carry motor vehicles, trains, and pedestrians

Also has some pretty nice sculpture

Some of the walk took us along the Allee des Cygnes, a former dike, now
beautifully landscaped and situated; out in the middle of the river

On the Allee, looking back to the Viaduc de
Passy and a Metro crossing it; and the Eiffel
Tower

A large river cruiser moored beneath the high-rises; a helium balloon with
tourist-laden gondola rises in the distance...

We are not the only people taking pictures here

Exercise area under a bridge across the Allee

Complete with four rock-climbing walls

At the end of the island, the original model for the Statue
of Liberty

At length, we got to the Pavilion of Water and its boutique of Eau de Paris
carafes and other goodies; the Pavilion is mostly a large and impressive
center for water and environmental education

Resuming our walk...wait a second...we've been here before

Indeed, Castel Beranger, which we saw in 2012

Still looking for a Hector Guimard tour of Paris, although I think we have seen
most of his stuff

Le Camembert, French national radio headquarters

In Proust country still

Although it's Balzac's house we're close to

I read Pere Goriot when I was in high school; that was enough Balzac

Admiring the architecture near La Muette

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore...

Friday was an administrative day, and that evening we entertained Janice, one
of Vicki's high school friends, who was passing through...

Une promenade dans les 8e et 17e arrondissements

Wednesday's walk, a reconnaissance really, was mostly in the 17th and 8th arrondissements, starting at the Arc de Triomphe, twisting and turning and ending after the Parc Monceau.

On Avenue de Wagram, the beautiful old Hotel Ceramic

Thus; belongs in Barcelona

On Avenue des Ternes, the FNAC now occupies a late 19th century department
store

With a beautiful glass ceiling way up there

Never miss an opportunity to visit a patisserie, Vicki says

The Alexander Nevsky Russian Church--open only on
Tuesdays and Fridays

At the Russian restaurant across the street, also closed, you and your friend
can try the caviar and vodka sampler for only 390 euros (you can just round
that off at $500, tax and tip included); such a deal

45 Boulevard de Courcelles, Proust family dwelling during
Marcel's years as a prig/fop/twit; no signage; now an embassy

Nearly across the street, the Pagoda (available for weddings,
funerals, bar mitzvahs...)

Now in Parc Monceau; the reconnaissance part

It is an old park, with many follies, etc.

Thus

Thus

And thus; despite the pix, the place was packed, especially with kids and nannies

And is not without historical interest

Thus, the first parachuting; the first lighter-than-air flight 
took place not far from here, in 1757, with the royals
looking on; I wonder whether the first parachuting was a
related event... 

The park is on the one-time periphery of Paris, and so here is the inevitable
rotunda, for collecting taxes on goods brought into the city

Le marché de Belleville

Our two days at the Louvre were pretty intense, so we decided to have a more relaxing day Tuesday, with just a visit to a market. A couple weeks ago one of our walks had taken us through Belleville and the aftermath of its Saturday market. The area is as ethnically diverse as any place in Paris, and we figured this would make for an especially interesting market. The Belleville market is indeed interesting, and very large and crowded. The cheap stuff is very cheap, the produce not as fresh as other markets we have seen, nor the variety as interesting. The aroma of the fish markets suggested maybe these fish had been to other markets before Belleville. The narrow aisle, the mass of humanity, etc., made for some interesting jostling and groping, but only three times was I run over by a shopping cart (one even produced a muted "desole"). Well, anyhow, this is real Paris, not tourist Paris, and we were glad to have had, and ended, the experience.

Google Earth view; the market runs the length of the diagonal, center left; it's
big, really big

This is the only photo I got inside the market

Happily, very happily, at the end of the market, there was a superb Asian grocery,
and we decided on Beijing duck for the next couple nights' dinners

Poulet noire (in case you've never seen such a thing; we hadn't)

Durian popsicles; OMG; in Paris!

This is what the back-side of a market looks like

Ditto

The only thing we bought at the market were these salicornes, something I'd
not seen since the south of England, last summer

Peking duck in Paris

Vicki made a brief video of the market, which you can view at http://youtu.be/a4hUAUCFbDI. Her second attempt was blocked by a fellow market-goer, who explained, we think, that this was a non-non. Lots of people here who maybe don't have papers, I surmise. Anyhow, this was another of those one-in-a-lifetime experiences.