Friday July 20 in Paris

I woke up this morning with a grateful heart for all the friends and family that share this experience with me.  Yesterday, my dear friend and fellow explorer, Janice flew home.   Simultaneously, daughter Emily and her Matt arrived.  Other dear friends, Ilene and her husband Wayne, made an adjustment in their travel plans to include a visit to Paris and some time together.  Libby and Jim initiated the apartment while Perry and I were in Normandy.  Eileen, back home worked through the whole grant process with me, and went on her own adventure to Myanmar.  I am thankful for my wonderful parents cheering me on all the time, dear Perry who has helped in countless ways from driving through crazy Paris to taking pictures of everything I asked, and of course you, my friends who are sharing the adventure as I write.   Thank you all for being a part of this!

Since yesterday was a bit of a transition  day, there was no "Patriot" work done.  However, I helped Janice navigate a new way to the airport---we love the busses of Paris, then I helped Matt and Emily find their way out of the Chatelet metro station and to the apartment, did the cleaning and grocery shopping typical of preparing for guests, and had a delightful dinner with friends. 

We dined at the restaurant right next to the apartment.  The name of the restaurant is Chez La Veille, or Adrienne.  Reviews say that  good, traditional food is prepared here.  We agreed, but we also loved that atmosphere.  Perhaps that is what is so wonderful about French food.  Attention to details-- like perfectly cooked vegetables, a combination of subtle herbs and spices that enhance the sauce on the meat, and the beautiful, but not too filling desserts make the meal a delightful pastime.  We loved the young waiter who took great delight in "translating" the menu for us.  Although we stumbled through a few items, that was a fun conversation.  The patrons at the other tables were friendly and seemed to enjoy our group and the fun we were having.  Bravo to all!  Take a look at Adrienne's.   You may need to put this place on your list for future trips to Paris. 

Chez La Vieille - Adrienne,

Wednesday July 18 in Paris

   

Today was quite a "Patriot" day. We started out at St. Roch church that is noted in some guide books as the most beautiful Baroque church in Paris. While Janice looked at the art, I knew I remembered a "Patriot" connection. I found the tomb
of Admiral De Grasse. He was the experienced naval officer who accompanied General Rochambeau from France to America. Together, the two offered their expertise to Washington and the Continental army. It was De Grasse who bottled up the Chesapeake, prevented the British navy from reinforcing Cornwallis, and set the stage for the land troops to win the battle of Yorktown. The dark church did not allow for a better picture. So sorry.

Part of the inscription reads: .,,,he gained everlasting glory having insured the
independence of the United States of America. It also adds ...in memory of this military
victory of immeasurable consequences.

Later in the day, I visited the part of Paris where I became acquainted with the most "Patriot" monuments,  In the 16th arrondissment, there are many tributes to Americans.   Here again, is one to Admiral de Grasse.

This detail shows the silhouettes of Washington, De Grasse, and Rochambeau.

This is one more monument to DeGrasse on his ship, the Ville de Paris. I read in Alice's book that after the victory at Yorktown, De Grasse invited Washington, Lafayette, and Rochambeau on the ship to celebrate. He called George Washington "mon petit General". Interestingly, this great naval hero never put his feet on American soil.

Here is another spot to find the Patriots.  One of my favorite statues is located on this place or square .  Take a look at Washington and Lafayette.  You might already know that
Washington did not have any children of his own.  Lafayette did not have his parents as both died while he was still very young.  These two men bonded and developed a father-son relationship.  Lafayette returned to the United States twice after the American
Revolution.  He also named his son George Washington Lafayette.

The inscription reads:  Washington and Lafayette
Hommage to France for its generous contribution to the struggle to the people of the
United States  fro independence and liberty. 

Around this statue are many more streets and monuments to the War for Independence.

This French admiral led the first fleet sent to help the "Insurgents', as the French called
them. 

This park is often filled with young children playing.  I hope they learn about the
namesake.

Just a few blocks away, here is another monument to the French military helping the Americans.   This is General Rochambeau. 

Of course, here is George Washington.  The statue was a gift from the women of the United States.

              

This is one of the several copies of the Statue of Liberty in Paris.

More memorials to Americans are here in the 16th.   This one commemorates Americans who joined the French army before the United States participated in that war. (I've lost this picture several times.   I will try to publish it again later.  Please excuse). 

Here is one  to the American ambassador who served during war time.

President Wilson lived in this area while he attended the Peace Conference after WWI

Aside from all the carping of tourists and newscasters, I am certain that the French people are great fans and friends of the Americans.   Today was proof of that.  

What travel experiences have you had  that indicate what the rest of the world thinks of Americans?

July 16 in Paris

Here is a sunny day for walking and exploring in Paris.   My "Patriot" quest took me to 40 rue Cherche Midi in the 6th arrondissment.  This was the residence of the the Comte de Rochambeau.  At the time of the American Revolution, he was 55 years old and preparing to retire from a life-long career in service to the French Army.  Louis XVI had another idea.   He appointed Rochambeau to be the leader of French troops that were to aid the "Insurgents" in their war for independence.  The Comte sailed for America with more than 5,000 French soldiers and officers.  Upon arrival, he placed himself "under the orders" of George Washington.  The French troops were stationed at Newport and the wary population watched as they departed their ships.   Rochambeau ordered his soldiers to behave with utmost decorum, and the Americans fell in love with them.  (American have always loved men with French accents).  Even though the Comte claimed to be subordinate to Washington, the experienced warrior along with comrade, Admiral De Grasse concocted the plan to surround Cornwallis at Yorktown.   Of course it worked and today Rochambeau is sometimes called another "Founding Father".  

Rochambeau lived in this house before and after the American Revolution.   It was also here that French officers from that war met to organize the French chapter of the Society of Cincinnati. (That is an organization started by veteran officers of the War who hoped to emulate the life of the Roman hero, Cincinnatus.  They along, with the French chapter of the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution, organize the ceremony at the Picpus cemetery every year.  Take a look at their website.
http://societyofthecincinnati.org/about/organization

 How about this?  As we were walking today, I discovered this beautiful candle shop.  Digging into my memory bank, I remembered reading about the candle maker of Louis XVI still operating today.  Sure enough, we found it.  The name of the shop is Cire Trvdon.  Imagine all the candles needed to light the chandeliers  at Versailles.   They came from here.

Sunday July 15 in Paris

Another Sunday in Paris and the weather continues to be cool and a bit rainy.  Of course that did not stop us from exploring, but the slower pace of the weekend is welcome.  We decided to take on the challenge of the city busses.  They provide a much better view of the Paris, and on the weekends with less traffic, they are fun.  On our way to the market, we changed busses at Place de la Concorde.  We spied Hotel Coislin which is attached to the Hotel Crillon.   That was where we found the plaque commemorating the Franco-American alliance.  Franklin had worked for over two years to convince the French to aid the Americans in their efforts.  The signing of this treaty was the acknowledgment that the United States really was a country of its own.  The wording on the plaque is interesting. It names the location, date, signers,  and continues with ..."signed the treaty of friendship, commerce, and alliance, by which France, first of all nations, recognized the independence  of the United States.

 After shopping for our dinner at the Rue Cler market, we moved on to a museum new to both Janice and me.  The name was Musee Nissim de Camondo.  At one time, this was the home of Count Moise de Camondo.  He was a prominent banker that loaned money to the French government. When his son was killed  while serving in WWI, he became reclusive.  His only other child, a daughter, married, and lived at the beautiful home for several years, but then moved elsewhere with her family.  The Count decided to will his home and art collection to the people of France.  Tragically, after his death, his remaining family succumbed to the Nazi terrors and perished in a concentration camp.
Take a look at this website.

 http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotos-g187147-d232159-Musee_Nissim_de_Camondo-Paris_Ile_de_France.html

Behind this home is the equally beautiful Parc Monceau.  I read that many brides like to have wedding pictures taken here, but whom did we see?  I think this young woman wanted to be Cinderella.  Her Prince Charming was just outside my frame.  The photographer was setting up the picture

What a beautiful backdrop for any picture.

Saturday July 14 in Paris

The first sign that today was unusual in Paris was the fact that there were no early morning street noises like trash pick-up or construction work.   Of course, it's a national holiday, Bastille Day!

The early part of the day seemed like a Sunday--quiet, little traffic and not many people out and about.   As the day progressed, the crowds returned.  The fireworks will begin about 10:45 PM.  (It doesn't get dark here until then).  There was a parade down the Champs Elysees, concert on the Champs de Mars and the fireworks at the Eiffel Tower.

Here are a few things we did early in the day.  We combined our "To Do" lists and Janice navigated us out to the Puces de Vanves.  It was a great brocante market.  (Brocante is not quite antiques, but not junk either).   We saw silverware, old clothes, furniture, buttons, bird baths, you name it.

In the same district is a statue of Thomas Paine that I have always wanted to visit.  It is a beautiful tribute to the man sometimes known as the "Voice of the Revolution".   Paine was influential in spurring on the American Revolution, and the French Revolution as well.  He wrote Common Sense before the outbreak of the war.  It convinced many Americans to support the patriots.  Later, he contributed The Crisis.  It encouraged Americans to keep up the fight.  Later, he moved to  France and supported the changes in government there.  He was such a "world citizen" that he was elected to the French Assembly while he was living in England.   He came to France to help direct the revolution, but he soon realized that it was taking a turn toward violence.  He was imprisoned for preaching moderation.  James Monroe, the new ambassador from America secured his freedom, and Paine returned to the United States.  Because of a quote from Napoleon indicating that every city should have a golden statue to Thomas Paine,  there is one in Paris.

Thomas Paine
Citizen of the World
English by Birth
French by Decree
American by Adoption

July 13 in Paris

Today was the first official rainy day in Paris.  Several times the skies cleared, but we were wet and wearing raincoats most of the day.

First stop on the agenda  was the Musee de Monnaies--sort of.  After studying the website, I could not determine if the museum was open while under  renovation or not.   Finally, we decided to trapse over there to find out.  No luck, it is closed.   However, I did take a picture of the brilliant man who was in charge of the French Mint or Monnaies.  The Marquis de Condorcet was the the "Inspecteur de Monnaies" while also being a famous mathematician and political philosopher.  Alice Jouve said that he and Thomas Jefferson were "soul mates".  They spent many hours discussing the future of government.  Jefferson included several of Condorcet's books in his library that later became the basis for our Library of Congress.

The goal for visiting the Monnaies was to find some copies of the medals commissioned by the United States to honor battles during the American Revolution, and heroes such as Horatio Gates, Anthony Wayne,  Lafayette, Franklin, and the Treaty of Paris.  None were available in the "boutique", but one of the clerks gave us some suggestions for finding old ones in several different locations.  I'm hoping for bon chance--good luck.


Another "Patriots" stop today was on the rue Jacob.  In this building was signed the Treaty of Paris where England officially recognized the independence of the former 13 colonies.  Although the room where this historic event took place is not open to the public, here is a picture of the plaque outside.

(By the way, in an interesting coincidence, the Marquis de Condorcet lived in this same building while a student)

The final stop for the day was at the Hotel Crillon.  We believed that this luxury hotel of today was first the location of the signing of the Treaty of Friendship and Commerce between the United States and France.  Although we could not find the plaque, we did enjoy walking through the beautiful building. After a discussion with the Concierge, we found a different and important plaque, but not the one we hoped for.

We had to get special permission and an escort to see this. I believe this commemorates the Paris Peace Conference at the conclusion of World War I and resulted in part in the creation of the League of Nations, predecessorr to the United Nations

More from July 11

As I mentioned, Perry left to return to the U.S. today.  I spent the day "working".   I cleaned the apartment, washed clothes in the tiny washing machine,and then  dried them by hanging them on the drying rack.  That reminds me that there are no pictures published to show the apartment.   I'll give that a try.

Always needed in a Paris apartment--flowers.

Thank goodness the TV gets the BBC.   It's nice to hear English sometimes.

This tine kitchen does not allow for much cooking, but the pasta we made one night and the eggs in the morning are welcome.

Yes, that is a window in the shower.

Plenty of storage space

Comfy bed with wonderful linens.  Always a good night's sleep.  

Then I wandered around the stores on the Rue de Rivoli as the second markdowns are in process for the semi-annual sales.  It was a big change of pace.  Although I did not take pictures, it was interesting to watch Parisians dig through the sales racks to find that big bargain.   I saw many shopping bags, so I know there was serious shopping taking place.  

The "Patriots" took a break today, but here is some interesting information..... John Adams did not have enough to do in Paris as he was not in charge of the Franco-American negotiations.  He did engage in many walks across the city and here is an excerpt from some of his letters.  Included are his observations on  France, and French women.

Passy, 25 April, 1778.

MY DEAREST FRIEND,

....If human nature could be made happy by anything that can please the eye, the ear, the taste, or any other sense, or passion, or fancy, this country would be the region for happiness. But if my country were at peace, I should be happier among the rocks and shades of Penn's hill ; and would cheerfully exchange all the elegance, magnificence, and sublimity of Europe, for the simplicity of Braintree and Weymouth.

...To tell you the truth, I admire the ladies here. Don t be jealous. They are handsome, and very well educated. Their accomplishments are exceedingly brilliant, and their knowledge of letters and arts exceeds that of the English ladies, I believe.

What do you enjoy about France??