Happy Hanukkah

Rob and I have the good fortune of meeting people with a wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, and religions while living in Greece. Our Jewish friends held a Hanukkah party at Loring Hall tonight to teach us about the traditions and history of their religion.

Hanukkah has a complex history but generally it commorates the victory of the Jewish people and rededication of the Holy Temple in Jeruslem in the 2nd century BCE. Tonight we lit several Menorah and had traditional Hanukkah foods (foods fried or baked in oil) including latkes and doughnuts.

Turin: Day One

Now that Rob and I are back in Athens with free internet we can post a few blogs about our experience in Turin (Torino). We had a great time, ate a lot of good food and chocolate, and met many wonderful people. Shhh, don't tell anybody though because the Torinesi don't want it to become the next tourist destination.

After departing from Paris via Charles de Gaulle we flew direct to Milan Malpensa and took a bus straight to Turin bypassing Milan completely. Unfortunately it was a hazy day and the mountain views we were hoping for during the bus ride didn't work out. After dropping our bags at the hotel we headed out for a pizza lunch followed by a visit to the city center known as Piazza Castello, in which you see the Palazzo Madama in the photo below.

Palazzo Madama houses the collections of the Museo Civico d'Arte Antica, Turin's municipal museum of ancient art. The name of the museum is a bit of a misnomer, as the collections also include medieval and renaissance art. As you can see from the picture it's an interesting building with a medieval back and tower with a Baroque facade on the front. From the tower we were able to see most of the city including Piazza Castello, which was being set up with a giant wooden nativity scene and advent calendar.

The Palazzo Madama also had a special exhibit going on that featured Michelangelo's Madonna col Bambino. The museum website succinctly describes the drawing as follows: "In this large sheet, Michelangelo expands on the theme of the Virgin nursing the Child, with touches of intense physicality suggested by the protective embrace of the mother and the energetic gesture of her son. This is a preparatory sketch, though we do not know which final work it was for. The Virgin is seen looking towards the right, as though attracted by some sudden event, possibly with a tinge of apprehension brought on by her fears for the destiny of her son. Some light touches of black chalk show how the artist changed his mind, with the head of the Virgin originally bent forward, her eyes looking down. The Child emerges in sculptural relief, in a contrast of dark shadows, strokes of red chalk and touches of white light."

After our afternoon at the museum we strolled west along Via Garibaldi, the major pedestrianized shopping street, all lit up for the holidays, and finished with dinner at a great local wine bar called Tre Galli to sample the local Barbera wine and Piedmont cuisine--think butter and polenta instead of olive oil. The weather and views would be better the next few days, so check back for further updates!

Greetings from Piedmont

Rob and I have been enjoying our time at the base of the Alps. We've been getting to know the city of Torino by going to museums, sampling the chocolate and espresso in its many cafes and admiring the Baroque architecture and many fine views of the city. This photo was taken from the top of the Mole Antonelliana which is the symbol of the city and also includes the National Museum of Italian Cinema. Tomorrow we are planning to take an excursion to Piedmont wine country to a little village called Asti.

Farewell for Now

Our final day in Paris began with a walk around our neighborhood (the Marais). The Marais use to be a swamp until the 1500's under Francois I. At that time he had the Marais cleared and opened for development. In the photo below you can see the Place Des Vosges built in 1606 where Victor Hugo lived for 16 years. 

 Following our walk around the Marais we headed over to Pere-Lachaise Cemetery and paid our respects to Jim Morrison and Chopin.

Next, we took the metro to Place de la Concorde and visited the Musee De l'Orangerie which contains Monet's series of painted panels called The Water Lilies as well as the personal collection of art collector/dealer Paul Guillaume. This museum was the perfect size and definitely not as overwhelming as the Lourve or Musee d'Orsay.

This afternoon we finally had onion soup at the Christmas markets! It was fantastic as was the ham and cheese crepe and mulled wine (again!). After walking through the markets we headed home to relax and have dinner before going back out for one last blast...at the Pompidou Centre. What a place! If you're interested in modern art, this is the place for you. This museum gave great descriptions to help make sense of the objects you were viewing. We particularly enjoyed the art from 1905-1960 including works by Picasso and Matisse.

We are leaving Paris in the moring for Turin and are looking forward to letting things simmer for a while. (Which reminds me, I don't think we will have internet access in our hotel in Turin so next Tuesday might be the next post.) I think I can speak for both Rob and I when I say that Paris can be a very overwhelming place to visit. Our 4 1/2 day itinerary was very aggressive and I would recommend no less than 7 days to really get to know the history of the city and all it has to offer...preferably two weeks. We'll be back though, because that's just the kind of place Paris is.

Another day in Paris

It was another marathon day in Paris! We were out on the town for about 13 hours and took in everything imaginable. We started at Sainte Chapelle and enjoyed the gorgeous stained glass windows then walked next door to the Conciergerie which was the former royal palace and jail where Marie Antoinette was held before being beheaded.

Next up was the archeological crypt of Paris which holds the remains of Lutetia, the forerunner of present day Paris. It was really cool to see how the Romans actually founded the city and how the city as we know it came to be. 

Right above the crypt stands Notre Dame and although we had visited the interior of the Cathedral we decided it would be fun to climb its bell tower and meet the gargoyles.

It's a tradition in Paris to bring a lock and after writing you & your lover's name on it you lock it onto one of the bridges over the Seine River. 

If I had to live anywhere in the world it just might be in the apartments just above these three stores. It's my trinity...cheese, wine, and bread! Oh, and just to the left of the Fromager there is actually a meat store too. Yum.

Following a quick lunch from the boulangerie seen in the photo above we visited the Musee Moyen Age. It's a museum focused on the middle ages and it holds many tapestries including this one showing the wine making process. This museum is also unique because it's built into a Roman Bath (one of the best preserved in the world).

No visit to the Latin Quarter is complete without a trip to the Pantheon. The Pantheon in Paris is modeled after the Pantheon in Rome, however this version seemed much larger. It contains a crypt holding the remains of many famous artists, writers, etc.

After dinner at home we headed out to Angelina's for their famous hot chocolate. It was the best hot chocolate we had ever had! And, because the Louvre didn't close until 9:45 pm we headed over and spent another 2 1/2 hours finishing off the Denon wing and viewed some of the French and Northern European Renassance paintings in the Richelieu wing. Rob especially liked the Coronation of Napoleon. 

Rob and I headed to the Musee d'Orsay first thing this morning but things got interesting when Mother Nature decided to pour buckets on us! We spent about three hours in the d'Orsay and when it had finally stopped raining  and we dried off a bit we decided to head to the next destination. Although we enjoyed the musuem, photography were not permitted. After a quick bite to eat we headed over to the Rodin Museum. Here we saw many sculptures including "The Thinker." 

After checking out Rodin's house and gardens we walked to the Invalidies and met up with Napoleon.

Following a quick stroll down Rue Cler we headed over to the Arc de Triomphe; aka "Wheel of Death."  

We had heard that climbing to the top was well worth it, so we did. It was the perfect 360 degree view of Paris!

"Wheel of Death."

Looking west toward La Defence.

A view of Montmartre.

We were so tired after the days events that we took the metro back to the Marais and stopped into our local bakery for a baguette and a few pastries. Needless to say it was the best bread I've ever tasted and there wasn't much of it left by the time we got back home. :) Tonight we took our Seine River cruise and it was a lot of fun to see the city from the river. Because it was dark and we were on a moving boat, however, we didn't take any photos. 

Our Feet Ache

Rob and I had an action packed day starting at 9:00 at the Louvre. We restricted ourselves to three hours and were able to see the Greco-Roman collections, some of the Eygption collection and just a bit of the Italian painting collection. As you can see through the pyramid at the Louvre, it was a sunny day in Paris!

My favorite piece of sculpture was the Cupid and Psyche by Antonio Canova.

I was sneaky and got a photo of Rob and Aphrodite sharing a moment.

Of course, no visit to the Louvre is complete without a photograph of Mona's Madness!

Following the Louvre we walked most of the way through the Tuileries Garden then turned North to walk through Place Vendome where a large column stands thanks to Napoleon's victory at the Battle of Austerlitz. This square is also home to the Ritz Paris in which Princess Diana ate her final meal. Contining on, we finally made it to Palais Garnier and Galeries Lafayette where we had lunch and admired the grand Christmas tree.

After a brief stop back at the apartment we headed out again for a walk through Montmatre. We started at the Moulin Rouge and walked for several hours discovering artists homes, a vineyard in the middle of the neighborhood, and more Christmas markets before arriving at Sacre Coeur.