French Friday from Paris!

Hello All,
Today is the day I share anything French that I find inspiring. I hope you enjoy what I have for you today.

Just for a moment though, I want to share that I enjoyed all your comments on Tea Cup Tuesday from Paris, I tried to visit everyone, but unfortunately I was unable to leave comments on most blogs! When I return home I will visit all of you. I appreciate your participation so much. And also, I felt so bad that we couldn't get Martha's Mr. Linky working, but I saw that many of you visited her site and left such nice comments, that was fab!


On to French Friday...

Yesterday we took a trip to the outskirts of Paris to see Versailles! I found it so fascinating! The day was overcast and did rain and thunder on and off, but with our umbrellas we were just fine.

A magnificient ceiling!

The Chapel

The Hall Of Mirrors. This was a most difficult room to get a photograph in. Even though it is lined with window and mirrors opposite them, with the stormy day we needed long exposures. This hall is stunningly opulent and beautiful!

I beieve this is a painting of Marie Antoinette. Let me know if I am wrong. These paintings are hung up on the walls in such a way that sometimes you can not read the name plate.

This was Marie's room in Versailles. It is huge, and beautiful. You are not allowed to use a flash in Versailles, so all our photos are a bit dark. The bed is topped with huge plumes of white feathers.

I tried to get a close up of the drapes. The material and pattern is exquisite! The colors so deep and vibrant. There were so many things I would have loved to feel! But touching, of course, would not be good for the preservation of the pieces. Marie must have loved texture, it is everywhere, texture and color.

Many of the original furniture has been lost. But there are pieces that are where they belong, and the French are trying to get back any pieces that they can.

Just one of many gorgeous chairs.

A latch on a door that closes up the long floor to ceiling windows.

A decorative wall panel. GorGeous!!!

The back (or front?) of Versailles. There are sweeping lawns, walkways, and reflecting pools.

There was a Laduree shop there too! So of course, I had to get another box (and such a beautiful box!).

The flavors in this box were Vanilla, Rose, Raspberry and Chocolate! Yum!

It would take days to see everything here. We spent about 8 hours touring it. I was so amazed at all there was to see. I did visit the outer buildings, but that is for another French Friday to share. I loved most visiting Marie's little Hamlet, and smelling all the lilacs that were in bloom everywhere!

Thank you for visiting today. I hope you enjoyed my little account of the first part of my trip to Versailles. Have a fabulous Friday!

Hugs,

Terri

Tea Cup Tuesday From Paris!

How about a little Parisian Tea today? Let's say we go to Laduree, I heard from Tristan that the macaroons there were not to be missed, so lets go there!

Look inside....interesting moitif....lovely classical music playing. Let's get a table in the back corner, it's so cozy there.

How about some chamomile tea?


and some incredibly delicious eggs and bacon!


The tea is fabulous!


Here are some macarooms to try.....hmmmm....they don't look like macaroons from back home. There is one vanilla (heavenly taste!), one rasperry (Mmmmm), one pistachio (aaahhhhh), and one carmel (unbelieveably good!).
I would go back to Paris just for more of these!



Someones front door


Windows on Paris


A lovely flower shop


Aromatic herbs

And on one of many totally quaint cobblestone streets....


more delicious pastries we could try on our walk back home.

I hope you enjoyed Tea in Paris. The china at Ladurees is their own brand.

Thank you for coming along today. I hope you had a good time.

Hugs to you all, or should I say a kiss on each cheek, like they do here!
Terri
I am sorry we were having trouble with Mr. LInky today. He seems to work now. Just fill in the two blanks below so we can come over and visit your tea. It is o.k. if it is Wednesday.

Don't forget to go see Martha at Martha's Favorites. Her and I host this fun tea each week on Tuesday and she always has goodies to see.

Monet's Garden

Hello All
It is so good to sit down and write to you. I am so happy that you are enjoying reading about my adventures in Paris. I appreciate all you comments. I really enjoy reading them.

Yesterday we gave ourselves an easier day and "only" went to the Louvre. We slept in and went in the afternoon, and by then there were millions of people there! But we didn't care. We wanted to take an easy peek at what was there, and then go back a couple more times. It took time for us just to figure the place out, and I wouldn't say we know that much yet! It is truly enormous! My favorite part so far, and which I will return to is the apartments of Napoleon and Josephine. I thought I had seen opulence before, but these rooms are over the top in ways I couldn't even have imagined! I wish I had pictures, but they do not allow flash, and the rooms are somewhat dim. We tried, but they turned out fuzzy.

Today, we took a subway, and then a train out to Vernon. Giverny, the home of Monet's Garden, is on the outskirts. I didn't know what to expect of it. I was really surprised at how many people were there. Thousands!

The gardens were full of tulips, lilacs, forget me nots, peonies, violas, pansies, and many flowering plants I do not know the names of . It is a riot of color! The sun was so bright, and the sky so very blue, it was like being in heaven!

The Hydrangeas were in bloom!

It was a riot of color!

And the roses were just begining to bloom.

The farmhouse is nothing short of inspirational to me. In the family room there are many of Monet's painting hanging on the walls, which my husband assures me are prints. But they look incredible anyways. I was standing there forever, just imagining Monet in there, by the large window that let in so much light, considering a painting he was working on. The dining room and kitchen are amazingly colorful. The bedrooms upstairs with windows flung wide, were open and refreshing. I may have been imagining things (and that's o.k....) but I sensed such a beautiful energy of creativity still there. I drank it in and all I could think about was getting to some brushes and paints and just playing on canvas!


I wish I could spend more time with you, but the days are long here, and I am so tired. Tomorrow is another day here in Paris. We are planning a tea for Tea Cup Tuesday. So I will be posting where we have tea and pastries tomorrow. So please come back and see that. We are also going to Notre Dame, and maybe taking a bateaux down the Seine!

Here I am looking out of a bedroom window on the second floor. What a view!

Thank you again for coming by.

Merci

Terri

Paris Flea Market and The Eiffel Tower

It is now our second day in Paris. Today we began early with a long subway ride to the largest flea market in Europe, Clingancourt. Coming from a smaller town in America, I really couldn't imagine what this would be like.

But it is miles and miles of stalls, and alleyways to more stall with stalls on them! The pictures below may give you some idea of it. I really couldn't have seen even a 1/4 of them in one day. There is a great deal of furniture, and even chandeliers.





The antiques here are much older than what you ususually see in the States. There were a number of stalls devoted to antique lace, ribbon, and textiles. I was drooling in them!

You may be stunned to hear that I did not purchase a thing today! I have to say that I was overwhelmed with how much there was to look at, with my inablity at this time to speak French, and noticing that the prices were truly sky high. I had heard Paris was pricey, but a antique lace shawl for 600 Euros??? I have seen some like that back home, not many, but you wouldn't pay over $200. There were stalls with buttons and beads, silverwear, china, and just about every thing else. There was a tea cup or two I was considering, they were Limoge, and only 20ish euros, but I forgot where I saw them! And that is o.k. I think today I was just getting the feel of it. There are plenty more markets in Paris, and I will likely visit them next weekend.

I did not even step into these shops as the items were over the top extravegant and I was sure their prices were as well!

Gorgeous!

I didn't truly comphrehend that I was in Paris until today, when I stood beneath the Eiffle Tower.

It really hit me that I was Here, Now! It was a magical feeling as the tower began to light up! Wow! That is a memory! The tower is gorgeous....just as I thought it would look like, but it is so stunning to see it up close!

And now I will leave you with Lulu, a very regal canine, on her throne.

Bon Nuit!

First French Friday

I am in Paris! We arrived early this morning before many people were out and about, so we were able to begin exploring without crowds. One of the first places we came upon just up the street from our hotel was a florist shop on a corner. All the flowers were lined up looking gorgeous. They are geniously displayed in a plastic bag filled with water and twisted to look almost like a vase. These Hyacinths smelled devine!

Look at these absolutely gorgous colors!

Across the street from the flourist is one of many bakeries. Can you believe these mereinges??? Tomorrrow I am going to eat one of those!

Look at this enchanting alleyway. There is a journal store in there that has some lovely papers. I am going to pick some of those up too. There is also a resturant there I want to try.

This photo below was taken before the crowds filled the streets. Paris really comes alive as the day progresses.

The photo below is where we ate dinner this evening. I had Beef Bourguignon. It was so tender, I had to remember to chew! The wine was fabulous as well. The ambiance was perfect, just a tiny little cafe, with open window, red tablecloths, a breeze and plenty of French being spoken.

We have really enjoyed our first day here. But, we are soooo tired! Tomorrow is a new day and we are heading for the flea markets early in the morning.

Wish us luck!

Hugs,

Terri