Friends, Impressionism and our Last Day in Paris

May 2.

Aside from meeting up with friends today, our afternoon was capped off by our early evening visit to the Musée d'Orsay. More of that later.

After yet another wonderfully leisurely morning we left the apartment about half past 12. Making our way to Place Nation, we took the no. 1 to Chatelet, transferred to the no. 4 and got off at Etienne Marcel. From the Metro we made our way through an open air market on rue Montmartre making a beeline for our first objective for our afternoon - Mora, Susie's favorite culinary/pastry/baking supply store. Located a stone's throw from the old Les Halles market complex, Mora is one of the go-to places for many a pastry/culinary chef.

Market on rue Montmartre

From Mora we walked around the corner to Detou, a small but critical shop for purchasing spices, chocolate, vanilla, nuts and plenty of other cooking/baking staples. Leaving Detou we realized the time was slipping away from us for a 2 pm rendezvous. We had to burn some Metro asphalt to get back cross the river for Susie to meet up with Jill Colonna at Mariage Frères tea shop in the old Jewish quarter.

Hi! Susan popping in here for a moment: Jill writes a wonderful blog and has published "Mad About Macarons" and "Teatime in Paris". I first learned of Jill through another blog "Paris Breakfasts", written by American-residing-in-Paris watercolorist Carol Gillott. Jill and I had communicated a bit by email and, as it turned out, we were able to set up a mini-meet up in Paris. Cool!

Steve joined us as well and, over a cup of tea, the three of us had a wonderful chat about about blogging, writing, pastries, food, our stories and what ever else popped up.

After saying adieu to Jill we headed over to the Carnavalet Museum to kill a bit of time before heading back across the river to meet with old friend Val. Susie and Val first met in 2006 when they were taking the basic pastry course together at Le Cordon Bleu. Val was a life saver for Susie in the translation department, particularly in the practical kitchen.

An interesting find on the way to Carnavalet in the Marais

We met Val at a place she'd been wanting to try - Les Antiquaires, just down the street from Musée d'Orsay. It was pouring rain and a bit chilly, but when we went inside to the warmth to snag a table, we were told we'd have to sit outside if we weren't going to eat. So it was - drinks under the awning - at least we were out of the rain.

After we said au revoir to Val we headed off in the rain to the Musée d'Orsay to make our 6:00 pm time slot for the featured exhibition. We had purchased our tickets back in February and were glad we did. 

Not only was it miserable outside, but there were people everywhere including in the line for the timed slots. It wasn't clear where we supposed to be in the queue but, with the help of Asian family who also had 6 pm tickets, we were finally allowed to enter the winding line into the museum. Umbrellas, jostling, security at the entrance. Whoa!

The exhibition celebrates the 150th anniversary of the very first so-called Impressionist exhibition held in April 1874, entitled "Inventing Impressionism".  These artists didn't call themselves impressionists but referred to their group as the Société Anonyme Coopérative des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveurs (Company of Painters, Sculptors, and Engravers).  

Finally inside, we were met with hoards of visitors, many hanging out in the big central hall, probably to stay out of the rain.

a madhouse of tourists

We thought the exhibition was underwhelming, it was difficult to see the works due to the crowds, and the historical layout of everything was a bit confusing. On the plus side, we did see many of our favorites from the likes of Berthe Morisot, Manet, Degas, Renoir and more.

From the Musée we took the RER line C to Gare d'Austerlitz to catch the line 5 Metro back across the river. We got off at Bastille and took line 1 to Place Nation. From the Metro exit we walked across the street heading toward our apartment, stopping for supper at l'Eglantine. Susie had the Cobb Salad and I thoroughly enjoy my roast chicken with frites.

After dinner it was a 5-minute walk to our apartment. Once inside we prepped for our early departure to the airport in the morning. The plan: Uber pick up at 7:00 am and in the air shortly after 11:00 am Paris time. 

Next: Leaving Paris.