OK....I know I%26#39;ve mentioned this before, but since I was there yesterday and it%26#39;s fresh in my head, I just want to repeat again how much I love going out to this place, how easy it is to get there, and how I want to encourage everyone to go!
It%26#39;s probably not something you%26#39;d want to take time to do if you%26#39;re visiting for the first time....I%26#39;ll say that from the start. But for those of you who have been before and are looking for something to do that%26#39;s a little different; this is it. All you have to do is get on the RER A and take it to the end. (There are 3 branches going west, so be sure to pick the right one). When you arrive at the train station, you%26#39;re AT the museum and gardens. Just head up the escalator and voila!, enter the gates. RER ticket was 6,90 euros r/t. Takes 36 minutes. There is a museum in the old chateau (used to be the National Antiquity Museum, but has been renamed and is now the National Archeology Museum) and the museum is kind of OK interesting, and if you like cavemen and fossils, (oh, and a lot of other stuff...I%26#39;m just being silly) then go to the museum.....it%26#39;s just not my thing. But what IS my thing is the park and the VIEW!!!
It was pretty hazy when we were out there yesterday, but the sweeping panoramic views of the entire city are so amazing that it%26#39;s worth it even with a little smog blocking the way. I have been out there before on very clear days, and of course, you just can%26#39;t beat that, but even with very hazy skies yesterday, I still think it was worth going. The hotel at Pavillon Henri IV was nice enough to let us into the little room where Louix XIV was born, so I went in there for a few minutes and did my goofy oh-my-God-I%26#39;m-really-here-happy-dance, and then we went out to the gardens. Le Notre designed these with a sweeping terrace running along the edge of the gardens at the top of the slope as it heads down the banks of the Seine. You can walk along this terrace for a good 200-300 meters. SGenL is about 30 km from central Paris, but it is just slightly higher in elevation than the city, so when you%26#39;re standing on this terrace looking out toward La Defense, you have just the most spectacular view you could ever imagine. I remember seeing it for the first time, and I just wanted to fall down. Seeing it again has had no less of an impact on me. There is a little outdoor food place in the garden were you can get coffee, wine, beer, sandwiches, and...um...oh yeah....un chocolat liegeois....which I ate whilst overlooking the entire city of Paris from my place just a few feet from the edge of the terrace wall. Jeesh....it was good to the be the King.
Anyway....we%26#39;re off for another day of fun stuff. I did take some pictures yesterday, and I%26#39;ll post them when I return, so maybe you can get an idea of this view I%26#39;m talking about. This morning, if I can get my butt moving, we%26#39;re climbing the dome of the Sacre Coeur....cuz the weather is STILL wonderful. Last night we had dinner up on the hill, and then I took some night shots of BdSC, and we sat and sang some Beatles tunes with the other 200 or so Americans sitting on the steps. (I say Americans because this place has become such a huge gathering place for young-ish Americans. The guy performing for the crowd last night didn%26#39;t even bother to speak French. Everything he said was in English, and the crowd repsonded with thunderous applause.....understanding every word.)
BTW....if you are compelled to go to the Place du Tertre, as I am, and want to have dinner there, go to Chez Eugene. I%26#39;ve been to several of the restos on the square, and Chez Eugene is good, priced fair, and the service is wonderful. Many people have a lot of bad things to say about Place du Tertre.....how touristy it is, how the food is crappy, etc., BUT....especially for first timers.....it IS cute. And so, I%26#39;m just saying that if you do go there, Chez Eugene is a safe bet for good food. It%26#39;s right on the square (west side) and has an outdoor area in the middle. Last night I had the French Onion soup, a Pave Roquefort with frites, and the mousse au choc for dessert. 26,50 euros prix fixe, and it was simply delicious. The Pave was quite tender, and the fries....well....they were frites. This place caters to a lot of American tourists I%26#39;m imagining, so it%26#39;s the once place that%26#39;s also, apparently, going to cook your meat more or less to American standards. I ordered it a point, expecting it to be pretty rare, but it came out med-rare almost to medium (by American standards). It was delicious with just enough blood to mix with the roquefort to make the most delicious sauce for the steak and fries. Oh yummy!!!!
Ugh....I could type stuff all day. But I%26#39;ve gotta go.............
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Dear Arrowcarpet,
It%26#39;s SAINT GERMAIN, without the e. Same as for the famous Paris boulevard, or for the church of Saint-Germain-l%26#39;Auxerrois, opposite the Louvre.
There are indeed not many women among early Ile-de-France saints, with the notable exception of the Paris patron saint, Sainte Geneviève (Jennifer) : Saint Denis, Saint Marcel...
Note that the final e is not always the mark of the the feminine, as exemplified by the Church of Saint-Etienne-du-Mont (St. Steven-on -the-Mount), again a male saint...
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ArrowCapet - thanks for a lovely report ! I have St.Germain-en-Laye on my list for next summer, that%26#39;s for sure. It was built by Henri IV and was the royal palace for many years. Even though one is not interested in archeology, it should be a grat experience to see the palace inside.
If you have time and you haven%26#39;t been there before, you should go se the Basilique de St.Denis in the north of Paris (metro 13 goes right to the doorstep - bure sure it is the line that goes to Saint Denis Université - NOT Asnières).
It is such an overwhelmingly beautiful cathedral and you can really feel the %26quot;hush-of-history%26quot; with all the royal tombs down to Clovis and Clotilde. Especially the really old tombs that have been dug out in the basement are fascinating - if you are gifted with super-psychic senses (which I am not) - my, what tales that cathedral could tell you.
For 2 other summer-outings I will go to:
1. the rosegarden south of Paris in l%26#39; Haye-Les-Roses - it should be so lovely (if you love roses):
roseraieduvaldemarne.com/roseraie_internet/
2. a boattrip to the Marne-river (Les guingettes - it was a favorite place for Parisians to go on a Sunday-trip I have been told). Wasn%26#39;t it Renoir who did a painting of this ?
http://www.canauxrama.com/e_marne.htm
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%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;%26gt; It%26#39;s SAINT GERMAIN, without the e.
Dear Trudaine:
It%26#39;s ARROWCAPET, without the r.
I doubt there were many early French monarchs with the family name CARPET.
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GitteK: St. Denise (LOL) is always on my list. It is one of those places I go every time I%26#39;m here.
Off for the day.....
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Yeah, Sainte-Denise - I heard about her....... she used to teach %26quot;Grammar 101%26quot; at Sorbon.......
So you are not related to the famous Carpets ?
Well, what d%26#39;yaknow !!!
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Dear ArrowCapet,
Touché!
I was simply wandering why English speakers absolutely want to put a final e to %26quot;Germain%26quot;. Is there a similar English word? (%26quot;Germane%26quot;?).
No offence was intended...
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I can pronounce St Germain and un bon vin blanc, thank you very much.
I think that we spell it wrong because we know that you hear the n and we have all been taught in French class that you do not pronounce the last consonant unless it is followed by an e!
BTW I can not for the life of me pronounce the ou sound when it follows the r. Makes for much hilarity at the dinner table when I say route... the guests think I am talking about mating animals.
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Removed on: 5:55 am, September 29, 2006|||
Trudaine - In response to your question, there is a word %26quot;germane%26quot; in English (meaning %26quot;relevant%26quot;), but this has nothing to do with the reason English speakers sometimes mispell the French word.
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