Postcard from...Paris, France

I can't believe it took until my fourth visit to Paris to actually make it to Montmarte to see the breathtaking Basilique du Sacré Coeur. What was I waiting for?

It's not hard to find the basilica as it sits in the 18e arrondissement atop the the butte Montmarte, which is the highest point in the city, and offers a great vantage point to look down over the whole city and take some great photos or just sit and people watch. It's also in a very vibrant part of town (though really what part of Paris doesn't feel like that?) with street artists and galleries to take in.

Construction of the Basilica started in 1876 with Paul Abadie as the lead architect. When he died in 1884, he was succeeded by Lucien Magne, who added an 83 meter (272 ft) tall clock tower. The Savoyarde clock installed here is one of the world's largest. Construction was completed in 1914 and it was consecrated in 1919 after the end of WWI.

How does Sacré-Coeur manage to stay such a beaming white colour amid the air pollution of a big city like Paris? This can be attributed to the Château-Landon stones that were used to build it. When it rains, the stones react to the water and secrete calcite, which acts like a bleacher. Ingenious!



Photo taken July 17, 2011

Travel Tuesday: Love, Long For, and Live In...My Three Places

Today I'm participating in the Travel Tuesday link-up by A Compass Rose for the first time. I've seen links to it for a few weeks now but the theme is what finally made me join in the fun today.

The theme for today is Three Places and the prompt is to share three places...the place you have been that you loved the most, the place you cannot wait to visit and something about the place you live in.  

The Place I have Loved the Most

This one is getting tougher and tougher with each visit to England but I'm going to have to say the place I have loved the most is still Paris. Maybe it's because it was the first place I visited outside of North America so it will always have the honour of showing me Europe first. Or maybe it was the challenge of traveling in another language and being reasonably successful at it. Or maybe it is just that there isn't anything to not love about Paris. At least nothing that I have found yet. I know the stereotype is that people are rude in Paris but that's not something I've experienced. In fact quite the opposite which has made for interesting chats with shopkeepers, fellow travelers on the métro, and even policemen. And then of course there are the beautiful buildings, all the history and culture, the scrumptious food, the great memories of the time spent with my Mom and my friends there, and oh the ceilings! I could wander around looking at the ceilings all day.

The Place I have Loved the Most...Paris

The Place I Cannot Wait to Visit

You would think with all the lists of places I want to visit this one would be the hardest to answer but surprisingly it's not. I do read about and daydream about so many places but there is one that I find myself mentioning over and over to anyone that will listen to me because it just looks so amazing to me....the glass igloos at Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort in Finland. From the first moment I saw this picture I have wanted to go there, and I don't even really enjoy trudging around in the snow that much. There is just something that is so ultimately cozy (and yes romantic too, as the kiddo just pointed out to me) about the igloos that I just want to cuddle up, gaze at the stars with L, and if we're really lucky, watch the Northern Lights dance across the sky.

The Place I Cannot Wait to Visit...Finland (photo source)

Something About the Place I Live In

I have lived in Houston for about 15 years now but really it's only been in the past few years that I started to enjoy it a little more as the kiddo and I have started exploring the city. Besides getting to do some fun and interesting things with him I figure I better see and do all that Houston has to offer while I'm still here. We've visited museums, attended sporting events (oh how we miss you Houston Aeros!), gone to concerts, tried foods from different countries, all kinds of things. One of our favourite things to do in the spring is to go to Discovery Green for one of their movie nights. They blow up a big screen, everyone brings their blankets and chairs, and we settle in for a movie with the highrises of downtown Houston as the backdrop.

Something About the Place I Live...Houston

Where are your places in the world? Come join the fun with Bonnie, Tina, and Melanie!!

My Most Memorable Travel Moments

What makes a particular moment from your travels memorable? Makes it worthy of being deemed one of your "favourites" even? Or gives it a spot on a Top 10 list?

I've been thinking about this a lot over the past few days as I've got this blog up and running. I've been thinking of sharing some of my favourite moments from traveling, perhaps even putting them into one of those Top 10 lists as I do so love a list especially a good "Top 10..." list. But you know what? This is one list I'm actually not going to put a number on. In fact I hope it is the one list that instead of checking things off as done, I'm going to add to it until ...well until my life is done.

For me my most memorable travel moments are the moments that gave me goosebumps. The moments that gave me that feeling of absolute joy as they were happening. The moments that made me breathe a sigh of pure contentment. Or the moments that made me think that there was no place in the world that I would rather be at that moment. Today I'd like to share a few of those kinds of moments.

The first time I saw the Eiffel Tower...

This was a goosebumps moment. In 2005 I took my first trip overseas and was beyond excited to be there. The very first spot to visit was the Eiffel Tower so my friend and I made our way from our hotel in the suburbs of Paris on the metro. Since were were underground we didn't get to see Paris until we climbed the steps at our stop. And there, at the top of the steps, I looked up and saw it. Absolute goosebumps. I had finally, truly arrived in Paris.

The Map Division of the New York Public Library...

The Rose Main Reading Room and the McGraw Rotunda in the Schwarzman Building at 5th and 42nd are pretty spectacular but it was the Map Division room that won me over. I remember the snow falling slowly outside and all I wanted to do was sit all afternoon in this cozy room surrounded by maps and globes and under the stunning ceiling. But the rest of New York was waiting to be seen and I only had the one day. Another time on another visit I'll return to this room.

Discovering by accident this beautiful old church just as the sun was setting...

Many evenings during my month long stay in Le Havre, France found me wandering the streets looking for unique buildings or other things that caught my eye to photograph. This church that I stumbled upon from behind at just the right time was my favourite discovery. As I came around the front I noticed the way the sun shone on the steeple through the trees and I still love the picture it made. I just stood there on the quiet street and watched as the sun set and the colours changed and finally faded away.








And finally for tonight, but certainly not the least favourite on this list, was...

Picnic in the park with L...

Our first of several picnics so far with many more to come. We were looking for something to have for lunch and spotted a "Picnic in the Park" sign at a pub. Perfect! We ordered some lunch and drinks and walked the short distance to St. James Park outside Buckingham Palace. We found a little spot on the grass, had our lunch and just talked and I thought to myself...I'm so falling for this guy.
It makes me so happy that he likes these little picnics too and I'm looking forward to every one of them we'll have together around the world.

{France} Musée du Louvre in Paris

I've debated with myself long and hard about how I was going to start this blog. Do I start by telling you a little bit more about myself? Or how about a little post about the places I've been able to visit so far and then what's on my ever-growing travel list? Or the fact that I just love a good list... period? Any kind of list but especially travel lists. Or what kinds of things I think I'll end up writing about and sharing on this little blog o'mine? In the end I decided to just jump right in instead. Eventually all the rest of those things will come out right? Let's get to the good stuff!

So without further ado let's start with my favourite ....errr maybe I should say 2nd favourite city? { more to come on this dilemma in time. Ooh a teaser already! :-) } in the whole world. Well at least so far. I've got a lot of world left yet to see.

Today we are off to the City of Lights or the City of Love. Ahhh Paris. I'll have to report back at a later date if the second name is indeed true. I have a sneaking suspicion it is.

Paris was the first city I visited outside of North America and was really what started my love affair with all things French, European, historical, and royal. It began on a cold day in February 2005 {nope, not Paris in the spring or summer. No I go in February! Brrrr!) and has only grown since. I've been to Europe a few times since that trip and almost every one has included a stop in Paris. I can't get enough of it and every trip includes new things I didn't see the time before and it always, inevitably, includes a trip to the Louvre. Honestly this blows my mind sometimes. If you'd asked me even 10 years ago if I'd see the Louvre in my lifetime I would have probably said yes. But to have seen it several times. To actually have favourite pieces and know my way around. No, I never would have said that. But I feel so,so lucky that I can.

Today I'd like to share a few of my favourite photos of the Musée du Louvre taken in 2011 when I was able to share it with my Mom. She came over to visit me when I was in France on work assignment and this topped her "must see" list so off we went one beautiful July morning.

The Musée du Louvre is one of the world's largest museums and historical monuments and with 9.7 million visitors per year {15,000 per day!} it is the world's most visited museum. It is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement and is a central landmark of Paris.

The museum is housed in the Louvre Palace {Palais du Louvre} which was originally built in the late 12th century {12th century! I just love these old buildings!} by Philip II as a fortress. The building was extended many times to what we see today and was used as a palace until 1692 when Louis XIV decided to choose the Palace of Versailles for his residence instead. During the French Revolution it was decreed that the museum be used to display France's masterpieces and it officially opened on August 10, 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings and 184 art objects. Today the museum is home to over 380,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century, with some 35,000 of those on display. In some later posts I'll share some of my favourite pieces, surprisingly {or maybe not surprisingly for those that have seen her} the Mona Lisa did not make the cut.

By 1874, the Louvre Palace had achieved it's present form with the Sully, Richelieu, and Denon Wings but in 1983 French President François Mitterand proposed the Grand Louvre plan to renovate the building. The architect I.M.Pei was given the project and proposed a glass pyramid to stand over the new entrance to the main court, the Cour Napoléon. The pyramid was completed in 1989 and the Inverted Pyramid {La Pyramide Inversée}was then completed in 1993. Whether you love it or hate it I think all can agree it is a pretty impressive addition to an already stunning building. Personally, I quite like it.

For more information if you'd like to visit the Musée du Louvre ...

• Louvre Museum Official Website
• What are fellow travelers saying about the Louvre on TripAdvisor? Click here to find out.
• Address: 99 rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France
• Arriving by the métro? Stop at Louvre Rivoli and Palais Royal Musée du Louvre, both on Line 1 (yellow)