Cubism, Tours, & the Coach

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17th October 2007 - Picasso and the Place des Vosges

Paris was a little cool, so we found our jackets, scarves and I bought a new wool cap at the market near the apartment. The produce available looked so fresh and it was worth wandering through to check it out. Plenty of choices - pigeon, duck, lots of seafood, and plenty of meats to pick from. We had a good yack with the vendor I bought my cap from about Rugby, Australia and our impressions of France. My brain still works so slow in French and it always amazes me how hard complete strangers like this try to converse with us - the impression some people have of the French being rude is so far from the truth!

Also, we bumped into an Aussie guy who was working for the last few years in Paris and he suggested some Turkish food to us that was on offer. He was spot on and it was a simple but tasty snack.

Cubism

We eventually found our way to the Picasso Museum and spent some time marveling at his incredible imagination. An example - you would come across a painting entitled something like ‘a man with a clarinet’ and at first it was just a mix of geometric shapes. Then after a few moments you suddenly realise “ok, I get it, there’s the man and the clarinet”. I am no art expert but his work is truly amazing. Also while soaking up his magic, the Luka Bloom song “(Jacqueline) Gone to Pablo” started playing in my head, the song contemplates her reasons for wanting to find her way back to her husband’s side.

Place des Vosges and environs

Following lunch and some discussion of the art we had seen, we wandered around the area of the Place des Vosges. There are some lovely gardens and parks, interesting buildings and unique shops and some curious small galleries. It was an enjoyable stroll, finished off nicely by taking a coffee in a nearby café and watching the world go by. Paris is such a diverse city that it is easy to get the impression the whole world really is passing by any particular corner of the city.

18th October 2007 - Paris to Loire

We set off in a hire car to the Loire Valley a lot later than I hoped, but that’s the way things go sometimes. Collecting the car was fun, I was not looking forward to the fact that I would have to traverse the huge round-a-bout below the Arc de Triomphe. So, I had about 30 seconds to get used to the controls of the Citroen Picasso mini people mover. Then we launched ourselves along the Champs-Élysées and managed to make it through what I like to refer to as "the wheel of death" with amazing flair! I really surprised myself and did not hesitate to dive on in and challenge the best of Paris's drivers to yield to my right of way or suffer the dire consequences of some Aussie road rage. It was actually not much of a challenge at all, they all gave in too easily!

Tours & Coach Laurent

The drive to Tours was interesting enough, found our hotel and contacted our Hospitality contact, Laurent (or the coach) and organised to meet up at the railway station at 8pm. He took us on a short walking tour of the town, slowly heading in the direction of the old town centre and the restaurant district. Laurent had a good sense of humor and had worn a Balmain Tigers jacket to make us feel at home (Tigers = a Sydney footy team). We tried some local specialties and some Chinon red wine to match. We had a funny night with Laurent and he took us for another short walk back to the station to work off our meal. Laurent then said his farewells and departed on his 20 minute drive home. It was really nice of him to take the time to meet with us and give us an insight into his local area. See you in Australia sometime soon we hope! Oh, Laurent's nickname "the coach" stems from the fact that he trains marathon runners when he is not busy working for the French Airforce. He gave us a few tips on how to maintain our stamina while touring the chateaux throughout the next few days.

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