Everything in Immoderation: Art and Eating in Paris

So many museums and cafes, so little time! We had a week’s worth of “must-do’s” still on our list, but the clock was ticking and we had a train to catch. Alexandra must have discovered the powers of teleportation to do everything she did while in Paris, but then, she is young and able and we are…not.

However, like Churchill, we refused to surrender, and decided to moosh as much as we could into the countdown.

We walked past Winston several times in les jardins des Champs Elysees. His statue is inscribed with his famous words “We will never surrender”

After the Musee Rodin and a brief rest, we took a cab to the Musee d’Orsay, which kindly stays open late on Friday evenings. Oh la la! We could have spent an entire week there! As it was, we gorged ourselves on room after room of Gaugins, Van Goghs, Vuillards, Bonnards, Millets – it was a feast of favorites!

Photography is not permitted at the Orsay, which was too bad, since I wanted to send Michael a snap of his Monet: La Pie:

“La Pie” or “The Magpie” (image from seinevalley.com)

The CE and I each whittled down our favorites to one each. Mine was William Bouguereau’s Dante and Virgil:

As if I needed any help laying awake at night — this certainly did it! (image from theartribune.com)

The CE couldn’t take his eyes off of Van Gogh’s haunting self-portrait, painted not long before his death in 1890:

Self-Portrait, 1889

And, of course, the museum building would be worth visiting even if no paintings were hung inside. The former Orsay railway station, built for the 1900 World’s Fair, is memorable for its expanse of glass roof:

The former Gare d’Orsay. Endless treasures await in the alcoves along the sides of the ground and first floors.

This was our third museum of the day, so we were not up for much of a tromp afterwards in search of dinner. We were cranky, tired and hungry. Luckily, we happened upon La Ferme Saint-Simon just a few blocks away and had one of our favorite meals in Paris. We didn’t have reservations, but they beckoned us inside and made us feel entirely welcome.

Le menu

Dover sole, prepared tableside, of course.

“I’ll have one of everything, s’il vous plait”

The CE went for the Cafe Gourmand for dessert and later realized that espresso before bedtime might not be the way to go for time-zoned-out travelers.

After dinner, we walked across the Pont Alexandre III (which no doubt groaned under our weight after such a meal!) and lingered a bit alongside the Seine before returning to our hotel. A perfect end to a perfect day in Paris.