Bastogne – War Museum

Posted on 26 June 2024 by boryssnorc

The Bastogne War Museum is a World War II museum focusing on the Battle of the Bulge, located a few kilometres northeast of the Bastogne city centre in the Belgian province of Luxembourg. We were looking for somewhere to break up the afternoon drive, and this feel like a culturally useful stop… gotta smash some history into your STEM students any which way you can!

Out front we encountered what appeared to be some select pieces from Berlin’s East Side Gallery, including some very colourful painted Trabants.

According to the interwebs – ‘the musuem is located on the former Bastogne Historical Centre Site and was opened in 2014 after four years of work. It features a highly interactive audio tour walkthrough which takes about two hours and showcases many artefacts from the events leading up to and the battle of Bastogne itself. It has three immersive films and follows the story of four fictional characters involved in the battle. The main exhibition progresses chronologically and presents a timeline before, during and after the offensive’… which kinda sounds okay? Until you get there!

OMG it’s a massive swing and a miss from me on the audio tour nonsense. Most of the displays are full of text – lots of maps, written explanations in four different languages, info about different artefacts and objects, and all the while you have these four fictional characters babbling in your ear trying to make the experience somehow personal and relatable. I had to shut those fuckers up so I could read and actually absorb something!

I know these sorts of things are probably designed for people who are unaccustomed to steady reading, or are only used to having their history totally spoon-fed to them, but I don’t know how anyone could possibly follow the narration of the tour *and* absorb the chronological timeline and details that are right in front of them. Especially given the narration is done very emotively with music and/or the sounds and noises of war running through the entire soundtrack. :/

I took some photos here and there, but am so not going to hash over the day to day of the build up to the Battle for Bastogne. I am certain there are any multitude of documentaries available on this particular engagement on Netflix at any given time, and if your patience doesn’t run to an hour long documentary, I am sure there are some TL;DRs on YouTube you could find for a 20min run down… failing that, go watch ‘Band of Brothers’ and you can have a expertly dramatised version of the events as told by US soldiers who lived through it.

Hitler wrote Mein Kampf while in jail after WWI… not sure why it made me think of Trump’s Project 2025 manifesto, but it currently does.

DM notes when inflation went crackers post WWII.

I find Nazi memorabilia morbidly interesting; at the time it was probably no different from any other type of orangised group of people in society plonking their symbols all over their badges, flags, crockery, cutlery etc. But now? With the historical context, seeing a swastika anywhere (that isn’t a Japanese temple) is just so… jarring.

Youth passport.

Typical items of kit.

A portable printing system used by the Resistance.

Map of the European and Pacific theatres.

Paratroopers very high tech kit… oh dear god.

The Pacific Theatre – just like in Japan, there is ZERO mention of the ANGAU troops and the engagement in Milne Bay in PNG that dealt the Japanese army their first defeat in the region. I mean, I would probably know nothing about it if it weren’t for the fact that my grandfather served in the 25th Batallion there in WWII. I find it interesting that even here, there is plenty about the US and Midway and Guadalcanal, but not a peep about Aussie chokkos repelling the Japanese.

I had expected far more vehicles and even aircraft in this museum – the air support was integral to holding Bastogne against the Germans once the Allies were surrounded. But not so much.

How to talk, children and not give away plans to the enemies.

I’m unsure what sort of tank this is… but it does look far to clean and shiny for this purpose.

The restored state of these vehicles seems unnecessary. In Gallipoli, nearly everything looks aged, distressed and ‘like it’s been through a war’. A lot of these displays feel… sanitised.

One of the video presentations, complete with fog machine and voices of a German LT, and an American solider talking about the days waiting for Patton from either side of the engagement.

Another dirty big tank, that looks clean and brand spanking new with a fresh coat of paint, in spite of the enormous hole in the side of it?

Local artwork made in the years following the war – repurposed brass to make lanterns, reliquary type objects, an umbrella stand and even a little wishing well.

Newspaper front page after Hiroshima is bombed…

There was another section of the Musuem called, the ‘45 … which had some enormous dioramas made up. This was weird – there was no context given for this area of the museum. Just cleaned up cars and staged scenery for them.

Outside there are some monuments to the 75,000 American soldiers who lost their lives in Bastogne at the Battle of the Bulge. The offensive was integral in turning the war in favour of the Allied forces. The German army suffered over 100,000 casualties. These monuments have a very ‘Thank you, America!’, feel about them. In fact, the entire town of Bastogne has that vibe, with plenty of American flags and actual ‘Thank You!’, signs visible in shops etc.

The major monument dedicated to the American servicemen who came from all parts of the US.

Much like Waterloo, which I visited a couple of months ago, it is a strange feeling to look out onto such peaceful countryside and know that the ground was once soaked with the blood of so many young men killed in war here. The noise of the aircraft, tanks and artillery couldn’t be further away as you listen to birds and leaves rustling in nearby trees.

Popped into a cafe in Bastogne with Angus because Belgium equals… WAFFLES!

And later – some traditional pommes frittes with mayo on our drive.

Heidelberg with bonus Castle

Posted on 22 June 2024 by boryssnorc

Heidelberg! Such a cool little town in southwestern Germany on the Neckar River. It is mostly famous as a university town. Heidelberg University was founded in the 14th century and the place, unsurprisingly, has a real student hangout kinda vibe. Lots of cafés, a bit of street art, and I understand they have amazing Christmas markets here. There is also a Literature Festival happening here at the moment, which is adding to the student ambiance – lots of people sitting in cafes reading a book of all things! The red-sandstone ruins of Heidelberg Castle, a noted example of Renaissance architecture, stands on Königstuhl hill and we plan on checking that out if time allows.

The European Cup is on at the moment and everywhere is football mad. There are bus loads of football tourists everywhere. It’s largely the reason why we are in Germany for this trip – where there is sporting events, there is event transport requirements, which is huge part of what we are doing with our US clients for the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics – study tour ahoy. The Fan Zones are really interesting study in the logistical management of inebriated patrons!

Anyway, Saturday, so sightseeing at the Heidelberger Schloss.

The ruins of Heidelberg Castle dominate the skyline over the town. It has only been partially rebuilt since it’s near total demolition in the 17thC and 18thC. It is about 80m up the northern face of the Königstuhl mountainside and you can’t miss it from the Altstadt.

The earliest part of the castle construction was started back in 1214 and was later expanded into two large castles to hold an ever expanding court in 1294. In 1537 however, a lightning bolt destroyed the upper castle (photos of the split tower of the upper castle are below), and the present structures were then expanded from that time until 1650. The castle copped more damage from the Palapatine Wars and other fire incidents, and would you believe it? Another lightening bolt struck the caste in 1764, this time hitting a gun powder store, which utterly obliterated much of the rebuilt sections.

All of which is to say, that the castle is in various parts, ruins, and a hodge-podge of architectural styles from the different periods through which it was originally built, and then rebuilt after destructive events.

I love these big old fortification doors – with the itty bitty door to let people in and out without opening the whole thing.

Above: an obviously older part of the original castle.
Below: the later period Ottheinrichsbau courtyard…

Also inside Heidelberger Schloss is the Deutsche Apotheken Museum – a historical examination of the apothecary’s trade, place of work and products. It follows chronologically through from, traditional medicinal treatments to including a small glimpse at modern pharmacology. At the entrance is a showcase of this beautiful baroque pharmacy interior from the former Benedictine Abbey of Schwarzach (from Rheinmünster in nearby Baden). Beautifully preserved.

As someone with obsessive traits, I absolutely greatly appreciate and adore the orderliness of the apothecary’s store. Everything has its place and it is neatly labelled in delightfully matching jars!

Oooh… *shudder*.

The second elegant pharmacy set up was from the Kronen-Apotheke in Ulm and was built around 1820. The pharmacy owner at the time, Christoph Jacob Faulhaber (1772-1842) had a fondness for fine timber and very precise labels too – bless his cotton socks.

Around the corner from this is a Renaissance room with beautiful support columns that has the Germany Pharmacy Museum (a sort of museum within the museum) that houses an impressive drug collection full of drugs and botanicals. The walls are covered in large display cases that were made in the 1950s, and this part of the museum shares a history of the animal and plant extracts, roots, leaves, herbs and tinctures that were used to treat various ailments throughout history. Every cabinet is stuffed full of secret herbs, mysterious tonics or even poisons!

It was very interesting to look through all these old ‘medicines’ and see just how many of them were substances that we 100% now know to be utterly toxic to humans.

Part of the Drug Museum, had some rather more later period objects – most thanks to the German Bayer pharmaceutical company. Including some early penicillin etc.

The pharmacy below came from the Ursuline Monastery in Klagenfurt (modern day in south-west Austria). It was from 1730 and is an excellent example the extremely popular gold-framed baroque aesthetic of the time. The shelves are full of typical pharmacy vessels, all very colourfully decorated and coming from all different regions – faience and majolica pieces are everywhere. There are also pewter hot water bottles, and a wide variety of pharmacy equipment: scales, horn spoons, spatulas, mortars and weight sets etc. So orderly!

The canisters are beautiful!

The Herbist’s workshop/Herbarium.

Below is a pharmacist’s workshop, which is well fitted out with equipment and vessels. This installation is an example of an 18thC pharmacy, but this style was used well into the 20thC. The table in the centre of the workshop has a slot in the top, which money can be put into enabling drawers to be opened – which somewhat implies that it was potentially ‘self-serve’ in part? Or perhaps that workers were not trusted to openly access all medicines at any time, maybe?

I particularly noted the narwhal tusk (which must have been over 6’ tall/long) and was presumably kept as a novelty of natural history – and hopefully wasn’t used as a medicine?

Who doesn’t like a good taxidermied (or maybe more correctly, it’s tanned?) puffer fish. Which started a wee debate about how cool puffer fish are (FUGU!) and Angus had to educate me on the intricacies and ‘how amazeballs’ a puffer fish skeleton is. You learn something new everyday!

Below is a homeopathic pocket pharmacy from 1836… homeopathy fucking with allogenic medicine for that long – who knew? I always thought it was a recent hippy dippy, ‘I don’t believe in vaccinations’, kinda thing.

Above: a German microscope c.1869 and various lenses in a kit.
Below: early microscope slides with specimens

Benzin petroleum as a medicine… from what I could make out, it was used to clean wounds and cuts, and was also good at removing ‘fatty tissue’ >.> which is a bit vague. Additionally, it was good for cleaning out wounds that had had maggots in them… Yeuck!!

Below is the Augsburg travelling first aid kit that first belonged to a 17thC general. It is made from Ebony and fitted with finely crafted silver furniture, and filled with glass and silver vessels all containing various treatments.

The courtyard of the Schloss.

After exhausting ourselves inside the caste, we took a walk around the gardens and ramparts, getting to see first hand where the destructive lightning strikes had destroyed one of the caste’s towers.

The view back over the modern town of Heidelberg.

Back in the town centre, trying to decipher the civic art. Yep, I had nothing.

Dinner! How surprising to find schnitzel on the menu… I have a feeling this will be the first of many jagerschnitzel dinners this trip.

At the centre of the Altstadt is the enormous Gothic, Heiliggeistkirche (Church of the Holy Spirit). It stands some 41m tall and towers over the cafe-lined Marktplatz. The belfry is so tall, and the buildings of the square are built so close that it is impossible to get back far enough to take a photograph of the main facade… though photographic composition was probably not a huge consideration when the build was started in 1398 and finished in 1515.

Inside is a beautiful, but somewhat austere interior. It was originally built as a burial place for the Electors (princes) of the Palatinate, and as a primary place of worship for the residents of the Palatinate city. The various Princes’ graves were devastated during various Wars of Palatinate Succession, so now, only the grave of the builder of the church’s choir remains in the church – Rupert I, who was a German King in charge at the time the choir was built or something? Info can be hard to come by when there are language barriers. The most interesting thing about this place was that from 1706 to 1936, it was divided into two by a dividing wall… the nave was used for Protestant services, and the choir end was used for Catholic services. Fancy that!? Protestants and Catholics sharing like proper neighbours for 200 years! Since 1936, the whole church has belonged to the Evangelical Church of Baden.

The Catholic end…

I saw this striking armoury of heraldry, presumably belonging to notable local families. A little investigation relevance that they belonged to, wait for it… “The Society With The Donkey!” Yeah, I didn’t make that up. It was also called the ‘The Donkey’, ‘Zum Esel’, ‘Ober-Esel’, ‘Turniergesllschaft zum Esel’ and ‘Nieder-Esel’ – because every Donkey Society needs a bunch of secret handshake nomenclature. I’m just totally WTF’ing at this, in case you haven’t noticed. The Donkey Society dates back to 1387 and was like a knights’ association – it actually reads a bit like a union or guild (more that than a chivalric order), and it included members of the high nobility who were important during the reign of King Rupert (1400-1410). This frieze was only discovered in 1936 when the church reverted back to Evangelical ownership. How BIZARRE!

Top left is St George and the Virgin, which are a little hard to make out.

There are lots of cute little squares dotted throughout the Altstadt which no doubt were used as market spaces initially, and house public water fountains etc.

There are loads of huge and gorgeous waterfront properties on the Neckar River, just alongside the famous Heidelberg Bridge. I wouldn’t even want to hazard a guess as to real estate values just here.

Near the Old Heidelberg Bridge is the legendary Heidelberg Monkey – according to the myth, the monkey is meant to remain people who cross it from other side to look over their shoulder at where they have come from. Whether a person is coming from within the city or living outside the city, it was supposed to remind everyone that all were equal and no one is better than their inner city/outer city dwelling counterparts. Sounds much like a ‘Northside/Southside of Brisbane’ thing to me; so I’m sure the monkey had it’s work cut out for it because, as we all know, Southsiders are far better! Represent!

This current statue – depicts a monkey holding up a mirror to passersby, and was only placed here in 1979, but apparently there has been a monkey statue at this spot documented back to the 15thC… the original one was said to have been clutching it’s butt at people, but it sadly disappeared around the Palatinate War of Succession (1689-1693). You can stand under the head of this monkey and have your photo taken with your eyes showing out from above his huge cheeks… which seems to be something every man and their dog is trying to do; it’s quite the feat to snap a pic without some random tourist standing under the monkey’s face.

Reckless and Unlawful people – watch out!

Loved Heidelberg… didn’t realise until it was too late, that I missed the Tun by a bee’s dick! Next time.

L’Hôtel in Saint Germaine

Posted on 28 April 2024 by boryssnorc

Sadly, we couldn’t stay at George V for most of our stay in Paris; two reasons really… primarily because it’s far too costly for us for an every day stay, but also because it’s in not an arrondissement that I feel represents Real Paris™️, overly well. So we moved across to Saint Germaine to a cool little boutique hotel called, (simply enough!), L’Hôtel on the Rue des Beaux Arts, near the Musée D’Orsay and a bunch of really cool and well known cafés and restaurants.

L’Hôtel claims to be the world’s first boutique hotel, and is the ‘epitome of French style’. It was also the last home of Oscar Wilde and has a restaurant and bar named for him on the premises, with an impressive cocktail list, and a huge wall displaying all the famous people who have stayed here. I chose it because it sounded like staying in a quaint little piedaterre with it’s own story.

The street frontage is super discreet… no noticeable signage at all, our cab driver nearly missed it entirely.

The concierge, Antonia, and I became fast friends as she complimented me on my Rammstein t-shirt and was so excited to be seeing them in concert this year. Her eyes went the size of saucers when I told her I came to see them in 2022 – all the way from Australia! She was really nice and welcoming. Our room is a ‘chic’ room on the fourth floor of the building. The lift is so tiny, that it fits two people or two pieces of luggage – but not both!

A couple of the small waiting areas near the reception…

The Wilde’s Lounge… which has a spectacular, and ever changing cocktail list. We’ve noticed that there are a more French people staying here than foreigners, and it seems to be a favourite hang out of businessmen meeting over drinks. There is a definitely French ambiance permeating the entire hotel.

Some of little cosy nooks in the Wilde’s Lounge.

The view down into the stairwell is a little daunting…

Et voilà! Our chambre for the remainder of our stay; it’s called the Mata Hari room, though I am not sure why.

It’s filled with antique furniture and has fabric draped on the walls (to tone the pink down to a dark aubergine, one assumes), the decor is definitely not the style of your run of the mill chain hotel – bit of a minimalist’s nightmare, and not a piece of IKEA furniture in sight! But I think it will do very well for us for the rest of the week.

Beautiful pink orchids, and a wee gift it would seem… macarons from Richarts? Don’t mind if we do!

Richart’s is just around the corner and is on my list for a stop on the way out the door on Sunday to try and take some home.

I wonder if Mr K will go into some Pepto Bismol induced trauma by the end of the week.

The restaurant is cool little brasserie space that opens out onto a terrace and small garden in fine weather.

The one upside of staying at the Georges V? Everything else seem super affordable. Eggs Benedict for breakfast for €14? Sure!

We’ve been out and about in the neighbourhood quite a bit already, and have found this little landmark (/piece of graffiti?) to be the coolest indicator that our street, Le Rue des Beaux Arts, is the next right! It’s a cute little tiled piece.

The days have been full of work, meetings in the CBD (which is nothing like the rest of this beautiful historic city and looks like the downtown of nearly any modern city in the world really – boring towers of glass office blocks.

So in between meetings, we have been trying to catch an hour here and there to see some of the sights, and have purchased a few French champagnes that we’ve not seen at home to try. Gods help us if we like any of them, they probably won’t be available at home at all! This Nicholas Feuillatte Grand Reserve Brut was €43 (just for my future reference), bought from a local grocery store. Really delicious bubbly, with a strong but not overpowering flavour and slightly leaning towards that creaminess I like.

We chose to have breakfast at the hotel again – as we had to set out early for meetings. The eggs Benedict was so good, I opted for the salmon version this time.

Definitely can’t do this every day!

Time for another champagne interlude – this bottle of Alfred Rothschild was €34… very nice indeed. Crisp and light, not as brut de brut as some that are so dry you wonder if you are drinking, but lacking that creamy texture that I’ve come to really enjoy in my bubbles.

The rounded hallways keep throwing me off… maybe it’s the sheer amount of wine being consumed with most meals!

L’Hôtel has another unique feature that we thought we’d check out – a ‘hammam’ in the cellar! I was looking forward to this! Guests can use the hammam an hour a day free of charge, just need to schedule in private use of the space. There are showers, toilets, toiletries, massive plush towels and bathrobes available for use. A sauna and a plunge pool!

Which looked sooooo inviting….

… until I discovered the water temperature was about 20°C! Jesus titty fucking Christ! Who wants to get in and have a soak in that. We did wonder if it was here when Oscar Wilde and his ‘friends’ were living in the hotel; if these walls could talk!

Either way, this is clearly for those Northern European polar bear types. Managed to get my feet wet for a while before beating a hasty and sensible retreat – like any self respecting Queensland’s would do!

Decided on a soak in the decidedly 19th century tub in our room instead… fabulous.

The next evening’s champagne interlude: a Pierre Mignon Grande Reserve Brut – €35 from the Cave de Chat. Well rounded and a bit more brut de brut than some of the others we have tried this week. Really nice though. Don’t suppose it’s acceptable to come home with a AUD$70 a day champagne habit, is it?

Tomorrow, we check out and start the transit home. But before we go… one final glass of Jean Josselin champagne in the lovely restuarant while we wait for our car.

I Paris and could totally get used to the, ‘You walked across the road? You got out of bed? Champagne!’, lifestyle. It’s been a lovely stay, we got heaps of work done and gleaned so much useful information, and I feel like we smashed in as much fun and sight seeing as we could between meetings, visiting transport venues and seeking out transit operations.

We are looking forward to seeing how the Paris 2024 Olympics and Para-Olympics pans out in the transport sectors and see what we can learn to make sure Brisbane 2032 does it better… I have made a bunch of contacts with locals to follow up with them after the games, so it’ll be interesting to see what non-transport industry people make of how things go. At the moment, they all sound like they want to flee the city and rent their houses out.

A Parisian Miscellany

Posted on 28 April 2024 by boryssnorc

We are in Paris all week for work, and most of the sightseeing we will be doing will be snatched minutes between meetings and venue and site visits. So I’m just posting some of my favourite pictures of all the super recognisable places that don’t need any much explaining into this post and will probably share it at the end of the week. Paris has such a famous skyline that hardly any of these buildings and monuments need a title, let alone a description.

The Eiffel Tower seems to have received a fresh coat of paint in readiness for the Olympics. It’s looking the best I’ve ever seen it. It is however, all closed off around the base, so you can’t walk around underneath it like normal at the moment, and most of the long park behind it (where one goes for that typical long shot of the Eiffel Tower) is all closed off in readiness for the Games also – they are erecting grandstands along the park and we think this is the venue for beach volleyball? But haven’t been able to confirm that – scratch that, it’s confirmed. Beach volleyball is happening in that park.

L’Arc de Triomphe…

Views from the top. Obviously I couldn’t go up with my fucked up knee… stupidly there is an elevator that will get you most of the way to the top, but given the AdT is on the world’s craziest and most notorious traffic roundabout, to get to the base of the monument, you need to go down a significant flight of stairs, go under the roundabout in a pedestrian walkway, and then up another significant flight of stairs to access the lift that goes up the monument. Well, done Paris. Yes, you’re an old city, designed without accessibility in mind, but that’s fucking stupid.

Train station under the Louvre to get to the CBD.

No one ever sends home their happy snaps of the Paris CBD… wonder why that is. Honestly, could be the downtown area of any modern city.

Market stalls lining the Seine… these are so typically, ‘Paris’ to me. I remember them so well from my first visit here in 1995. Back when I had 28 rolls of film to last me for a six month trip and taking photos was done sparingly! So I recall seeing mundane things like market stall and not taking any photos of them because we needed to save our shots for more interesting subjects. I also remember the processing cost when you got home, oh and the stress that the airport security x-ray machines were going to trash all your treasured images. I really should go dig up all my old travel pics and digitise them somehow.

A half hour spent shopping at La Samaritane… went in to see the peacock murals, came out having utterly brutalised the credit card! Spontaneous luxury shopping centres and unmedicated ADHD are a powerful combination apparently.

Nearly bought a Tiffany key to go with my other ones, but it was only in rose gold, and my other two are yellow gold. It would have made a nice collection: Home, Paris, Fifth Avenue in New York, but I don’t do rose gold. When Mr K bought me that first key, I warned him that keys come in bunches…

Love the peacocks.

French jewllers… Van Cleef & Arpels. Beautiful and timeless pieces.

Back outside and heading back to the hotel (not sure which day)… I love that they haven’t modernised all the Metro signage.

More magasins along the Seine, selling touristy bits and pieces…

… and this one stall selling French Michelin guides from every year from the 1960s.

Early morning pics of the Louvre… where only crazy people (and Chinese bridal parties with their photographers and stylists), venture this early.

Mr K taking a selfie.

The Musée D’Orsay from the bridge.

Notre-Dame is still under repair… they were hoping for it to be open by the Olympics, but they’re looking to be six months behind schedule on that one and it’s now aiming to be open by Dec 2024. I wonder how different it will feel once it’s completed.

It’s truly an iconic building and it’s hard to believe that at one point in it’s history, the city considered tearing it down to avoid the cost of upkeep.

I’m not sure about the super modern colour scheme that Paris has chosen for their Olympics, it certainly makes the city look bright and different for the locals, but for visitors? I feel it detracts from the city’s old world charm.

Thus ends our week in Paris.

Only other observation I wanted to make note of, is that the Charles de Gaulle Airport is a full on dump compared to other international airports. It also feels stupidly haphazard with weird exit processes… mostly around VAT tax refunds etc – which all need to be done *before* you check in your suitcases, creating a crazy hectic and illogical situation where you have heaps of people lined up with enormous trolleys to get paperwork processed across two levels of the airport which has elevators barely large enough to put one person and one airport trolley into, and the little guys handing out cash refunds never asking anyone to show them the actual duty free purchases anyway, because who has time for that when you’re processing paperwork?! Weird.

We managed to see quite a bit of the city while we were here. Which was great.

Musée D’Orsay

Posted on 27 April 2024 by boryssnorc

Buying timed tickets to visit museums seems to be the necessity these days… which works okay, if you are travelling just for leisure, I guess and you don’t mind planning out your every single day of what you are doing on your vacation. But when travelling for work, and finding you might have a few hours to squeeze in something cultural – having to have pre-purchased tickets weeks in advanced leaves you at the mercy of some pretty mercenary resellers, mostly found on Trip Advisor links.

We did manage to get tickets for the morning we suddenly had available, but they were general entry and untimed, so that puts you in a different queue to get into the building, and that can mean ages waiting in lines. Thankfully at 0900 on a Saturday morning, the queues weren’t too intolerable and we were able to visit the Musée D’Orsay somewhat spontaneously after all.

Van Gogh self portrait.. another one. Oil on canvas.

Bedroom At Arles.
Vincent Van Gogh, 1888, oil on canvas… this is my favourite Van Gogh painting. I just can’t get over the texture he created which you an only see in person. This painting utterly fails to translate in reproductions.

The Church in Auvers-sur-Oise, View of the Chevet.
Vincent Van Gogh, 1890, oil on Canvas.
Mr K’s favourite. Something to do with a Dr Who episode? Huh?

Chrysanthemums.
Claude Monet, 1878, oil on canvas. Part of the Doctor Gachet collection, I quite liked this painting even though it isn’t typical of Money and has an odd perspective.

The Starry Night.”
Vincent Van Gogh, 1888, oil on canvas.

La Guinguette a Montmartre; Le Billard en bois, La Bonnie franquette.
Vincent Van Gogh, 1886, oil on canvas.

Fritillaires couronne impériale dans un vase de cuivre.
Vincent Van Gogh, 1887, oil on canvas.

Blue Water Lilies.
Claude Monet, 1916-1919, oil on canvas.

En norvégienne, also called, La barque à Giverny.
Claude Monet, 1887, oil on canvas.

Femme au fichu vert.
Camille Pissarro, 1893, oil on canvas.

Foyer de la Danse.
Edgar Degas, 1872, oil on canvas.

Not sure what to make of Degas, I’ve always admired the work and the spaces he depicted of the opera world and the ballet school always lent themselves to beautiful compositions – very elegant and feminine. As I get older though, I wonder whether he was a sneezy presence (like Trump at a beauty pageant) walking in like he owned the place and ogling half-naked, very young women… many of whom were expected to be congenial to patrons of the arts. :/

Blue Dancers.
Edgar Degas, 1893, oil on canvas.

The Ballet Class
Degas, 1874, oil on canvas.

La Place Valhubert.
Armand Guillaumin, 1875, oil on canvas.

La Dame aux éventails.
Édouart Manet, 1873, oil on canvas. The model is Nina de Callias, she was a musician and artiest herself.

City Dance and Country Dance.
Pierre-Augusta Renoir, 1883, oil on canvas.

Le Cathédrale de Rouen. Also called, Harmonie Bleue et Or.
Claude Monet, 1894, oil on canvas.

Woman with a Parasol Facing Right, and Woman with a parasol Facing Left.
Claude Monet, 1885, oil on canvas. The mondella was named Suzanne Hoschedé who was the daughter the impressionist collector Ernest Hochedé, but these were not meant as portraits. His outdoor figures were attempting to capture the landscape as the subject.

Henri-Edmond Cross.
Maximilien Luce, 1898, oil on canvas… I quite like this one, it’s amazing how much detail is conveyed with such frugal brush strokes and no blending to speak of. Beautiful.

Le Quai Saint-Michel et Notre-Dame.
Maximilien Luce, 1901, oil on canvas.

Georges Seurat’s Palette from 1891… what a cool object to have here – obviously it’s oil paint on timber.

The museum has imagery all around the place of the ‘Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte’, which is one of those annoying things museums seem to do these day to create interest – but of course it isn’t here, it’s at the Art Institute of Chicago. They do have some very small studies that were done for the painting though. These are barely A4 in size, the full painting is 2m high and 3m wide.

Circus.
Georges Surat, 1890-1891, oil on canvas. This work is considered incomplete as Surat died prematurely while working on it. I’ve often wondered about the curatorial choices that go into displaying some of these well known or important works – but apparently Surat chose this blue frame himself.

Couple dans la rue.
Charles Angrand, 1887, oil on canvas.

La Seine à Herblay.
Maximilien Luce, 1890, oil on canvas.

Entrée du port de la Rochelle.
Paul Signac, 1921, oil on canvas… this one was an unexpected little gem that I just loved. The colours are so vibrant and beautiful, and again, such beautiful texture created by the brushwork.

Jardins publics: L’interrogatoire.
Édouard Vuillard, 1894-1936, oil on canvases.

Et l’or de leur corps.
Paul Gauguin, 1901, oil on canvas. I have little affection for Gauguin – partly because I don’t really enjoy his style, but also because I think he just spent years in Tahiti shafting native women. :/

Jane Avril Dancing.
Henri de Toulousse-Lautrec, 1892, thinned oil paint on poster board.

The Robe.
c.1982, distemper on flannel (?)

The restaurant was closed but looked very funky… love the colourful chairs.

Logement prolétaire (Proletärkarsern).
Eugène Jansson, Stockholm, 1898, oil on canvas.

La pointe d’Andey, Vallée de L’Avre.
Ferdinand Hodler, 1909, oil on canvas.

Portrait de l’artist au fond rose.
Paul Cézanne, c. 1875, oil on canvas.

Hercules Kills the Birds of Lake Stymphalia.
Antoine Bourdelle, 1880-1910, bronze.

Le Belier Retif, also called, Belier African.
Antoine Bourdelle, 1909, bronze.

Monument à Jean-Jacque Rousseau…
La Philsophie (centre), with La Verite et la Nature.
La Gloire et La Musique (sides).
Albert Bartholomé, 1910, sculpture en platre

Jeunesse.
Aristide Maillol, 1910, marble.

Judgement de Paris.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1914, Platre (signed and dated Renoir).

Les Nubiens, also called, Les Chasseurs d’Alligators.
Ernst Barrias, 1894, platre.

La Roue de la Fortune (Wheel of Fortune).
Edward Burne-Jones, c1875-1883, oil on canvas.

Mercure inventant le caducée.
Jean Antoine Idrac, 1878, marble.

I didn’t get the description for this one… I liked her, even though the poor dear looks like she’s lost her portable! Selfie Queen.

Polar Bear.
Francois Pompon, c.1923-1933, stone.

Pompon famously worked with Rodin, but chose animals as his focus. This bear was one he watched pace in a cage at the zoo in the Jardins des Plantes, and was carved from a 3 tonne stone… every bit of it that wasn’t polar bear was removed and he is remarkably sleek and modern looking, even today.

We had to bail on the Musée D’Orsay, as we had skipped breakfast and were getting seriously hungry. Went for a bit of a wander to find lunch… on the way, the famous: Sorbonne University.

Lunch Bistro, chosen by Mr K;

Very nice choice. Many bistros will have a daily menu that gives you choices of two or three course meals at very reasonable prices – this is how Parisians often order their lunches, rather than a la carte. So we took that option. Jambon et fromage crépes, steak au poivre for Mr K, boeuf bourguignon for me, crème caramel for Mr K, and I spoiled myself with a crème brulee. Delicious and now we’ll be skipping dinner too!