We wanted to get early
morning light on the tower, so we left home at 7.45am; there were very few
people around and we found out why – it didn’t open till 9.30! However, we got
a poor coffee at the only stand open early, walked around, got lots of pictures
and because the whole of the ground area is so restricted we decided that we
were happy with being there and getting the pictures.
We went down to the waterbus
(Bateaubus) stop but they didn’t start running till 10.00, so we walked towards
Musée d’Orsay. As we were also wanting
to go to l’Orangerie and that was closer to we went there first. It probably
took about 45 minutes and we enjoyed the walk.
To get to l’Orangerie, we
went into Tuilleries Garden; the pond has a number of submerged umbrellas! Is
that an artwork related to water lillies? The pond is surrounded by metal
chairs, both upright and reclining. Because we were so early, it was virtually
deserted but by the time we came out, all the chairs were occupied.
Musée de
l’Orangerie contains an enthralling collection of Monet’s water lillies: very
long mural paintings around the slightly curved walls. Whoever recommended to me that
we should ensure we don’t miss l’Orangerie – thank you so much! It’s my fourth
time in Paris and the first time I’ve seen this exhibition. 
We found out from a
staff member that the Musée d’Orsay isn’t actually open on Mondays, so that
saved us some time! We caught the boat at the d’Orsay stop and did the circuit around
to Notre Dame. It was so sad to see the Cathedral so badly damaged.
We had a lovely lunch in a
café on the bank, opposite Notre Dame and then walked around the souvenir
shops, buying a few last minute gifts. We caught the metro from close by and were
glad to get home to rest, armed with some fresh produce for dinner. We’ve
booked a luggage locker at Gare du Nord for tomorrow so we can leave our bags
and go to the Musée d’Orsay and Arc de Triomphe before we catch the
train to Charles de Gaulle for the late night long trip home.
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