The Year of Many Travels (Part 3): Paris and Amsterdam

For more posts on our 2018 experiences, see Part 2 of The Year of Many Travels.  

In May of 2018,  my husband took me to Paris, France.  We stayed at an Airbnb apartment in the 6th arrondissement with our friends from Maine (Bob and Sharon).  It was a beautiful old Haussmann apartment with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and the rental for the week only cost us about $150/night in a lovely neighborhood in the center of Paris.

Our view from our living room

Our living room

The steps going up

The view of the inner courtyard

Our foyer

The street entrance to our apartment building

The beautiful windows and French balconies of our apartment building:

Our lovely neighborhood had plenty of shops and cafes.  We rented a smartphone from Insidr and picked it up at the airport upon our arrival.  It was very useful as we mostly traveled using Uber.  We were across the street from the Metro but the stairs were a challenge for my husband. We were only two blocks from the Luxembourg Gardens and I spent one morning exploring that wonderful place.

We cooked some meals at home, picking up groceries from the small grocers, meat, vegetable, and bread vendors all around us.  Other times we enjoyed dining in the brasseries, cafes and bistros.

On my stroll to down the street to the historic and artsy neighborhood of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, I stopped for a lovely lunch at a "pop-up cafe".

One day for lunch, we went to the historic Jewish district, Le Marais, and enjoyed a Jewish deli lunch.

We also at drinks on Avenue des Champs-Élysées:

We went to the Louvre one very hot day.

While waiting for our turn to go into the Louvre, we discovered the casual elegance of Cafe Marley which has a terrific view of the entrance to the Louvre.

We did a "Hop On, Hop Off Bus Tour of Paris on our first full day.

Seeing the whole city from atop a double-decker bus to learn what we might return to was a good way to orient ourselves. There were many places we did not return to (like the Eiffel Tower).

A quick glimpse of the life in the Paris streets was delightful.   

Ron and I enjoyed an elegant one rainy night at Les Deux Magots Restaurant in Saint-Germaine.

All four of us took a bus to the Palace of Versailles.

The Hall of Mirrors

We went to the Musée d'Orsay another day.  This museum had some of the finest impressionist art in the world.

Lunch at the Museum D'Orsay restaurant

A visit to the Cathedral of Notre Dame

 We left May 31 from Gare du Nord by Thalys train to Amsterdam.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       






















Our friends in Amsterdam hosted us for dinner that evening at their cabana in the National Forest near Amsterdam.

Tuna Tartare

White Asparagus with Egg Sauce and Tuna Tartare

The next two days were spent touring museums and Amsterdam.

The Night Watch  by Rembrandt van Rijn

Lots happening at the Dam Square in the center of Amsterdam:

There was a colorful, noisy protest by fishermen who wanted a repeal of fishing restrictions:

There was a Christian evangelistic choir whom I joined in with singing:

Lots of beautiful works of art at the Stedelijk Museum: 

This was the most amazing kinetic art, Drifter, a box floating without any visible wires.

There was an accompanying video illustrating the concept of "Drifter":

There was a lot of interesting art using kinetic light:

The next morning, our last day in Amsterdam, I walked around the neighborhood and took the tram to the downtown and harbor.

Central Station

I enjoyed breakfast by the harbor and went looking for our cruise ship.

I found our ship!  It just arrived from the Baltic Sea and is letting off its passengers.  Ron and I will be back to board our ship for its departure for Norway at 5PM.

Go to Part IV to see a post about our cruise to Norway.