Day 8--Paris (Louvre)

 We left for the Louvre early in the morning, hoping we could get in earlier than our 10:00 reservation. It was cold and rainy out, which made Paris look gorgeous. We weren’t allowed to enter early, but we found an underground entrance area full of stores and Starbucks where we could wait in comfort.

This was another instance of crowding that made enjoyment of the experience a little challenging. We just aren’t used to so many people in one space.  Luckily, we had Rick Steves and his miraculous free audio tour to guide us through one of the three humongous wings. We got to see gorgeous Greek and Roman sculptures, the Italian masters, and vibrant French pieces as well. 

Here are some of our favorites shots from the day. After the museum, we went grocery shopping and made a lovely dinner at home, followed by an adventure in dessert choosing.

I was feeling so grateful for these packable raincoats and Donnie’s last minute poncho purchase! Here we are waiting patiently for our 10am time, after we had been booted from the covered stairway by a security guard.

Elise and I patiently waiting by the iconic pyramid.

Yay! We made it in!

I loved this shot from the inside. Here was the view of the pyramid:

This angel made me laugh. Her expression!

The most gorgeous royal jewels. I loved this part of the museum. 

Donnie took this. Clearly we were pretty excited.

Before lab created emeralds were a thing! Stunning.

The weight of this must have been enormous.

I loved this royal glassware!

The Louvre was a palace, and it really shows. Such beauty all around, even without the art.

Donnie and Elise really went through it to get this picture. Mona’s room was way too intense for Gracelyn and me, so we walked by and got a wonderful view of her from the side. The fact that they got this close is a miracle! There was easily a crowd of 300 jostling for a spot. 

Here she is! Honestly, there were other works by Da Vinci in the museum that I liked much better. 

I absolutely love this painting. It instantly reminded me of one of my best friends from high school. 

Victorious! I loved Rick’s commentary around this sculpture.

Venus-again, the commentary was so valuable and made the art come to life. 

I love how much the Greeks appreciated and celebrated Athena. In this room, they’ve placed Venus at one end and Athena on the other.

These are Michelangelo’s slaves—the one w eyes closed is the dying slave, and the other is the rebellious slave.

Such sweetness.

We did it! So proud of these girls. No complaints at all. 

Beautiful architecture on the way home.

I walked behind my kids the whole trip, and I loved how it allowed me to go slow and take in our surroundings a little more.

We have made it our mission to try a new dessert each day from the bakery next door. There are so many beautiful choices. Gracelyn chose this lovely creation and the tart flavor made her gag. I made the great maternal sacrifice of trading with her—it was delicious.