TRIP #5 – PARIS IN SPRINGTIME
arthisto October 30th, 2008
PARIS IN SPRINGTIME
JUNE 3 – 9, 2009
7 DAYS GROUP SIZE: 6-8
PRICE PER PERSON $3,700.00
I love Paris in its prettiest season, springtime. Of course we will spend a week exploring this gorgeous city; its museums, shops, and bistros, but pictured here is Claude Monet’s garden in the season in which we will visit. Who of you have stood in front of a Monet painting, of his beloved garden, and wondered if it was as beautiful as he saw it? On this trip we will stand in his garden and you will see for yourselves. For those of you, like me, who have been to this marvelous place before, together we will spend a few leisurely hours wandering not only his enormous garden, but his home as well. Left as it was, it appears that he has just stepped out to pick some herbs to be incorporated into the family dinner. The dining room table is set, fresh flowers abound, and all is ready for a family gathering. Here in this beautiful and gracious home, Monet thrived from 1883 until the time of his death in 1926. I never, never tire of Giverny.
While in Paris, our home will be a tiny, very French hotel on the Left Bank, where I have been staying for years. I am well acquainted with the neighborhood and its restaurants and really look forward to showing you around. The Louvre, Musee d’Orsay, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and on and on and on.
Below is a sampling of how I like to spend my days in Paris. Why not join me? Apply to travel to Paris and let’s start planning.
Physical Level: Moderate
DAY 1
Arrive Paris and check into our hotel, Calais des Pais, in the late morning. This day will begin in the center of historic Paris with a visit of Notre Dame Cathedral and the pristine Gothic chapel of St. Chapelle. We will enjoy a relaxed evening with a delicious dinner within walking distance of our hotel.
DAY 2
A slow morning with breakfast at the famous Café Flore. We will travel to the outskirts of Paris to visit the Palace of Versailles, and its beautiful gardens. Then onto Monet’s beloved home and garden in Giverny. Another easy evening.
DAY 3
This morning we will explore the Musee de Cluny. This museum holds the foremost collection of medieval art in the world within a renaissance mansion, built over the ruins of a huge Roman bath. Extraordinary! Free afternoon wandering the streets of Paris.
DAY 4
In the morning, we will visit the Musee d’Orsay with its collection of paintings and sculpture beginning in the late 1800’s. Monet, Renoir, VanGogh, and Latrec are all here. In the afternoon, we will enjoy the Eiffel Tower, its magnificent views of Paris, dinner, and 
a night time boat ride on the Seine.
DAY 5
This will be a free morning. At midday we will meet for lunch in the famous Tuillerie Gardens of the Louvre Palace. After lunch we will visit this most famous museum. We will enjoy the museum’s highlights including, of course, DaVinci’s, Mona Lisa. Following this experience of inside art immersion, we will go outside on to Place de la Concorde, where the guillotine stood during the French Revolution, and walk the beautiful Boulevard Champs-Elysees.
DAY 6
Today we will have another lazy morning and then decide how we would like to spend our last day in Paris. We might want to travel to Chateau Vincennes, a leisurely day trip, we might decide to split up with some returning for a second dose of a favorite museum and others doing some shopping. No matter what we choose to do, we will all be in Paris together for our final evening, that might just call for some Champagne.
DAY 7
Travel back to the United States or elsewhere. I am going on to Rome, care to join me?
Shopping and rest time are built into this itinerary, and all is done at a leisurely pace.
