Paris - Museum Day - Sunday - Oct.3

It rained and rained and rained overnight!  It was still raining as we ventured out after breakfast.  Here are a few pics on our way to the Orsay :

This was the entrance to the 'Musee' de l'Armee Invalides' that we passed.   We would return to visit this famous military museum in the afternoon.  Just to the left of this entrance, several buses were emptying French Foreign Legion soldiers dressed in their finest carrying their sabers for what I guessed was to be a special ceremony.

This was the 'Assemblee Nationale', also on the way.

Guess we better queue-up with the hundreds other art seekers.  Heard many languages in line.

At least we didn't have to bump these guys in the line.

We're in!  I posted a selfie of us on IG with this backdrop.   The Orsay was originally a railway station.  Inaugurated in 1900 for the world's fair.   The station was gradually abandoned and re-purposed as a museum in 1977.   The museum was inaugurated in 1986.

Here are a few of my favorite paintings :

We went up to the upper levels, 3-4-5, and I thought that the building's internal columns looked neat :

and, a view looking out over the main gallery :

The iconic clock .. remember the movie 'Hugo' ?

Larry, there were a lot of 'fuzzy' paintings !  I guess they didn't have focused or 'fine-hair' paint brushes ?

What we saw in person at Riquewihr, Colmar, Lucerne, Zermatt, Lake Como, and on the Rhine, we saw similar beautiful scenes portrayed in the art here!

We walked over the Seine on the way to L'Orangerie.  This is looking South, Louvre on the left.   We'll be walking this way tomorrow to Sainte-Chappelle.

When we arrived at L'Orangerie we were told that the 'time-slots' for entry were all filled up.   So we reserved our time-slot for tomorrow.   Joe got excited!  It meant that our next stop would be .. 'Musee' de l'Armee Invalides'  !!   Here's some pics 'on-the-way' :

This museum, along with the Imperial War Museum in London, are two of the best army museums in the world!   This one has over 500,000 pieces hailing from the Bronze Age to the 21st century.

Some of my favorite exhibits :

That is one HUGE cannon ball !

Then we entered a surprising church, The Soldiers' Church, built in 1676-1679.   It's amazing!   Look at the size of the organ.   From the French Revolution, the flags taken from the enemy are displayed in the church.

Just behind the altar is a special dome room housing the Tomb of Napolean.   We didn't pay the 30e each to go and see it.

What a fun, wet, museum day!   Two more days of sight seeing and croissants and gelato and coffee.

Speaking of food, we ate dinner at Le Petit Cler, and afterwards had a gelato at Amorino.   My cone had a special and an appropriate artist touch on the strawberry and chocolate gelato served up :

(she must be a 'gelato'ist' ?)

OK feet .. get some rest!

La vie est une fleur dont l'amour est le miel.

-Victor Hugo