Museums of Paris: Petit Palais et Musée de l’Armée

21 Oct. 2023

I spent most of the day going to and from the Casino Supermarche for groceries, always forgetting something like trash bags or salt. And then having to use the wi-fi there to figure out the words for trash bags or pepper (sac poubelle and poivron, respectively). I wrote the previous blog post and enjoyed some time around the apartment. Despite it being a “rest” day, I walked a lot!

I think I’ll head to Lyon, France, after my stay in Paris. I ran across a retired school teacher who had the same flight as me into Paris. He mentioned Lyon, and when I looked at it on Google Maps, I saw all the old buildings. That sold me. Not to say Paris doesn’t have such things, but I want to experience other areas of France. I considered Grenoble and Marseille as well. Who knows? Maybe I’ll end up there as well, but Lyon first.

22 Oct. 2023

The Petit Palais is the free version of the Louvre. And it’s not at all small. What I liked about getting to the Petit Palais is that I only needed to take one train – the 13. I am enjoying the metro experience.

I especially enjoy the feeling when the train speeds along the tracks and you momentarily feel like you’re flying and also not moving at all. It’s where there are no bumps along the route. And through the tunnels, you only know you’re moving by the passing of lights along the walls. It’s exciting for a small town person. Although later on in the day, I witnessed the transformation of the subway cars into sardine cans. I wish I had taken a picture, but people were crammed in until there was no more room. There was one moment when a little girl got in, but her father couldn’t fit. The alarm sounded. The doors were closing. I was facing towards the back of the car and couldn’t help. The father fought the doors, barely holding them open. For his sake, there was a kind Parisian positioned to help, and the screaming child (PAPA! PAPA!) ran to her father.

Petit Palais

Back to the Petit Palais! The Grand Palais is closed for renovations, so not sure how that is, but it is bigger than the Petit Palais. So, maybe the name is well deserved? But it’s freakin’ huge, nevertheless. Inside are statues, paintings, coins, and other items from the 16th-20th century. Quite impressive art work. I’m not one to enjoy a lot of art, to be honest, but it was neat. I am mainly fascinated by looking at the portraits and trying to see the real person the painting was based on.

I liked this one where King Henri IV is playing with his children while a Spanish emissary is there to chat with him. And Queen Marie de Medici has that Are you f***ing for real? face on, but in 17th century language.

This image requires no deep thought about art or life or anything. The artist simply wanted to paint a beautiful woman. C’est tout. I appreciate that art can make us think deeply, but it’s nice to have it plain and simple on occasion.

Here we have the leaving and the return of the prodigal son. I’d call it a classic, but I’ve never seen it before…

The museum…pardon me…the PALAIS had several massive paintings. This picture hopefully demonstrates this. Massive to me is over 6′ tall and 6′ long. I’d say this qualifies. I did enjoy this spot, but I was getting hungry.

Quick Lunch

So I headed out to find lunch. And every place was wicked expensive, at least for me. 30 euros here. 60 euros for some beef thing. And 4 euros for a coffee. Maybe I was spoiled by the 1,5 euros near my apartment. So, I stopped at a grocery store and purchased one of those quick-to-eat sandwiches for 3,5 euros. And after fumbling around with the coins in my hand, I finally left and headed for the Musée de l’Armée.

Musée de l’Armée

I was first astounded by the hundreds of armor pieces dating from the 16th century onward. Wow!

I visited the Dome, which was not partitioned off like Stephen King would have you think. No, all you need to visit the museum sections is a 15 euros ticket. Worth it. The Dome is the resting spot for Napoleon I, Napoleon II, and other honored Frenchmen (sorry, no women here, yet). The art above the resting places was stunning.

Would you believe that Napoleon I is in five coffins? Tin, mahogany, lead X2, and ebony.

By the time I was halfway through the Musée de l’Armée, I was tired. And I had a French-induced headache (alright, maybe lack of water induced too). While many descriptions were in English (super helpful), a lot were only in French. I’m proud of myself for being able to semi-translate some of these, but I lack knowledge of many military terms in French. So I breezed through some items like battle descriptions (which you can research online). It was neat to see a lot of the arms and uniforms from France’s past.

After the Musée de l’Armée, I trekked back to the Petit Palais, where the 13 line was. Without wifi, I couldn’t find an alternative route. So I got some good mileage in. Maybe 4 miles or so throughout the day. I stopped at the store for some sauce and made some rice and pork. Voila!