The Paris Traveler

Today’s guest post is from Mary Jo Manzanares, Travel & Culture Channel Editor and travel blogger at Flyaway Cafe.
One of the most famous museums in the world is the Louvre, or more correctly the Musée du Louvre, and it was one of the items that was high on my Paris must-see list. It is located on the Right Bank (of the Seine) in the 1st arrondissement.
Originally a palace, the museum is now home to some of the most world-famous works of art, including the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and Aphrodite/Venus de Milo. It opened to the public in 1793, …read more

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Today’s guest post is from Mary Jo Manzanares, Travel & Culture Channel Editor and travel blogger at Flyaway Cafe.
Since a good portion of my time in Paris was spent visiting museums, the Paris Museum Pass was both a money saver and time saver.
With the pass, you get admission to a number of monuments and museums in and around Paris. Best of all — you don’t have to stand in those long lines — you get to bypass all those people and go straight to the front of the line. Temporary exhibits at the museums are usually excluded, though.
The pass …read more

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This is a guest post from Mary Jo Manzanares, Travel & Culture Channel Editor and blogger at Flyaway Cafe
 
Standing in the center of the Place Charles de Gaulle (also called the Place de l’Étoile) at the western end of the Champs-Élyseés, the Arc de Triomphe is the largest triumphal arch in the world. 
It honors those who bravely fought for France, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars.  ,  Beneath the arch is the tomb of the unknown soldier from World War I, marked by the very first eternal flame.  The flame burns in memory of those who died, but were …read more

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No, this isn’t some gruesome tale about an  ancient axe murder having taken  place in the streets of Paris.  Actually, it is a bit of history and I know it’s summer vacation and brains have been turned off but I think you are going to like this.  When you are in Paris, you can amaze those in your traveling party with this bit of information.  
The Axe Historique is a line of monuments that slices through the center of Paris, east to west.  It had its beginnings with the Champs Elysée, created in the 17th century.  It extended the the …read more

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More than three centuries after being torn down by revolutionaries, wanting their king’s head, the gates at Versailles have been recreated in all their original splendor.
 This past Monday, officials unveiled these beautiful golden gates that have been painstakingly replicated over the past two years, bringing back to life the Barouque artistry originally created by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, architect to Louis XIV.  It was Hardouin-Mansart who was responsible for creating many of the significant buildings of this period that were meant to convey the king’s wealth and power.
 At a cost of eight million dollars, generated by private donors which is rare in …read more

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My daughter just took a job teaching English to high school students in Dijon, France starting this fall.  She has been there already in her travels, but I have not, so I thought I should do some research into where my baby is going to be living and what fun place I will get to visit!!
 
 A quick overview of the city:  Dijon is located in eastern France about an hour and 40 minutes outside of Paris by high speed train.  (Gare de Lyon station is where you would catch it) and is the historical capital of Burgundy–and people, what does …read more

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 The City of Light is planning on turning down the wattage a bit in an attempt to save energy (more greening of Paris) and address the disturbances it is causing to nature and astronomers.  This light pollution issue is felt throughout Europe and is causing migratory birds to lose their bearings, vegetables are behaving badly and certain insects are dying out.  
France, the worst offender is working to replace their street lamps with low-energy ones but still burns 1,200 megawatts which is the output of one nuclear power station.  Just a bit scary.  Already there is resistance (one more thing …read more

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While I was doing some work on line, I came across these old hotel and luggage tags that were souvenirs from Paris at the turn of the last century.  The history of their existence and the evolution of the hotel industry in Paris is interesting–basically it was a reaction to the needs of a society being influenced by this new concept called “travel” which was being made easier and more accessible to a wider audience.  Universal exhibitions held here over a period of years in the late 1800’s led to an increased need for rooms.  Paris, wanting to outdo London …read more

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As crazy as this sounds, the Bibliothèque Nationale, or National Library, is worth a visit while in Paris.  Maybe not on your first visit while you are trying to get through the basics, but certainly your second or third time over you should try and get there. Don’t think just “library” as there are temporary and permanent exhibits that are certainly museum worthy.  I found these images from their archives which are postcards credited to the artist Villemard that were done circa 1910 depicting what life in Paris would be like in the year 2000.  They are too much fun and …read more

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 Manefestations, protests, strikes–they are all part of the French culture.  You disagree with a policy or want higher pay, as a collective group you take your cause to the streets, much the same way your ancestors did hundreds of years before you.  It is in your blood, it is your birth right, it is how politics occasionally are shaped here in France.  
I do not profess to be a  political analyst by any stretch of the imagination.  But the strategies used by the French intrigue me.  Manifestations, or strikes, would be announced in the papers and on the news days …read more

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