My last day in Paris

As I begin to pack for the return trip home, I've discovered a sure fire way to control the weather where I'm going.....take rain boots.  Yes, they are heavy and yes, they take up loads of room.  I figured this time of the year in both London and Paris it would be cold, damp, and rainy.  Well.....3 weeks of dry, sunny, cool with sometimes grey days thrown in became our pleasant working/touring weather!  I really wanted to wear the boots, too, because they make a great statement and are comfortable as well.  Take a look:

Mind you, I'm not complaining because I've been able to do 10s of miles of walking very confortably enabling me to see Paris through an "everyday life"lense.  Whether walking over sidewalk art of a student, not doubt, catching a delivery man on the street with bread on wheels, observing the city's "wildlife" (pigeons), finding a most beautiful round window of old, stumbling into an ancient church that sponsors musical concerts for the neighborhood, to name a few:

Strolling along the Seine on a beautiful fall day just can't get any better.  Michael was fascinated, ofcourse, with the barges moving along as well as permanently tied up at dock.  The leaves of the trees shimmer a golden yellow now and fall drifing into the water.  This was our afternoon walk to the Musee d' Orsay.  Once at the museum, we were still excersizing our legs as we drank in the incredible age of the impressionists.  What a collection here.  No photos, ofcourse, but the building itself is a monument to architectural art.  Image Grand Central Station, or Union Station, 10 times larger and far more grand....and built well before ours, at that.  We were able to reach the top of the building and peer out its glass clock (it works) and see all of Paris laid out before us.  To me, this is a more personal look at art than the Louvre.

I will close by sharing our celebration of Michael's birthday yesterday....by the way, he LOVED the sculpture I gave him of Lady Justice (french) discovered in an antiques shop in London earlier in the trip.  I'm glad to say...."I scored big" on this one!  Yea.

Time to say goodbye to the city of Lights.  It's been a lovely sojourn, now back to reality.....phone calls, puppy needs, family catch-up, home repairs waiting, holiday preparation, and ofcourse, the office!  Actually, I'm eager to come home.  Blogging out now..thanks for following me!   Winsome