July 7, 2014 – Paris.

From my journal:
Marc came by in the morning, with the understanding we were checking out by noon. We thought we had until midnight (our booking confirmation said “midnight.”), but he was asking us to vacate early for the next visitors. We left in half an hour (11:30) and Marc arranged to let us leave our packs in the tour office on the ground floor, and fetched our laundry, as it wasn’t ready yet.

We bused to the Arc de Triomphe and walked the Champs-Élysées.

We decide to walk to the Cluny* which was farther than I realized. A great collection of medieval art, esp. the stained glass and the tapestries.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. Pieces from Notre-Dame.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. Pieces from Notre-Dame.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. “The Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. “The Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. “The Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. “The Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry.

Paris: The Musée national du Moyen Âge. “The Lady and the Unicorn” tapestry.

We walked around the Left Bank some more, ending up at the Luxembourg Gardens.

Paris: Luxembourg Gardens.

Paris: Luxembourg Gardens.

Paris: Luxembourg Gardens.

Paris: Luxembourg Gardens, Eugène Louis Lequesne, “Faune Dansant.”

There we caught a bus back to pick up our packs, , and another bus over to Gare du Nord to catch the train to London. There was some kind of breakdown in the Chunnel, so all the trains were delayed, and for ours – the 9:13 – they announced a 2 1/2 hour delay. We were there 2 hours ahead of time. The train ended up leaving at 11:15, so we waited 4 hours , a lot of it standing in line.

I fell asleep right away and slept for the whole ride – almost unheard of for me.

Since the buses and the tube weren’t running, they paid our ways by taxi (Yes, for every single person on the train. There were scores of cabs waiting outside.) A Chinese girl who was riding with us was getting a free ride all the way to Birmingham!

We arrived at the hostel about 2:00 am.

Paris: Luxembourg Gardens, the Medici Fountain.

*The Musée national du Moyen Âge, formerly Musée de Cluny.

July 6, 2014 – Paris.

From my journal:
Took the bus to La Cité and got a big coffee at Patisserie Paul on Boulevard Saint-Michel. Walked the ‘historic Paris walk’ (R. Steves). Saw Notre-Dame from the outside. The lines were huge, in the thousands, which discouraged us from going in. We left the flat without our rain gear, so we went back to our room and returned. Bought an umbrella, as we had left Marc’s on the bus. We went to Shakespeare & Co., which was cooler than I expected. I think I spent an hour in there, in part because I thought I was shopping a used section upstairs for some small, old keepsake volume, when in fact I was browsing their library! I had selected a volume of Milton – sermons. Laura had found “Poems by Captain Noah,” and at checkout I grabbed a S & Co blank notebook. I’ve been trying to think of a special purpose I could give it – writing ideas, or a publication ledger.

The ex-pat writers who frequented this store inspire me – not only due to their talent and breaking new ground – but because they exercised a new freedom to experiment, to be different, and chart a new creative course without anyone’s permission – although they also needed a certain degree of acceptance and encouragement, if only in their own circle. I feel a need and desire for that kind of freedom. God willing, I will live and work in it.

Paris: Notre-Dame.

Paris: Notre-Dame.

Paris: The Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation (“Memorial of the Deportation”).

Paris: The Mémorial des Martyrs de la Déportation (“Memorial of the Deportation”).

Make way for ducklings!

Paris: in front of the famous bookstore.

We walked toward the Orsay and the rain increased. We got quite wet. Along the way we happened upon a Protestant church just letting out and chatted with a young couple for few minutes. We also ate some lunch .

Paris: The St. Michel Fountain.

Paris: L’église de la Madeleine.

Paris: The Opera House (The Palais Garnier).

Paris: Cinema Studio 28 in Montmarte.

Paris: Sacré-Cœur Basilica in Montmarte.

Paris: Montmarte.

Paris.

Midnight in Paris.

At the Orsay (Musee d’Orsay) the line we thought was for ticket was several blocks long, and did not seem normal. We stood for at least an hour and the rain soaked us through. Once inside we realized the reason for the lines: free admission!

Oh, I was in heaven. The last part, the fifth floor Impressionist collection is a dream. I love them all, but  am especially fond of Sisley and Pissarro. A superb collection that delighted me beyond description.

We went back to our room to eat and take a nap, as we planned to be up late. We took a bus up to Montmarte, where we walked from the Cemetery at Rue Josephe de Maistre up to the Basilica.

There was a party atmosphere as we joined the crowd to watch the Paris nightfall. I love the area around the Consulate, but we didn’t linger. We bused over to the Trocadero and viewed the Eiffel Tower. It was after midnight by then. We walked toward the Tower in the hopes of catching a bus or the Metro, but we soon learned that the Metro had ceased for the night, and we couldn’t figure out the bus, so we hailed a taxi for home.

July 5, 2014 – Madrid – Paris.

From my journal:
Last day in Spain. Packed up, grabbed coffees while waiting for taxi to urgent care at the hospital. Laura got in and out of her visit with the doctor pretty quickly, but without an ℞ for the antibiotics she really wanted. Pain meds instead.

Apparently you can’t get antibiotics in Europe unless you have the bubonic plague.

Metro to aeropuerto. Flight to Paris dep. 2:24. Adios, España!

We had booked an Airbnb rental near the Opera House.

The Paris Opera House.

Plane landed after 4:00. Made our way by bus and Métro to the Havre-Caumartin stop, where Marc was kind enough to meet us. He walked us back, and through all the info we needed re: the building, apartment, neighborhood, etc. Then he bought us drinks next door at a punk pub. For a long time, old Bowie was playing, then the Velvet Underground.

Laura and I bought food including a microwave dinner at the Dia (Spanish supermercado chain) on the block.

You can buy some really good microwave food in Europe.

Paris: our flat.

Paris: The view from our flat.

Paris: Inside our flat.

July 4, 2014 – Madrid.

From my journal:
Coffees at the hotel. Went to mall, got a box. Went to P.O., wrapped the box, and sent it.

Reina Sofia was just a block away. “Guernica.”

I put this museum on my itinerary solely to to see this great painting.

Also, some Miros, and photography and propaganda art from the (Spanish) Civil War. Very moving.

Laura not well. We ate, she took the Metro back to the hotel.

I went to the Prado. I made a big mistake. Learning admission was free 6-8, I relaxed and waited for the queue. I didn’t see that it was forming away from me for blocks. So a few mutes before 6, I paid and went in only to realize 2 hours was not enough time take in this remarkable collection of paintings.

Highlights:

• Many masterpieces. Fra Angelico’s “Annunciation,” Dürer’s “Self Portrait,” Tintoretto’s “Christ Washing the Disciples’ Feet,” Goya’s “The Third of May, 1808.” There were others, some I knew and some I did not, that were amazing.
• Bosch, “The Garden of Earthly Delights.” Holy smokes. Seeing this in person was mind-blowing. Certainly one of the most bizarre and confounding paintings before the Surrealists.
• Bruegel, “The Triumph of Death.” A nightmarish vista of death’s inevitability, indiscrimination,  variety and horror. One of the most horrific paintings I’ve seen.
• Many remarkable portraits, for example, Dürer, “Portrait of a Man with Beret and Scroll.“
• Finally, a painting and a painter I did not know.” The Execution of Torrijos and His Companions on the Beach at Málaga,” by Antonio Gisbert. This totally enthralled me – capturing the moment of men, brothers in arms, bravely facing their deaths. Not a false note. At the same time, a few hold hands showing their solidarity, yet each contemplates their end in their own way. One of the most emotionally powerful pictures I have ever seen! Wow, wow, wow.
  The painting is 12 ft. 9 in. high, and 19 ft. 8 in. wide.“The Execution of Torrijos and His Companions on the Beach at Málaga,” by Antonio Gisbert.
  Took the Metro back and Laura surprised me by meeting me on the street. We shopped, ate in a park, and returned to our room. Her throat is giving her intense pain and she thinks it is the same infection she had a few weeks before we left.

July 3, 2014 – Toledo – Madrid.

From my journal:
Slept until 9:00. Checked out. After checking on a place offering a 30-minute massage for €20, we ate our American breakfast again. Waited for the place to open. It was raining. Thunder back at the hostel, then a good showering. Got my massage, then walked to Santo Tomé. The man shut the gate on me and said, “Closed. Open at one o’clock.”

We found a cafe and went in because it was raining more heavily. Then, a torrent. The streets ran like a muddy stream. A woman was sitting outside because she had a dog, but the owner had her come in.

Went to Santo Tomé and viewed El Greco’s “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.” Worth the wait.

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Toledo, Iglesia de Santo Tomé: El Greco, “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.”

Laura waited outside watching a young bird we found on our way there: quivering and immobile on a step. I held it and warmed it and then we set it under some brush to stay dry. Before we left, Laura activated a hand-warmer and set it next to him.

Toledo.

Toledo: Iglesia de Santiago del Arrabal.

We walked out of the Old City to our car, buying a roasted chicken on our way. We got to the car and went to the P.O. They sold us a flimsy box and some bubble-wrap but we were not going to be able to make the box ready for shipping there.

We needed to ship our tiles home, along with other things we had bought or collected so far.

Drove to Madrid, to the airport. On the way, in Leganes, we found a Spanish Home Depot – Poricomart. We got some more bubble-wrap, tape and foam peanuts. I assembled the box in the lot, and we realized the postal box wouldn’t do. We also were too late when we went to a P.O. there. From the airport we drove to our hotel in Ciudad Lineal. Bought food for dinner and the next day. Watched BBC World on the telly. Terror alert on air travel got my attention. Flying in two days to Paris. Laura’s sick again: got my cold.

July 2, 2014 – Toledo.

In Toledo I visited a small exhibit on the Inquisition, and the demonstrations and illustrations of methods of torture and execution were horrifying , even to someone who has read about it and had some familiarity with it. So I go on a bit.

From my journal:
Drove the car from the expensive lot near us to a free one down the hill. The bus back up to Plaza de Zacodover.

Ate a great American breakfast for only €4 each. Walked to the Cathedral, then saw first the “Instruments of Torture” exhibit, then one on the Knights Templar.

The torture exhibit was really one on the Inquisition, specifically in Spain. It was depressing, disturbing, but also very informative. Left thinking about the motives of the perpetrators of such savagery… force, power, conformity, fear of dissent. Was also struck by the fact that the Inquisition not a small, evil sub-committee of the Church, but rather an institution that fed off and enlarged the widespread attitude that held terror, torture, legal injustice, all as means of force to bring wayward souls into “peace” with the church. It involved not only the church, the state and the populace, but in the church it involved all, from the top (Pope) to the bottom: the local clergy and citizenry (who gathered enthusiastically not only to observe but to participate in the cruel violence and the humiliation of the accused. The Golden Rule be damned. The level of barbarity is staggering. You have to look to not just methods, but also motives. Why?

The Templars exhibit was in Spanish, so not as informative for me. But they had some good examples of weapons and garb, some original, some reproductions.

Picked up some decongestant and went back to hostel for a nap, while Laura ran some errands.

We walked to the Cathedral and Plaza del Ayuntamiento, then to the Sephardic Museum – Synagogue of El Tránsito. Again, I enjoyed this less than I would have if it had English text.

Then the El Greco Museum. This was very good – there is a complete “Apostolate with Christ” series – but not great; it’s just too small a collection. I hope to view “Count of Orgaz” tomorrow at Santo Tomé.

Toledo, the El Greco Museum: El Greco, “Christ as Savior.”

Toledo, the El Greco Museum: El Greco, “Portrait of Antonio de Covarrubias y Leiva.”

We walked back to P.de Zacodover and ate before boarding a scenic tour “train” that took us around the city. Very nice.

Toledo: The Puerta de Bisagra Nueva, city gate.

Toledo: Medieval Puente de San Martín on the River Tagus.

Toledo.

Toledo.

Toledo: Medieval Puente de San Martín on the River Tagus.

Follow-up to smash hit, “Chimichanga Retrospective.”

Toledo: Puerta del Sol, city gate.

Back at the Plaza we went in search of churros and chocolate. Not as good as he ones we had in Mont Blanc.

July 1, 2014 – Seville – Cordóba – Toledo.

From my journal:
After checking out and getting directions over coffee, we drove to Cordóba.

Wow! Puente Romano (bridge), Alcázar (outside), happened upon the Royal Andalusian horses getting ready for a show tomorrow night. Pix and video for Tracey Arnett 🙂 (see video below).

Cordoba: Puente Romano.

Cordoba.

Cordoba: The Royal Stables.

Cordoba: The Royal Stables.

Cordoba: The Alcázar.

Saw the Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral, being much more interested in the mosque than the cathedral it was turned into. Amazing, especially the Byzantine-made mosaics. Ate lunch and made our way back to the car.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Cordoba: Mezquita (Mosque)/Cathedral.

Leaving Cordoba, we drove through La Mancha, and stopped at the windmills of Consuegra on our way.

La Mancha: The Windmills of Consuegra.

La Mancha: The Windmills of Consuegra.

La Mancha: The Windmills of Consuegra.

La Mancha: View from he Windmills of Consuegra.

We arrived in Toledo some time after 7 and repeated our two-hour routine of finding our hostel. Great location – next to the Alcázar in the Old City. Still not feeling better. We had milkshakes and pizza, which helped.

Hot night.

Video: In the Royal Stables of Cordoba, horses and their humans prepare for a show the following night.