Last Day of Museums

Montparnasse

(I'm not really touching this work of art.)

City Hall at the center of Paris

The Sorbonne

Today was the last day we could use our museum passes. We no longer will have to rush around trying to figure out what museums to squeeze in. We agreed that what we saw today was well worth it. We headed over to the Cluny Museum, or National Museum of the Middle Ages, in a 15th century mansion built on top of Roman baths. It has great atmosphere. It had a fun exhibit on swords, including a clip from Mony Python's Holy Grail.

After the Cluny we walked passed the Sorbonne, then by the center of Paris--the Hotel de Ville (City Hall). Finally, we made it to Notre Dame. We joined the crowds and went inside to view the gorgeous Rose Windows and Gothic architecture.

Larry hit the wall and needed lunch fast, so he had a sandwich at Starbucks before our next stop at the Pompidou Center. The National Museum of Modern Art is there and it is most worthwhile. We felt right at home with the modern art. The crowds were not bad either. Here are a few photos:

We ended our day of museums at the Jewish History Museum, which also was worth seeing. I have further respect for Napoleon. He insisted on assimilation of Jews as equals in French society. There is another museum that is devoted entirely to the deportation of Jews and Holocaust. Larry doesn't want to go to that.

We had dinner at a vegetarian/vegan restaurant just around the corner from the Jewish Museum, Le Potager du Marais. It was pretty good. The soup we had for a first course was nice, the vegetable gratin with hazelnuts I had for a second course had good textures but would have benefited from a heavier hand with seasonings. The chocolate mousse dessert was good. We walked home, which took us about 1-1/2 hours.