Riding through History

You really can't get around Paris easily without riding
the Metro, and don't let any ticket person tell you you
can't get a Carte Orange...because you can. The tricky
thing is to find a ticket seller that speaks at least a
little English and for the most part, is kind. Otherwise,
if they're a cranky person, you won't get one as these,
as particular people will deem them for "Parisians only"
and lowly tourists are not worthy. Do not buy the Paris
Visite Pass as it's a ripoff aimed at the tourists. The
Carte Orange will let you ride on the Metro for an entire
week, although it starts on Monday and ends on Sunday.
If you're buying it on a Friday for example, it's not
worth it since you only have three days to use it.


They definitely don't advertise these in the travel guides,
but I'm sure there are plenty of rats that call Paris home.
We saw this dead one near the Place de Concorde.


Also at the Place de Concorde (not too far from the dead rat)
is a plaque that commemorates the spot where Louis XVI and Marie
Antoinette were beheaded during the Revolution. No guillotine
is located there anymore...darn.


On the other side of town, near the Latin Quarter, we visited
the The Musée de Cluny, officially known as Musée National du Moyen
Âge. It's dedicated to art from the Middle Ages and holds one of
Lynn's favorite works of art, the Unicorn Tapestries. Surprisingly,
people don't spend a lot of time looking at the tapestries, but we
did and they've thoughtfully placed small benches in the middle of
the room so that you can view the tapestries as long as you like.


In another part of the Cluny, I enjoyed this painting. I can't
remember the name of it, or the artist, but it's a single family
with eleven children, all in a row. They were of some nobility
but I found it interesting that so many family members became
part of the clergy.