Out of the Jurisdiction: Conflans

Conflans is a lovely, typically French town on the Seine.  I spent a couple of hours walking around.

Many captains of the ships going up and down the Seine retire to Conflans.  They buy old barges
 and fix them up as houseboats, then dock them along the Conflans waterfront.

There might be a hundred of them.

There is a public park on the hillside above Conflans, on the grounds of a former estate, 

the Serre du Chateaux du Prieuré.

When I visited the chateau, this sweet couple was celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary!!!
 No typo.  70 years.  They were married in 1945.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Deux Chevaux

I am not a car aficionado, but I know that old Citroën 2CV's have a cult following.  

They were produced in high numbers from 1948 to 1990, simple cars selling for a low price.

These were among the Deux Chevaux ("two steam horses") at an outing for
2CV owners at a Normandy beach.

Back in Hartford, paying bills, doing laundry and starting to get ready to head south in two weeks.
One more post about France tomorrow before resuming Connecticut photographs.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Normandy American Cemetery

The Normandy American Cemetery is above Omaha Beach, one of the four Norman beaches where the Allied forces landed in stormy weather on June 6, 1944.  It is a moving experience to visit the beach and the remaining battlements, the museum, and the thousands of graves.



9238 soldiers' graves are marked by white marble crosses and 149 by Stars of David.
It is an emotional sight.  I choked back tears at least a dozen times.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Morning Fog on the Seine

Do you think the morning fog influenced the way Claude Monet saw and painted light?
Take a look at Monet's Vernon Church in the Fog, on the Seine, pretty close to Giverny.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Cathedral of Light

The name "Normandy" is a corruption of "north man," reflecting the Vikings' conquest and settlement of the region as the 8th century ended.

In the summer, there is a colorful 20 minute Cathedral of Light show every night at Rouen Cathedral.  This year the show has had two parts, a Viking show and a Joan of Arc show.  They were both dazzling combinations of technological skill and artistry.

The light show projects colorful images on the cathedral's façade, matching backgrounds to the cathedral's architecture.  Film images -- both realistic and animation -- move around the cathedral's facade.

Once again, my trusty iPhone did a pretty good job of capturing the beauty.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Seine-side

Can you imagine waking up every morning in a place like this?

Somewhere around Tournedos-sur-Seine, in Normandy.

For more photos with reflections, click here.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Rouen Cathedral

Pretty easy to see why Claude Monet was led to paint this cathedral 30 times from 1892 to 1894.

Here is a link to a website that shows the 30 Rouen Cathedral paintings by Monet.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Water Lilies

Tuesday was the day for a visit to Claude Monet's house and gardens in Giverny.

It rained, heavily at times, so the big camera was left behind.  This is an iPhone photo.
The gardens are lush.  It is easy to see why Monet spent so much time painting them.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Icons of Paris

I have avoided showing the icons of Paris.  My willpower gave out.  Today is the day.

Place des Vosges is almost too beautiful for words.

Everyone shows the Buren columns at Palais Royal.  Me, too.

Notre Dame without crowds?  Yes, from a quiet church garden across the Seine.

(And an evening shot from closer.)

Sacre Coeur from the roof of the Pompidou Center.

The Eiffel Tower.

And, perhaps the most iconic symbol of Paris:  a beautiful woman.  

I came across a model shoot at Palais Royal.

Out of the Jurisdiction: A Sunday in Paris

Blogger friends Virginia and Genie often go to Rue Mouffetard on Sundays to see the dancing.

A market at the Bastille.

A photography exhibition being mounted at the Musée du Quai Branly.

Kids.

Families.

Friends.

Lovers.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Out and About in Paris

Clock at one end of Musée d'Orsay.

Some fellow photo bloggers.
Honoré Daumier, Musée d'Orsay.

Father and daughter.

Musée de l'Orangerie.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Here and There in Paris

They were filming a period movie in Luxembourg Gardens.

Lovely pastries from blé sucré, a noted bakery in Square Trousseau.

You are American, you go to Shakespeare and Company.  It is that simple.

Beaumarchais and friend.
Beaumarchais was a watchmaker, a playwright (Barber of Seville and Marriage of Figaro), inventor, musician, diplomat, fugitive, spy, publisher, horticulturalist, arms dealer, satirist, financier, and revolutionary.  His friend scavenges and poops. 

Liberty.  Equality.  Fraternity.

Tableau and clock above the entrance of the Hôtel de Ville.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Reflecting on Paris

This bust of an aristocratic woman is reflected in a mirror at Musée Carnavalet.

You probably wondered how that beautiful writing on the windows of luxury stores is done.

Now you know.  You're welcome.

Hah!  Tricked you.  These are separate busts of twin brothers active in the French revolution.

Musée Carnavalet.

And, this window is on a wall seen as you exit from Musée Picasso.  Cubism!!

You want the Eiffel Tower?  You got the Eiffel Tower.  And a bonus.

Weekend Reflections.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Faces at a Parisian Market

If there are people, I am watching.
Marché d'Aligre Beauvau.

Out of the Jurisdiction: Paris Sampler

Other bloggers have devoted years to showing photographs from Paris.  I don't want to compete.  Sure, over the next few days, I will also probably show an iconic scene or two.
But, mostly I am thinking about showing some details that I liked.

Paris' oldest clock, erected in 1370 at the Conciergerie.

Columns and decoration in the Sainte Chappelle chapel.

Madonna and Child.  Over the center entrance of Cathédral Notre Dame de Paris.

Curious?  Neighborly?  Maybe a bit of both.



One of a pair of griffins in the monument to St. Michel.