The Last Baguette… Au Revoir Paris

I remember when I planned this trip and lamented that it was 8 months away and now my two month odyssey has come to an end. I have had my last baguette in Paris for now and I am heading back to Santa Fe in the morning.

I had my last supper in Paris tonight at the l’Avant Comptoir La Mer and last night it was l’Avant Comptoir. I have really enjoyed having these two great restaurants in my neighborhood. Their great tapas style French food that is enjoyed while standing at the bar in that intoxicating atmosphere with their amazing, very long list of wines by the glass is perfect for eating alone and taking your time, but I never ended up eating alone for long and I met some fascinating people there. I will miss those places.

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I made one last visit to Musee d’Orsay today. That membership I bought was a great investment. It was only 10 minutes away by the Metro and it was incredible to be able to stop by that great museum anytime and walk right in. The guard would part the waiting crowd in line at the entrance and say Pardon S’il vous plait, “Carte Blanche” as he directed me into the museum.

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I wanted to look this man in the eye one more time and see the church he painted and see those stars one more time and say goodbye to the good Doctor Gachet.

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I wanted to stare back again at that young girl gazing straight out of the canvas and think about how she and Monsieur Manet shocked Paris so many years ago. I had to take one more look at that incredible table full of “Apples and Oranges” by Cezanne. His intent was to “astonish Paris with an apple” and he did and one hundred and twenty years later he astonishes me.

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It will take a long while for me to comprehend and appreciate what has happened in the last 2 months. There is the obvious and then there are the thoughts and ideas about my life and life in general that have come to me while walking around Paris. I am ready to come home, but I am going to miss this beautiful city.

Au Revoir Paris for now!

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Author: Paul Parker

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3 Comments

  1. Thank you for sharing your experiences and the photos. My move is still down the road with no definitive date, but the things that needed to be put behind are behind and the path is clearer. Bienvenue a Santa Fe, chez vous.

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  2. Steven just asked me if I had heard anything from you lately or seen anything on FB. You did not post enough!!!! Safe travels and see you in SF this summer

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  3. Thanks, Paul, for taking us on this journey with you!! I remember standing in front of Van Gogh’s Portrait of an Old Man with Beard in Amsterdam 15 years ago with tears in my eyes and feeling that I couldn’t live without that painting in my home! I’m still alive but I would love to have been alive in your shoes at the Musee d’Orsay. Good job blogging, by the way!

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