Seine-sational: Paris is at its most majestic during the colder months‘I wouldn’t dream of cycling around Paris, even if you paid me’ says a well spoken Parisian, with whom we have fallen into conversation near the Arc de Triomphe.
Naturally, we disregard her advice and are soon tapping in the correct information to release the Velib bicycle. These machines are similar to Boris Bikes in London, and for visitors they are an ideal way to see the city.
We peddle down the Champs Elysees and around the Place de la Concorde, where King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed during the French Revolution, and, with a swing left, are on the Pont des Invaldides - and rewarded with a superb view of the Eiffel Tower bathed in wintry sunshine.
You never really need an excuse to be in Paris but we are here ostensibly because Paris is celebrating the life of one of its most famous sons, Claude Monet, father of the Impressionist movement. The exhibition at the Grand Palais is the most important Monet show for more than 30 years. The organisers have collected some 200 of his paintings from galleries around the world. They are hung along thematic and chronological lines, following a career spanning 60 years.
Thanks to Eurostar, getting to Paris could not be easier. But hurry. You’ve got until January 24th next year to catch Monet at his comprehensive best.
The French are rightly proud of Monet. More to the point, they like the idea of being at the heart of the art world, especially when London is also celebrating another famous Parisian artist, Paul Gauguin, with an exhibition at the Tate Modern.
Gaugin was around at the same time as Monet, but is considered to be a Post-Impressionist painter, who had a powerful influence on the French avant-garde and in particular Pablo Picasso.
When we arrive at Le Grand Palais, the queue is moving quickly. There is an expectant buzz from young and old alike. It’s fair to say that Monet is accessible to everyone, not least because many of his paintings are well known from biscuit tins, puzzles, calendars and such like.
But having the chance to see the originals in context with his other work has me wondering what made a man drive himself so hard. He spent an entire working life, from a 20 year old until his death at 86, perfecting his craft - and for half that time he was misunderstood by his critics.
Winter warmer: The Place Vendome has a definite icy beauty in winterEven at the end of his life, he was left with little money as he strived to master the art of capturing on canvas the ever-changing momentary effects of sunlight.
Standing in front of a series of paintings of the Palace of Westminster, I'm struck by his brush work catching the light breaking through a London mist and dancing off the river - a clear impression of ‘the moment’ when the beauty of the surroundings can stop us dead in our tracks.
This set of paintings are all the same size and painted from the same viewpoint - Monet’s window at St Thomas’ Hospital overlooking the Thames. He was known to take six to eight canvases with him on his days out painting. On each canvas he would paint the same motif but at different times of the day and at different seasons in the year.
During our weekend break, we stay at the Hotel La Tremoille, near the Champs Elysees. It is wonderfully quiet, but at the same time, in the very heart of Paris. We find ourselves heartily impressed by the polite staff - and are bowled over by a dinner of delicious simplicity under the direction of head chef Yann Frohn.
On our second day we make use of the bicycles again, and gently pootle along the streets, passing Parisian sites that were captured by Monet over 150 years ago. We stop at corner cafés for coffee and hot chocolate, and sit at tables outside and pretend that we are the subjects of various up-and-coming artists - while watching the artistry of the waiters as they deftly manoeuvre their trays of drinks over the heads of well dressed Parisians of a certain age.
My secondary school French teacher used the following phrases to aid our pronunciation: Croques Monsieur (cheese on toast), Folies Bergere (music hall) and Bateaux Mouches (Boat excursion).
We buy two tickets for an hour-long ride on one of the Bateaux Mouches, the colloquial name used for all hire-boats on the River Seine.
A watery sun is setting as we climb aboard and stand on the open upper deck. Since the Seine is centrally situated in Paris, a boat tour covers most of its finest buildings.
The city lights start appearing on the Left and Right Bank (Rive Gauche and Rive Droite), the illuminated Louvre Museum - one of the largest and most visited museums in the world - shines out of a dark sky. We pass the high golden dome of Les Invalides, which is Napoleon’s burial site, and at last, having passed under 15 intricately carved bridges, we can see, high above us, the twin towers of Notre-Dame Cathedral. As the bells ring out for evening service, we look carefully to see if we can spot a hunched figure swinging among the gargoyles.
Field of dreams: Monet painted pictures of Paris and its suburbs - including Les Coquelicots A Argenteuil
An hour later, we dock safely and join other couples strolling in the romantic Jardin des Tuileries before an early supper.
There is also an opportunity to do some Christmas shopping at some of the small independent shops in the Marais and St.Germain de Pres. Christmas shopping outside of one’s own country is a joy, not a burden. And we have most of the family sorted by the time we head back to the station.
Like many great cities, Paris is wonderful in winter. The light changes every ten minutes and, with it, the mood rises and falls in true temperamental French style. It’s a wonder that Monet wanted to paint anywhere else.
Travel Facts
Double rooms at Hotel La Tremoille start from £283 (00 33 156 52 14 00, www.tremoille.com).
Eurostar (08432 186 186, www.eurostar.com) has return fares from London St Pancras International to Paris from £69. The Claude Monet exhibition at Galeries Nationales (Grand Palais) runs until January 24 2010. Tickets £10 (www.monet2010.com).
source: dailymail
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