Paris ~ St Denis ~ Killorglin
Storming Montmatre à la Brosnan
Sunday was a new day and we were off to storm the hill – the only real hill in Paris, Montmartre. Once outside the city walls and at times a quarry then artist colony, it makes for great touring and history. With Niamh and Simon as amateur guides following the walking tour we did there with XXX, we set off on the mighty metro.
Back to the scene of the crime as we all did our best to emerge like a sculpture from a wall…
A great morning spent wandering the streets, visiting the site of Renoir’s windmill painting and goofing about in the twisting streets. Who is that styling lady??
It was time to bid the Gallway Brosnans goodbye after a lovely visit. Good news is that we’ll see them again before too long in Kerry.
Fleas and Markets
Another one of our bucket list items for our stay had been a return visit to the flea markets at St Denis. Both Simon and Niamh had been in the past, but not for many years.
We decided this was the week, and we fired out early on Monday morning.
While not quite as they were several decades ago, the markets are still a labyrinth of treasure & trash, where you’re well served by brining a map and a plan if you have a particular objective.
Or if like us you’re happy to browse and get lost for a while, well that just takes care of itself.
Whether your taste runs to butterflies, Chinese armour or stuffed marmots, we’ve got you covered…
Or perhaps you’re looking for that special “je ne sais quoi” to complement your dinner party china set?
You could spend hours wandering lost in the alleyways – so we did!
Enamelware for the still life painter in your life? No problem.
Antique crampon boots for that daring ascent? You’ve come to the right place.
Perhaps a tall ship to help you get to that adventure? Or a set of keys in their own key chest to unlock the treasure chest when you get there…
Amazingly, we came away empty handed. Except of course for the orange UFO in the picture at top which nobody in their right mind could have passed up.
Sculpture
The sculpture bus meanwhile rolls on, though the progress is slow!
This week started applying patinas to the figures after much debate and experimentation.
This is a mix of 3 colours, intimidating for the novice to get right…
Simon & Niamh in Paris
Simon and Niamh found time as always for some Paris exploration, stumbling across the Comedie Italienne building and a handy little belt shop where the provenance of the leather was guaranteed by the chap adorning the table.
We had a second go at lunch at Bon Marché after the previous failed experience.
This one much better, although we again ended up in a rush for school pickup. If only they would keep them locked away a little longer 🙂
Aisling & Niamh in Killorglin
One last pre-trip to Ireland for Niamh and Aisling before we all head there after the end of school term.
Handy timing as they took back several suitcases of stuff, as have all our Ireland visitors of late.
Impressive what can accumulate over the course of 6 months. Aisling and her Mum both excited for the journey…
Nothing will make N
iamh happier than sitting on a plane to Ireland with a Barry’s tea and a bag of Taytos…
Happy days on arrival with the aunties in Killorglin!
The ladies had a wonderful time with the cousins and siblings, and came back full of all the news from Killorglin, including an apparent craze for unicycles…
Charles & Simon in Paris
Meanwhile Charles and Simon were out and about in Paris, playing foosball and surviving on Dad’s cooking!
World Cup!
The real excitement of the week however was the long-awaited start of the world cup. There has been blanket coverage in Paris, including in the school yard with feverish trading of football cards, and will bunting in the streets.
A side benefit is that Charles can now rapidly identify 32 different nations’ flags, far more and better than his parents!
Charles also tried his hand at some sculpture, making a replica world cup trophy before the action started.
The cafes in our street all in high state of excitement for the first game in the French pool, against Australia of course! What a great way for us to kick off our world cup watching.
Charles invited a few school friends over and we had the Aussie colour bunting up, and our Socceroos jersey on for the occasion.
High excitement for the match, and a brief period of jubilation for the Aussie contingent when Australia scored…
However, a victory wasn’t to be, with ricochets and other acts of fate conspiring against us in the match.
No matter, after the game we of course all headed out to the Champ de Mars to recreate the best moments and have our own chance on the pitch. Great day and fun to be in Paris for a match like this.