I'm back in California now, but I'll start where I left off...
On the 14th of June Eri, Megu, and Sei showed up in front of my apartment. It was a short reunion because the same day we headed off to Pisa to catch a flight to Barcelona. Unfortunately Eri had the wrong plane ticket so she ended up having to stay in Pisa for one day longer.
BARCELONA
In Barcelona Megu, Sei and I spent the first day exploring the Market La Boqueria. We had some paella and some delicious fruit juices. We shopped around La Ramblas and the Gothic Quarter, went to the Barcelona beach, and finally met Eri when she got off the bus.
fruit juice!
the beach.
The next day we accomplished a lot. We had another round of juice and paella at La Boqueria, and saw Casa Batllo, a house built by Gaudi, who is an architecture genius. The house felt like it had an ocean or water theme, and the roof was an homage to the story of St. George and the Dragon. Another Gaudi masterpiece we visited was La Sagrada Familia, a cathedral. Construction begain in 1902 and now after 107 years they estimate that it will be done in 2026! It was really intricate, with doors carved all over with words or scripture, and Cubist/Futurist looking sculpture. I want to visit it again when it's done!
Casa Batllo
La Sagrada Familia
stained glass inside
Another delicious thing we had in Barcelona was the chorizo! They gave us huge sausages of chorizo sandwich style, only for 1.70€!
MADRID
Stop number two was Madrid; on our first day we had tapas, and saw the crowded streets and bars of the nighttime Madrid. We also visited the Prado Museum, where I saw some El Greco, Georges de la Tour, Las Meninas by Velazques, The 2nd and 3rd of May and Saturn by Goya. The Museo de Reina Sofia was really cool - they had more modern art, and featured an artist named Juan Munoz, who you should look up! We also saw the Guernica by Picasso! On the final day we went to the Royal Palace. It was huge, and although it was "no photos" I took some anyway (check my shutterfly!)
the Prado Museum
the Reina Sofia Museum
"Guernica"
PARIS
Our final stop was Paris. We went to Notre Dame by the Seine river; the stained glass windows were gorgeous. Afterwards we went to the Pompidou Center, which is a huge center of galleries, theaters, a library, and research center. We went to see their Calder, Kandinsky, and elles show, which was an exhibit featuring only women artists. If you have seen the film Amelie, you might know the town of Montmarte, where we visited the Sacre Couer church. Also in Montmarte there is the famous Moulin Rouge, with the red windmill, and the Moulin de Gallets, where people like Toulouse Loutrec, Renoir, and Van Gogh hung out. Because it doesn't get dark until about 9pm, we took advantage of the extra daylight to see the St. Madeleine church (for Eri) and the Place de Concorde where Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette were executed. As an artist, I knew I had to spend an entire day at the Louvre. We met up with Nancy and Elsa from CSU Firenze and staying at the museum from opening to closing and saw Victory/Nike of Samothrace, Mona Lisa, Venus of Milo, The Women of Algiers, La Grande Odalisque, and The Raft of the Medusa, to name a few. Afterwards I went to the Arc de Triumph, for a panarama of Paris. Our final dinner in Paris, Eri, Megu, Sei, Nancy, Elsa and I went to a cafe called CHEZ ANDRE where Eri and I had escargot for the first time. It actually wasn't that bad! And the fried goat milk cheese with pear sauce and rucola was one of the highlights... The next and last day we spent at the famous cemetary in Paris known for such residents as Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Chopin. It was a very peaceful way to end our trip.
the Arc de Triumph
the Nike of Samothrace
the Eiffel Tower
Notre Dame
the Pompidou Center
"The Fountain" by Duchamp
escargot...
It was a really fun trip, I loved all the art!
photo albums:
Barcelona
Madrid
Paris
BARCELONA
In Barcelona Megu, Sei and I spent the first day exploring the Market La Boqueria. We had some paella and some delicious fruit juices. We shopped around La Ramblas and the Gothic Quarter, went to the Barcelona beach, and finally met Eri when she got off the bus.
fruit juice!
the beach.The next day we accomplished a lot. We had another round of juice and paella at La Boqueria, and saw Casa Batllo, a house built by Gaudi, who is an architecture genius. The house felt like it had an ocean or water theme, and the roof was an homage to the story of St. George and the Dragon. Another Gaudi masterpiece we visited was La Sagrada Familia, a cathedral. Construction begain in 1902 and now after 107 years they estimate that it will be done in 2026! It was really intricate, with doors carved all over with words or scripture, and Cubist/Futurist looking sculpture. I want to visit it again when it's done!
Casa Batllo
La Sagrada Familia
stained glass insideAnother delicious thing we had in Barcelona was the chorizo! They gave us huge sausages of chorizo sandwich style, only for 1.70€!
MADRID
Stop number two was Madrid; on our first day we had tapas, and saw the crowded streets and bars of the nighttime Madrid. We also visited the Prado Museum, where I saw some El Greco, Georges de la Tour, Las Meninas by Velazques, The 2nd and 3rd of May and Saturn by Goya. The Museo de Reina Sofia was really cool - they had more modern art, and featured an artist named Juan Munoz, who you should look up! We also saw the Guernica by Picasso! On the final day we went to the Royal Palace. It was huge, and although it was "no photos" I took some anyway (check my shutterfly!)
the Prado Museum
the Reina Sofia Museum
"Guernica"PARIS
Our final stop was Paris. We went to Notre Dame by the Seine river; the stained glass windows were gorgeous. Afterwards we went to the Pompidou Center, which is a huge center of galleries, theaters, a library, and research center. We went to see their Calder, Kandinsky, and elles show, which was an exhibit featuring only women artists. If you have seen the film Amelie, you might know the town of Montmarte, where we visited the Sacre Couer church. Also in Montmarte there is the famous Moulin Rouge, with the red windmill, and the Moulin de Gallets, where people like Toulouse Loutrec, Renoir, and Van Gogh hung out. Because it doesn't get dark until about 9pm, we took advantage of the extra daylight to see the St. Madeleine church (for Eri) and the Place de Concorde where Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette were executed. As an artist, I knew I had to spend an entire day at the Louvre. We met up with Nancy and Elsa from CSU Firenze and staying at the museum from opening to closing and saw Victory/Nike of Samothrace, Mona Lisa, Venus of Milo, The Women of Algiers, La Grande Odalisque, and The Raft of the Medusa, to name a few. Afterwards I went to the Arc de Triumph, for a panarama of Paris. Our final dinner in Paris, Eri, Megu, Sei, Nancy, Elsa and I went to a cafe called CHEZ ANDRE where Eri and I had escargot for the first time. It actually wasn't that bad! And the fried goat milk cheese with pear sauce and rucola was one of the highlights... The next and last day we spent at the famous cemetary in Paris known for such residents as Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, and Chopin. It was a very peaceful way to end our trip.
the Arc de Triumph
the Nike of Samothrace
the Eiffel Tower
Notre Dame
the Pompidou Center
"The Fountain" by Duchamp
escargot...It was a really fun trip, I loved all the art!
photo albums:
Barcelona
Madrid
Paris
No comments:
Post a Comment