Art is studied at a Paris museum

Editor's note: Second-year students at Cottey College are taking part in the school's "international experience," in which students visit another country and learn of its culture, history, and more through educational modules and experiences along the way. This year, the group is visiting France. Following is the fifth in a series of columns through which Cottey College Public Information Director Steve Reed shares the experience with readers.

Bonjour, Mama!

Today is another module day, and I had a group going to the Musee d'Orsay (myu say door say), the museum famous for all of its Impressionist art. We had studied Paul Gaugin and Vincent Van Gogh and the nine weeks they lived together in 1888 in Arles. The Orsay has a few pieces from that time period, and I was excited to see them. We left the hotel early as we had a 9:15 scheduled group time.

Now here's the part I never have quite figured out, Mama. We had to make a reservation as a school group, and the museum assigned us an entry time of 9:15 a.m. with instructions to arrive 15 minutes before. When we arrived, the hours were clearly posted and the museum didn't open until 9:30 a.m. You'd think the reservation department would know what time they opened. The employees were putting out the signs and barriers when we arrived. About 9:15 we went ahead and got in line. They did let us in, but I don't think it was officially open.

There was some renovation going on, and all of the Gauguins and Van Goghs were in one hall. Way cool. It was pretty neat to hear a few of the students say "Wow" when we walked into the hall. Each of the students had been assigned to pick a painting and research it in advance. At the museum, they had to tell the rest of the group about their painting. They did a great job, and seemed to enjoy the art work. Oh, did I tell you when I was taking care of the paperwork when we entered, I was given a special sticker to wear which read "droit de parole" (dwah duh pah-role) which means right to speak. I had official permission to talk to the group like a real art group leader. Awesome! Our module officially finished after about 90 minutes, but several of us stayed around longer to look at all the great art. By noon, however, I was getting hungry, and left to find something to eat. I wandered through the neighborhood and found a nice little take-away place. I got a huge slice of salmon and spinach quiche for only 5 euros. I walked a few more blocks and found a patesserie (pah tee sehr ee), a bakery, that had the most gorgeous desserts in the window I have ever seen. I swear I was drooling looking in the window. I got an apple tart (they call it a tart fine aux pommes). I took my tart and quiche and found some steps on which to have my little French picnic lunch. C'est si bon! (say see bone, which means "it's so good!") After that, I took a stroll through the Jardin de Tuileries, the park next to the Louvre. It was a nice afternoon and there were several families out enjoying the day. I took a few photos, and then realized I was really near the l'Orangerie, the museum that houses Monet's Waterlilies. Might as well see them too, I thought.

The Waterlilies were nice, but the collection of art in the basement was really impressive, and it all came from the private collection of a man named Paul Guillame. He had tons of paintings, and really good stuff too. He had Renoirs, Cezannes, and Picassos, not to mention all the stuff by lesser-known artists like Derain. Really impressive collection, but I wonder what size of house Paul had to house all of this artwork.

By the time I got back to the hotel, it was about dinner time. I went out with what has become my usual dinner group, and we headed off to the Latin Quarter. It's called the Latin Quarter because the universities are in that area, and back in the day, they had to study in Latin. I am so glad I did not have to go to school back then.

We ate at a place called La Symposium which was kind of touristy, but we got to eat at a table outside and watch people, so it was totally worth it. My appetizer was onion soup. At home in the USA, we call it French onion soup. After that I had scallops, and for dessert, creme brûlée. Mmmmm....

We walked about a bit, but it was getting late and we were all feeling a bit tired. Only one day left, and we all wanted to be well rested for our last chance to explore the city. So many croissants, so little time, Mama.

A bientot, Your loving son, Steve