I Know Why She Smiles.......

 She is very amused by all these people pushing and shoving just to get a good look at her!

It was VERY crowded, with lots of pushing and shoving to get a good view.  But we were patient, and eventually had our turn.  She is really very amazing, and I would love to be able to sit and stare at her, without the noisy crowds.  I really do wonder what that smile is about!

After our time with Mona, we enjoyed the other art in the Denon wing.  As I remembered from my visit with my Mom 10 years ago, the Louvre is HUGE, overwhelming and very confusing.  We did see everything we wanted to see, but we walked miles! 


We managed to keep our energy up (somewhat) with two espressos and snack breaks during our 5 hour visit!

My favorites were the Dutch Masters (which Mom and I couldn't find last visit), The Winged Victory of Samothrace, and of course, Mona Lisa.

Winged Victory,  2nd century b.c. statue of the goddess Nike:

Some paintings we really liked:

 And a close up of the detail.  This was so perfect it almost looked like a photo!

There was a whole room full of Rubens, which I love because his women are all "chunky" and beautiful,  i.e. "Rubenesque"!

The other very interesting part of the Louvre, and probably David's favorite, was Napoleons' Apartments.
Napoleon lived at the Palace for several years, and his apartment there is just over-the-top beautiful.
It almost made Versailles look plain by comparison!

The Louvre was originally the site of a 12th century fortress, the royal palace was started in the 14th century.  Several French kings have lived there, as well as Napoleon III.

Here are a few of the too many pictures I took of his apartments:

Ceiling detail

Me at the Grand Salon:

Very ornate fireplace:

Just a little sitting alcove in a hall:

Dining room:

A view of the ceiling in one of the stairwells:

And here we are, having a little rest on a carved bench.  Do you think Napoleon sat here, too?

 As we walked through the Palace there were lovely views from each window.  This was my favorite:

We spent 5 incredible hours at the Louvre, enjoying every single second of it. It is an amazing world treasure, and we just barely scratched the surface.  We'll be back someday!

We made a quick cruise through the gift shop (a requirement) and made a very big purchase--a pencil with Mona Lisa on it!

Time to limp on back to our apartment.  It's 9 pm, we are exhausted.  Our feet feel like big bruises, our backs hurt--but we're in Paris, and we love it!

A stop at a nice cafe in our neighborhood for a bowl of soup, and it's only 1 more block to walk home...

Time for a good nights sleep, tomorrow is our last day in Paris.  I'm sure it will be perfect, like all the others.