Maison et Jardins de Claude Monet

As promised, I am back today to share about my visit to the house and gardens of Claude Monet in Giverny, France. If you have ever wondered what it would be like to step into a fairytale, you are here on the right day. For me, this was more than I could have ever dreamed...and I am still pinching myself that I was able to visit this place of magnificent beauty and inspiration...and to be able to share this experience with my momma and second dad was priceless. My parents had already visited Monet's Gardens a few years ago, and I was entranced as I heard all about their visit, never imagining that I would have an opportunity to visit with them in the future. If you are not very familiar with Claude Monet, this is where he lived and painted for 43 years. Monet was truly inspired by his gardens and spent years curating them - planting thousands of plants and flowers. He painted outdoors, surrounding himself with the gardens and nature that he cultivated and nurtured. His paintings showcased his breathtaking gardens and art lovers will recognize his pond with water lilies and the Japanese bridge (which was covered with people then entire time we were there, so I didn't get a good photo). Monet lived and painted in Giverny from 1883 until his death in 1926 and The Foundation Claude Monet (a nonprofit) manages the house and gardens today. While it was a crowded, Saturday visit, we arrived right before opening and had tickets to skip the line and were able to easily walk the entire estate, taking in all the gardens and the home (still painted in Monet's color choice of cherry pink and emerald green to blend with the gardens). I won't go into more history here, but if you feel inclined, there is much written about his full and artistic life. After touring his home and gardens, we walked the quaint town of Giverny (where I wanted to find available real estate and plan my move!) and took in the historic church and Monet's resting place. This day was much more than I could have dreamed and was everything I wanted it to be and more! I left feeling inspired, enriched, and incredibly blessed. 

I am not exaggerating when I say that I took almost 1,000 photos and videos...I did. These gardens were infused with magic potion - it is really the only explanation for such beauty. It is not possible to share all of them on my blog, but here is a very minute selection. I have good intentions of making a video for my YouTube Channel, combining all the media I recorded, but currently, time is not on my side...maybe in the future...

After a magical day, our driver took us back to Paris, where we had an early dinner and my second dad celebrated his birthday with a crème brûlée. I enjoyed a tasty espresso, then after a short rest, my momma and I took an evening walk to the Tuileries Garden where we passed a charming bakery with lovely macaroons (I was looking forward to taking a few back to the hotel with me, but a very grumpy woman behind the counter yelled at me for taking a photo, so I declined to make a purchase - it was the only disappointing moment in Paris - but the picture turned out!😊).

The journey will continue in my next post - where we travel from Paris to London via the Channel Tunnel. Our days in London were filled with wonderful destinations and I can't wait to share them with you!

Mon Séjour à Paris

Welcome back to my travel blog, where my recent trip abroad has taken over my creative posts for a few days.  When we last left off, I had traveled by train from Kansas City to my parent's lake house in northern Illinois...today, we will continue with our trip to Paris, France.

I guess I should start by telling you a bit about the trip and how I came to be joining my parents on a journey to France and England. My parents travel extensively and have for years (you may remember I took the trip of a lifetime with them in 2022, when we hiked the south island of New Zealand). A couple years ago, they did a trip to the British Isles and the plan was to spend extensive time in London after a riverboat cruise. Long story short, my second dad got Covid while on the cruise and ended up being quarantined in a hotel in London and my mom flew back to the states alone. Needless to say, they didn't get to see and do all the things on their list. When they suddenly had a break in travel this summer, they decided they wanted to go back - traveling alone without a tour company. My mom wanted to go back to Paris, so they decided to go to France then travel by The Channel Tunnel (the Chunnel) to England. Here's where I come in - traveling alone at their age, they decided they wanted "a helper" to accompany them and assist with any needs that arose - yes, I am a lucky girl...and yes, I know how special this time is!

My second dad is a planner and is an expert at creating a travel itinerary (down to the minute). They started making lists of what they wanted to see and where they wanted to go - my momma making the plans for Paris (a little looser itinerary) and my dad making plans for London (a very demanding itinerary). They did use Alexander + Roberts and a travel agent to help with arrangements and ticketing, but we were on our own with our own schedule, doing what we wanted to do and not with a group. We used public transportation (subway, train, bus) to get around each city. 

Luckily, we had a non-stop flight from Chicago to Paris...and since it was overnight, my dad arranged for business class tickets, so we had our own little pods on the plane and could lay flat for sleeping (this was an extravagant first for me!)...that way, when we arrived in the morning, we could start sightseeing right away. We had a driver pick us up at the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and take us straight to the Hôtel Chavanel (a highly rated, quaint boutique hotel), where we would be staying for our duration in Paris.  

Our first destination was the Musée d'Orsay, followed by a Big Bus Tour of the city...and then dinner at a local cafe. My momma and I share a love of impressionist art, so this was a great place to start. The grand finale (and much anticipated destination) of our Paris trip was visiting the house and gardens of Claude Monet in Giverny, France (which will have a special post), so we wanted to see as much of Monet's artwork as possible. Here are just a few favorite photos from the museum (images never do paintings justice)...

The Big Bus gave us an open-air guided tour of the city (without all the walking) and we were able to see all the major landmarks...including my first view of the River Seine, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, and the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.

The following day, after breakfast, we visited the Musée de l'Orangerie (a beautiful museum that houses The Water Lilies by Claude Monet)...then we walked through the Jardin des Tuileries to the Louvre Museum. Then we took the Metro to the Arc de Triomphe, where we climbed to the terrace (330 stairs) to overlook the city of Paris. After a late lunch at Le Village Madeleine, we had a short rest before heading to the Eiffel Tower, where we took an elevator to the very top at dusk (breathtaking!). If you view my Paris stories on my Instagram page, you can see a video of the rise to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Next, our sightseeing next took us to Versailles. We traveled by subway and then train to Versailles...and while we had a bit of time upon arriving, I opted to sit down and get my parents rested up for the tour of the Palace, instead of going to Maison Sajou. I had a lot of messages about Sajou, and while I know this is a must see, we had been doing a lot of walking and traveling and I knew it would be best to sit down and get my parents a cold drink and some food before taking a guided tour with much more walking - yes, I know I missed out and yes, Sajou is definitely a bucket list destination, but this trip was all about my parents - I wanted them to enjoy the tour and not feel overwhelmed and exhausted. After a wonderful guided tour of the Palace of Versailles, we traveled by train and subway back to Paris, then walked to a local market for dinner items and took in the area. My parent's wanted to be rested up for our trip to Giverny the following day.

After breakfast the next morning, we had a driver pick us up at our hotel for the drive to Giverny to visit the house and gardens of Claude Monet. This day requires a post of its own...and once you see the photos, you will understand...stop back for my next update...it will definitely be worth the wait.