Death

Walking through the famed graveyard, Pere Lachaise, was anything but eerie. I don't understand why people would go out and drop thousands of dollars on someone's grave. Think of how much more this money could do if it was given to a non-profit.
Some of the tombs were well kept. The stones where clean and there weren't any dead flowers or leaves covering the engravings. But these cases belong to a small minority- most of the graves were dilapidated and vandalized. I couldn't help but think of the people that rested beneath them. What had happened to their families? Did the lineage die out, did they squander the family's fortune, or did they simply grow apathetic.

The only grave I found of particular interest wasn't actually a grave at all. The plaque on the wall below commemorates the 30,000+ Communeers who were executed by the provisional government in when they took back control of Paris in 1871.

Deux Chateaux

After visiting Monet's humble abode, Michele and I ventured further into L'Eure, one of the departments that composes the Ile-de-France region. We checked out a magnificent chateau there named Chateau de Bizy. Our guide informed us that this chateau was a favorite of Philippe Louis and had a history of being in the Bonaparte family. The Germans used it during WWII along with many other chateaus in the region, but it remained in impecable shape. The wood work was magnificent.

To the East of L'Eure lies the department named Val d'Oise. This department strtches alongside the seine and is home to a number of chateaux that have outstanding views of the Seine. Chateau de la Roche-Guyon has its beginnings in the 12th century and served a strategic post for many centuries.

Monet and the Countryside

Michele, knowing my love for impressionism, drove me about 80 Kilometers West of Paris to Givernay, former home to Claude Monet. The Lake to the left was were he composed his well know waterlilies series. His house was not all that remarkable, but the countryside surrounding his place was gorgeous.

4th of July

So what better way to celebrate the fourth of July than to visit an exhibition on Rock 'n' Roll at the Fondation Cartier (pour l'art contemporain)? This was pretty sweet, and I kindiv wish I grew up in the 40s- the music was wicked wild. The exhibition mainly consisted of a time lime that integrated American history, world history, and the history of rock from 1939-1959. Every 5 feet there was a booth with headphones that allowed you to sample different tunes from the time, such as hits by Elvis , Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins. It was tight. As for yesterday night... it was pretty lame. I headed to the only American Bar I know (Harry's New York Bar) but was sadly disappointed by the crowd. There was a large group of tourists and a bunch of middle-aged peeps. The closest thing to fireworks were the flashes of digital cameras. Nonetheless, I still had a good time with my host brother and three of his best friends. His friends are hilarious.

Musee Jacquemart Andre

This will be a quick entry, because I am not a huge fan of 17th and 18th century art. Really, i don't know enough about this category of art to appreciate it. I was acutely made aware of this when I couldn't distinguish one well know masterpiece from other, less know art that surrounded it. The only paintings that stood out where Rembrandts, but I don't know if this is because of his artistic ingenuity or because I am somewhat familiar with his style (Rembrandt is one of the few 17th century artists I have ever heard of). The collection of art housed in this haughty mansion on Boulevard Haussman was formerly the private collection of Edouard Andre and his wife, Ms. Jacquemart. After their deaths, the collection was donated to the city. I found the building's architecture to be much more interesting than the art! Chris, Mom, and Nami, given your experiences in Italy, you would probably have found this museum more interesting than I did.

This is my shout out to Stephen Colbert. Comedy Central has done a huge service to society by uploading all episodes of the Daily Show and Colbert Report to their website. I can thus watch any episode of the show here in France which makes my day about twice as good, honestly. Stephen is becoming so popular these days that the French are naming hotels and streets after their esteemed fellow citizen.

Every day at 7:00

You might have to enlarge this pic, by clicking on it, to actually see the rain. We get afternoon showers here on a daily basis, which really sucks for my host brother because his rowing practice starts at 7:00 (he obviously can't row when there is lightening). It also sucks for me because I am usually touring Paris at this time. I head to the city most afternoons and lave the city at about 8:00 so I can be home by 8:45 for dinner . I took this picture of Le Madeline when I was en route to Gare Saint Lazarre. Because I grew up in CO, I am not habituated to daily rain showers... I should probably invest in an umbrella.