Okay, so technically our first and last "interior" sites today are really outside, but they require our four-day Paris Museum Pass to get access to them, so they count as seeing things from the inside. We started our day at the Arc de Triomphe because I needed fresh legs for the 284 steps up the winding staircase. I think my cardiologist would've advised against it, but then she would've been pleased that it was less of a challenge than I expected. And the climb was worth it. Here's the Champs Elysees from atop the Arc.
Now, I have to take a bit of a geek diversion. Today's technological advances continually astonish me. I spent less than $200 on the camera I'm using, which includes a built-in 26x zoom lens. You can see the scale of the people in wide-angle view on the right. In the lower left corner is where I left Anita while I did the climb. With the magic of zoom lens and digital photography, below is what she looked like when I took her photo from this distance. There's nothing "Photoshopped" about this--just a "loupe" viewing option zoomed in on a small region of the scene.
So when you're watching those police movies and they zoom in on the security photos, don't get all uppity and say that can't be possible!
After the Arc and lunch, we went to the Orsay Museum. They were pretty picky about photos, so I can't show you photos of the wonderful Impressionist art to be found there. Just know that if I could take a portable chair to one museum to spend all day sitting and admiring the work, this would be it. But at the risk of having the border police stop me at the airport on my way out, have a look at the clock above the main gallery:
We wrapped up the day at The National Rodin Museum. Would it be an understatement to say that this guy could really sculpt? To be able to see The Kiss (no photo allowed), The Thinker, and The Shades up close and personal made my tired feet take up a lot less of my mental bandwidth. A good night's sleep and they'll be ready to tackle Notre Dame's tower first thing tomorrow.
