France Day 1: Trianon, Centre Pompidou, Bastille, La Coupole Brasserie

I am back. This trip was like a dream. I've planned to post each day of our vacation separately just like we traveled. Please feel free to click on the images to view them larger.

Day 1: Trianon, Centre Pompidou, Bastille, La Coupole Brasserie

We decided to enjoy our stay at a quieter city, Versailles, and making quick 30 minute metro rides to the Paris City.

Our trip started with a wonderful surprise. We got a free upgrade to one of their best rooms! Trianon Palace Versailles, The Waldorf Astoria Collection is a beautiful three-acre wooded parkland with a nested palace. This palace, while speaking the royal language of centuries from the outside, was quite a surprise from the inside. The luxury filled modern decor still preserved the sense of regality that once kings and queens enjoyed.

Pls. note that you can click on the pictures to see a larger view.

Outside of Trianon Palace

foyer

a little stunning nook

i love the tiled black roses. it leads you to the sinks and bathtub. how creative! the floors were heated!

there were balconies in the bathroom. god help me.

this beautiful silo art was on the closet doors

view from our balconies

lazy sheep grazing

Once with much hardship we peeled ourselves off our hotel room, we started out our day by visiting the Centre Pompidou Museum only to find it completely closed off by red fire trucks and ambulances due to an emergency. Unfortunately we did not get to visit the inside of the museum. Here are a few pics from the outside.

These colorful pipes add so much to the architecture of Centre Pompidou.
A dream of France's former president Georges Pompidou, this museum became Paris controversy. Some called it an eye-sore. The edgy grid-like architecture with boldly painted pipes and ducts (green for water, red for heat, blue for air, and yellow for electricity) seemed like it was oddly mocking the old Beaubourg neighborhood for it's plainness.



The streets were filled with such colorful motorcycles.



Automated bike rental station named Vélib which translates to 'bicycle freedom'. The first 1/2 hr is free. There are bike stations every 300 meters apart and they can be rented on an hourly, daily or weekly basis. Check out this site to learn more: http://www.es.velib.paris.fr/



Picturesque streets



Front facade of Centre Pompidou - you can see the red fire trucks here. It seemed that a man had fallen off the scaffolding and had unfortunately died in this manner. Moments later, after they detected his demise, they shrouded him with red cloth to prevent gathering of onlookers.



A metro sign. I have no idea what it says.



Genie de la Liberte' or the Spirit of Liberty commemorates the Revolution of 1830.
It marks the site of the prison Bastille that was stormed during the French Revolution.



Crêpe maker! Spreads rich nutella, bananas, strawberries and whatever you can name under the sky on your crêpe.

We finished off the day by dining at La Coupole Brasserie where truly a Montparnasse scene can be felt if you find out that people such as Hemingway, Picasso, and Louis Armstrong once jotted, sketched, composed in this restaurant. We drank fine Bordeaux wine, Beaujolais (2006) here.

More to come tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed.