Following this delightful interlude, we began our journey across the Seine to L'Orangerie. On the map it SEEMED like a short distance, but it wasn't really! We went across a footbridge, marveling at the busy scene on the water.
After a long trek we arrived at L'Orangerie, home of Monet's famous water lily paintings. Here are two photos of the exterior - you had to get special dispensation (which we didn't have) to take pictures inside. In any event, it would have been impossible to do the paintings, or the architectural design of the museum, justice. The paintings are arranged in two oval rooms, with muted skylights. Both the paintings and design are stunning.
Here is a view on la Place de Concorde - part of my obsession with lampposts, which you will see many examples of.
Following our brief stay at L'Orangerie, we had a slight misadventure trying to find a cab to return to the train station in time for our trip to Macon-Loche on the TGV. Unlike in most American tourist destinations, the taxis don't just hang out in long lines. We finally positioned ourselves across the Place de la Concorde and flagged down an unoccupied taxi. The traffic was horrendous. We arrived at Gare de Lyon in a panic, successfully retrieved our bags from the luggage locker, and then had several bad moments (a) trying to find which level the train left from, (b) trying to figure out which "berth" the correct train left from and (c) trying to figure out which car(s) and seat(s) we were supposed to be in. The train actually pulled out (we WERE on the right one) before we knew for sure!
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