chateau de fontainebleau

chateau de fontainebleau

29 Jul 2016

On Bastille Day I decided to visit the Château de Fontainebleau about an hours journey from my apartment. Naturally the train I intended to catch didn't exist that day leaving me with 55 minutes to fill. I wandered around the station trying to decide what to do next. Scuttle the plan to travel to Fontainebleau and visit the Bastille markets instead or try and do both. In the end I decided to catch the next available train from the Gare de Lyon.



Here's the château in all it's magnificence but this isn't the view that greeted me at first. The bus from the station at Avon-Fontainebleau kind of dropped us all off in the middle of nowhere rather than at the front entrance so I wandered towards the château through the Gardens of Diana.



Once inside I toured the very aptly named Grand Apartments.



This is the beautiful Chapel of the Trinity.




The Gallery of Diana.



The apartment of the Queen Mother's and the Gallery of Francis I.



Some details I discovered in the gallery.



I think this room was the Grand Salon attached to the Queens Mother's bedroom. I've always been partial to a chandelier and this one was spectacular.



The beautiful ceiling of the St Saturnin Chapel. At this stage, dazzled by the opulence I made my way into the courtyard.



The magnificent stairway.



There was time for a quick tour of the gardens.



The tea rooms at the château.



and finally the lakeside pavilion before I walked back to the station for the journey home.



These are my final photos from France. I'm still sorting through the 500 or so images I shot in Iceland but next week, tax return willing,  I hope to share some of those images with you. The images from Iceland are so different from the ones I shot in Paris.

See you all again next week,

Jillian

Read more

museums and more in paris

museums and more in paris

26 Jul 2016

I'm sitting in my apartment in Reykjavik watching the rain tumbling down. My jeans are in the tumble dryer and my shoes are packed with newspaper drying out. I have no plans to leave the flat so blogging it is, fuelled by numerous cups of tea.



Let's return to Paris for the moment and the Marais, where I found the sweet Boot Cafe tucked away in a side street.




These images were taken just before Bastille Day, hence the festive bunting.


I found this road sign found in the Marais requesting road harmony. I still found crossing the street in Paris pretty scary, so I'm not sure how successful it's been.





On my way to the Musee Rodin, I took a quick trip to the terrace at the Printemps Department store for some scenic views of Paris. No rain clouds on this day.



Here's Paris from another angle.



The Musee Rodin is another favourite place of mine or should I say the garden of the Musee Rodin, which you can pay for and visit separately. That's what I normally do but as the museum's been renovated since my last visit to Paris, I decided to take a look inside. I still prefer the garden.



A few interior photos including Rodin's, 'The Kiss'.



The museum from the garden.



The garden is mainly green and white.



With beautiful white hydrangeas in full bloom.



Continuing with the garden theme, here are a few early morning images from the Tuileries.



And a final image of the Arc du Carrousel.



I'll be back home in Sydney later in the week. Once I've unpacked, sorted out the mail and bought some groceries, I'll post my images from the Chateau at Fontainebleau. After 5 weeks away from the kitchen, I wonder if I can remember how to cook?

See you again soon,

Jillian

Read more

paris - the marais and beyond

paris - the marais and beyond

22 Jul 2016

I had 4 full days in Paris and I tried to use them as wisely as possible.I stayed in the 9th arrondisement, a new area for me. Whilst scenically it wasn't the prettiest area, it was very well located for the rest of Paris. I revisited old favourite locations such as the Marais; tried out some new to me art galleries as well as taking a day trip to Fontainebleu. I took lots of photos so there'll probably be a few posts devoted to my stay in Paris.




Let's start in the Marais, where I found this amazing door.




Walking along Rue St-Antoine, I spied some gorgeous flower shops.





and the fruits of summer.



The shop Merci is on the edge of the Marais so I began my day there before walking to the Musee Picasso.



I love the book lined walls of the cafe and of course the signature Fiat out the front.



Inside I discovered there were some new more muted colours in their famed range of linen.



But I had a museum to visit so I walked from Merci to the Musee Picasso.



The museum was closed for renovations last time I was in Paris.



It's still the same peaceful place I remember from before.



I thought the recent terrorist attacks might have changed Paris.



Thankfully, that wasn't the case. The cafes were full of people enjoying themselves.



I'll be back some time next week with more images from Paris.

Bye for now,

Jillian

Read more

ellsworth paris

ellsworth paris

21 Jul 2016

Hi Every-one,

I can't believe just how busy the past few days have been. In a rare moment of free time I've put together a few images from my visit to Ellsworth Paris.



It's a tiny little slip of a place near the statue of Moliere in Paris. It does lunch a few days a week, and one of those days happened to coinicide with my 4 days in Paris.



I first heard of the restaurant via Instagram, checked their menu and decided to book a table for lunch.



I'm travelling alone and one thing I'm loathe to do is to dine alone but in this case I decided to be brave. I also don't photograph my food before I eat it when in a restaurant but on this occasion I broke that rule as well.



The lunch menu is small but I'd already decided I was going to have the fried chicken, whilst the dessert I chose on the day.



The chicken was scrumptious. It was well brined, tender with a crunchy coating served with some delicious pickles.



As you can see I chose the almond cake with cherries and mascarpone for dessert. You may have seen this image already on Instagram.

The wait staff were lovely and I didn't feel too self conscious dining solo.You can find Ellsworth Paris at 34, rue de Richelieu 75001 Paris, France.

I'll be back when next I have some time to spare with some more images from Paris.

Bye for now,

Jillian

Read more

Zurich

Zurich

16 Jul 2016

My trip to Zurich was a flying one. I think I spent a total of 39 hours in Zurich before I was on the train heading to Paris. I was supposed to have been there a but longer but British Airways had other ideas - late arriving flights, missed connections and unhelpful ground staff and don't worry I have given them my feedback.

Zurich was hot and sunny and my time was spent both on and by the lake but not in the lake. No-one could convince this Queenslander that the water was warm enough for a dip.



The stay began with a trip to Uetliberg for a view of Zurich before we boarded the ferry for a cruise across the lake. 

We passed this magnificent house before stopping at Ruschlikon. 



We picnicked by the lake and while the others swam, I roamed around the lake taking photos and enjoying the sun I'd not seen for sometime. Then before I knew it the day was over.

I stayed again at the Hotel Seehof which has had a major refurbishment since my last stay. I would have taken photos but it was too dark by the time I arrived and once I'd dumped my stuff, no longer photo worthy.

The next day I was up bright and early the next day with my film camera taking a few snaps of the old town before meeting my blog friend Juliana with whom I write Plate 2 Plate.

And a final chair photo, just because I can!



I've just arrived in Reykjavik and I'm not sure when I'll be able to blog again but I'll be back as soon as I can. I hope you enjoyed my whistle stop tour of Zurich.

Bye for now,

Jillian

Read more