Took the Metro to The Louvre today... number one and only item on my to do list! Really overwhelming... I already knew I had to have low expectations as I could only do a section. Decided to check out the “Mona Lisa” and Greek and Roman Statues.
Meandered around statues and then proceeded down the path with Mona Lisa’s face and arrows to help one get to her. The gallery that contains the madam is vast and when I looked across, the actual painting looks so small. There is a barrier to keep people from getting too close to Mona Lisa. I couldn’t get close enough to see the strokes... that’s what I like to see when I look at a painting... and envision the hand that made the image, stroke by stroke. So that was a bit of a bust. Then a young man next to me asked if I would take his photo with the painting. I took his and he took mine. 
We parted with simple greeting. Then he found me again and wanted another photo taken. Guess I did okay with first photo shoot. This time we talked more.. “Where are you from?” “What are you doing in Paris?” He is from Singapore but is on his way to London to woo his beloved. I told him I am from California and he started gushing about the Lakers. Had to help him out and say I was from Warriors land. Evidently Mr. Tan is quite the NBA expert. He shared how much he would love to see a NBA game one day and that the Boston Celtics are his favorite team. I said perhaps he and his beloved could visit USA and go to a NBA game. Then he admitted she wasn’t his yet... this trip he was hoping he could convince her. Must be pretty good odds, for him, I thought, if he is traveling all the way from Singapore to London. We talked more about Warriors and Jeremy Lin... told him my kids had attended a game. He learns my children are half Cantonese and shares his dream to marry a caucasian woman so he can have beautiful children. I don’t ask if the beloved in London is caucasian but have a strong hunch. I show him my children’s photos, tell him their Chinese names and he raves about how beautiful they are. I agree. :-)
I stayed in the room at The Louvre for some time that holds the Mona Lisa and the Wedding Feast at Cana. The Wedding Feast painting in comparison to Mona Lisa is huge... no wonder the room is so cavernous. I stay in this gallery for some time. Started thinking it felt like being inside a whale with the breath going in and out as the people flow in and out in droves... at one point the whole room is packed... and then with the exhale, it feels peaceful to have just a handful. At this rate I imagine it would take a lifetime for me to move in and out of each space...
I am worn out by that space and retreat to the cafe... figure since museum open until 9:30 pm tonight, I could afford the break. I enjoy a glass of Bordeaux and read a bit more of my treasured “The Bread of Angels” as she talks about war and the Syrian’s impressions of George Bush. I love this book and I love her voice! I replace the Delta Airlines barf bag I was using for a bookmark with my newly coveted 1 Euro bookmark of the statue by Antonio Canova "Psyché ranimée par le baiser de l'Amour" Breathtaking and much more appropriate for this reading feast than the barf bag.
Planned on ending my time at The Louvre with Venus de Milo and all her friends in that gallery... living and in stone. Started to leave and was compelled to find the actual Antonio Canova statue... it’s small... but stunning. Immortal love is a good note on which to depart The Louvre.
Photo and information about Canova statue @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/lanphere/401912063/
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