My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece. -Claude Monet
allo! ca va? spring is whizzing by isn’t it? it’s hard to believe may is almost over and we’ll be in full summer mode in just a few days, for me that means planning a trip to france and this year i’ll be going to a many places that i’ve been before but others that i have to admit that i haven’t. i thought i’d start to jot down some of the spots on the to-do list and see how it will unfold. the first on the list is Normandy, specifically Giverny where Claude Monet lived from 1883 until his death in 1926. there are so many gorgeous images out there it’s easy to see why he would devote his life to capturing these magnificent grounds it. i love this one above for its simplicity and sweetness: (Pink cosmos and golden sunflowers tower above Fifi, the calico cat who resides in Monet’s garden, as she strolls down a gravel path in the silver mist of dawn. Photograph by Elizabeth Murray c 1990. From a collection of postcards published by Pomegranate). people and pets have come and gone here but somehow this place has been perfectly preserved for all these years.
maybe it’s the voyeur in me but i love to visit homes of artists, writers and designers. the fact that the french keep these special places for us is truly one of the reasons i fell in love with france.
if you want to learn more about it, this is a wonderful fondation that works tirelessly year round to keep the gardens and home in perfect condition.
you can actually take a virtual tour here: fondation-monet.com/visite-virtuelle. i’m sure seeing this magical place in person will be more incredible than i can imagine. apparently it was so exquisite that it was almost painful for Monet in a way that i’m sure only those who know the beauty of a garden or even a single flower can understand.
‘Every day I discover more and more beautiful things. It’s enough to drive one mad. I have such a desire to do everything, my head is bursting with it’.
the paris apartment 
Chryle replied:
Dearest Claudia~
How perfect: spring, summer, art, Monet, and France… all at the same time!
I was 13 and sitting in French class (years and years ago). We were having a slide presentation introducing us to French art. Claude Monet’s “Impression, Sunrise” came on the screen. My eyes filled with tears. I was literally overwhelmed by its beauty. It remains the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. And in that moment, he became my hero artist. One day I shall visit his beloved Giverny, and I am sure I will, once again, be overwhelmed by the beauty he created. I think of him and Giverny every year as I plant my back porch for the season. (I don’t know if I could go to the Musée Marmottan Monet and not see “Impression, Sunrise,” but I don’t know if I could….)
I agree with you totally about France’s museum-homes of artists, etc.! I went to the Musée Rodin and didn’t want to leave. I actually had someone take my photograph by The Thinker. The first of only two times in my life I have wanted to have my photo taken. The photo sits in my kitchen on a shelf where I see it many times a day.
Have you ever done a Seine boat tour at sunset? It was the last thing I did my weekend in Paris. It happened quite by accident. Now, I would plan it on purpose and make sure I did it; it is tops on my list. Exquisite.
I know your trip to the City of Light will be both enlightening and illuminating…. ;)
Thrilled to be me so I can know you,
Chryle
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May 29, 2018 at 8:49 pm. Permalink.
The Paris Apartment replied:
Hi Chryle,
So nice to hear from you as always! I agree that Monet has a way of transporting us and to think that he didn’t value his work is very surprising but I guess that’s human nature. I think he was so humbled by nature’s beauty that he didn’t believe he could do it justice yet he was compelled to paint. I will think of you when I go and will take a photo just for you. I have done the bateau on the Seine but come to think of it, not at sunset per se. I’ll make a point of it this time, thank you for that tip! If you get a chance take the virtual tour of Giverny in the link, I think you’ll really enjoy his sweet and colorful interior. xoc
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May 30, 2018 at 7:35 pm. Permalink.
Chryle replied:
Dearest Claudia~
I will be doing the virtual tour of Giverny… with a nice French red in my hand… and I will think of you. You who takes me back to my weekend in Paris with every post.
You know what’s funny. I didn’t much care about a side-trip (from England – I’m an Anglophile at heart) to Paris; but I was completely blown away and totally enchanted by the city and everything about it – despite the fact I neither speak nor understand French, at all. I also stuffed my massive fear of heights and took the elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower (and prayed to die on the way down!). I went up just before sunset. And watched the sun set and the City of Light come to light, literally. Sunset has never been the same since my weekend in Paris….
Jo’s comment about the river cruise got my interest. I found this on-line: https://www.roadscholar.org/find-an-adventure/14662/In-the-Footsteps-of-the-Great-Masters-Impressionism-Along-the-Seine
Will you be sharing more of your planning with us? I, for one, would love to hear more from you!
Thrilled to be me so I can know you,
Chryle
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June 3, 2018 at 2:56 pm. Permalink.
Jo replied:
I have been to Giverny. It is truly more incredible in person. When you walk over the bridge in the Japanese garden you are literally overwhelmed with how breathtaking it actually is. We were in Paris a few years ago and did a river cruise down the Seine and stopped at al the artist’s colonies along the way. The trip of a lifetime. I will always remember.
Josette
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May 29, 2018 at 9:39 pm. Permalink.
The Paris Apartment replied:
Hi Josette, I can only imagine the overwhelming beauty! It must be incredible in the spring, I hope it’s still in bloom in July when it’s hot. I’d love to do something like you mentioned about going to the artist colonies. Was that in Paris? Sounds fantastic!
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May 30, 2018 at 7:37 pm. Permalink.
Nancy Flemming replied:
As a painter, I loved experiencing Giverny and returned several times and will go again this Fall. I have a girlfriend who received a scholarship to paint at Giverny and stay there and work at Monet’s place. Just an awesome experience. I love the small scale of monet’s Home, and that kitchen!!! The dining room is such a charming room, you can imagine his friends and family gathering round his table. What amazing conversation they must have had!
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May 29, 2018 at 10:31 pm. Permalink.
The Paris Apartment replied:
Oh if only we had the technology to excavate the sound waves off walls! And I agree about the kitchen, I can’t stop thinking about that beautiful yellow.
What a thrill for your friend to get an actual scholarship to paint at Giverny, I had no idea anything like that existed. I’m sure as a painter that it’s a place of endless inspiration.
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May 30, 2018 at 7:40 pm. Permalink.
francetaste replied:
It is hard to choose what’s best about Giverny–the cozy, comfortable house that is somehow still chic today despite not having changed; the vast, voluptuous gardens; or the French visitors, invariably well-dressed, speaking in whispers about lines, balance and harmony.
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May 30, 2018 at 6:14 am. Permalink.
The Paris Apartment replied:
Looking forward to being one of the visitors, I’ll have to remember to dress well that day lol. Like you I am not sure which I’ll be more drawn to, the interior or the gardens, they are both mesmerizing!
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May 30, 2018 at 7:42 pm. Permalink.
Louise Choquette replied:
Wow, that virtual tour was nice! Thank you! I too am a voyeur when it comes to houses and as far as I can remember, I was like that as a child. I have this weird memory of our neighbour taking us, his children and my sisters and I, to an open house and I was hooked 😄 I still wonder today why we visited that open house. No wonder I like Pinterest so much, I can indulge haha!
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June 4, 2018 at 11:42 am. Permalink.