Merry Christmas!
Sorry I haven't posted for a while... family wedding, Christmas... and the year is almost over!
Merry Christmas to everyone out there. I hope you have a lovely festive and "feast"-ive season!
Belinda xoxo
Random thoughts 2
You know that every now and then I just find odd things that I have to post about. What do you think this is?
Maybe it's the weather making me spot quite random things. About a month ago, snow was forecasted in the hills and I had my winter coat out... then this weekend we had temperatures of 37 and 41 celcius! Sadly fires are sweeping across our state and we're praying for rain and for those who have lost their homes to have hope that things will be OK again.
This sudden change in weather isn't helping our farmers. It's quite a sad state of affairs as due to the drought, I'm finding a lot of baby sized fruit. In this photo, the largest fruit is just an ordinary apple; the accompanying nectarines and cherries are absolutely tiny in comparison!
On a happier note for Melbournians: the Karachi tram is back! I was waiting for the tram and being tired after a long day at the office, I seriously thought I was dreaming when all this Bollywood music came towards me and happy smiling tram "conductors" (what do you call them when they no longer have to sell tickets and this tram is free anyway?) beckoned me to board.
Allen's brought out "Happy Feet" penguin lollies. They may claim to put in natural colouring and flavours (cola is a natural flavour?) but I found nothing natural about eating a penguin. Look at that detail... I had to flip the penguin over and close my eyes!
And did you guess what was in the opening photo? These are "Corn Chos", chocolate covered corn snacks! I walked past the Korean supermarket and decided to go exploring in there. They were, um, interesting. I thought they might be like chocolate covered Pringles but they were a bit chewy and the chocolate looked like it was just smeared on as an afterthought. I hope that doesn't say "MSG added" in Korean! :-) 
Labels: Random thoughts
A Menu for Hope
I hope you'll consider participating in A Menu for Hope. Congratulations to Pim for holding this fantastic campaign and Helen at Grab Your Fork for hosting the Asia Pacific region. Please go to those sites to see what this is all about.
Maybe like me you didn't have time to source a raffle item but we can all take part and make a donation, it's for a wonderful cause and some amazing people have sourced fabulous prizes. Hmm... cookbooks I could add to my collection, dinner at Felix in Hong Kong overlooking the harbour, a market tour in Florence, chocolate tasting kits...
Museums, museums, museums!
Art lovers who have roamed the Paris museums will have marveled at the array of options available. Although our Centre Pompidou expedition failed, there were so many alternatives it didn't matter - and so many that we wished we had several more weeks in Paris! I really recommend getting a Paris Museum Pass if you will be making multiple visits, free entry to other sites such as the Arch de Triomphe or the Notre Dame towers are also included but the biggest advantage is avoiding queues as most places have a dedicated queue for pass holders. Note though that due to security checks, some places don't have dedicated queues but the signs are pretty clear. 
Impressionists
Musée d'Orsay is a must for anyone who likes Impressionist/Post-Impressionist paintings however there is an immense wealth of works from 1848 to 1914 representing the period starting with the Second Republic through the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist eras of art, ending before the start of Wold War I. The museum has just turned 20 - Bon anniversaire! Opened after the transformation of the Orsay train station, the building itself is also a lovely space to walk around.
We went straight to the top level where the Impressionist/Post-Impressionist works are and this was where we concentrated our time. It was such a treat to see the works of artists such as Renoir and Monet, and witness Degas' devotion to ballet (and ladies bathing!) but what really stood out for me were Seurat's "The Circus" and van Gogh's "The Church in Auvers-sur-Oise, View from the Chevet".
Make sure you head to Café des Hauteurs for the spectacular view from the balcony and this view through the clock. It was a bit smoggy but in the right weather, you can apparently see Montmatre spectacularly.
For more Monet, Marmotton is just on the edge of Paris.Louvre
Well you can't go to Paris without setting aside time for the Louvre. Lots and lots of time if possible, we went on a Wednesday when it stays open later and spent 7 hours walking around. (We still missed 1 floor and 1 wing, and did selected viewings of the rooms we did get to!) Everything from Egyptian antiquities to sculptures to a wonderful collection of French (naturally!) paintings is there.
The "Mona Lisa" is tiny when you do get to it! We were lucky in that there wasn't a crowd 3 deep around probably the most visited work there but most people are there to see that and the others of the big trio, the "Venus de Milo" and "Winged Victory of Samothrace". Again picking my favourites, I was mesmerised by Canova's sculpture of "Cupid and Psyche" and the Etruscan "Sarcophagus of the Spouses". The latter was very moving and although rather morbid, the couple in a loving embrace expresses so much joy and love, you can't not be moved.
There are plenty of café's where you can fuel yourself for more walking and we felt very sophisticated during our champagne break, enjoying the view of the nearby Tuileries Garden and the exterior of the museum. (And if you must, the Da Vinci audio guide is available for hire - the inverted pyramid is in the shopping centre part of the building that you enter from the métro exit.)
Le Royal
There are so many eateries open late it's great. Le Royal is close to the Louvre and has a very typical bistro menu. I had foie gras that was creamy and very yummy, but the sausages I had were like hot dog franks - I'm not recommending them!
Make sure you ask what the tart of the day is, this apricot one was delicious!
Musée d'Orsay1, rue de la Légion d'Honneur7e (Métro: Solférino)(RER: Musée d'Orsay)*Closed Mondays, open late ThursdaysMusée Marmottan Monet2, rue Boilly 16e(Métro: Muette)Louvre7e(Métro: Palais-Royal-Musée du Louvre station)*Closed Tuesdays, open late Wednesdays and Fridays*Current information only: always check opening times!Le RoyalNear cnr of rue de L'Echelle and ave St Honoré4e
Labels: Paris
Sorry I haven't posted for a while... family wedding, Christmas... and the year is almost over!
Maybe it's the weather making me spot quite random things. About a month ago, snow was forecasted in the hills and I had my winter coat out... then this weekend we had temperatures of 37 and 41 celcius! Sadly fires are sweeping across our state and we're praying for rain and for those who have lost their homes to have hope that things will be OK again.
On a happier note for Melbournians: the Karachi tram is back! I was waiting for the tram and being tired after a long day at the office, I seriously thought I was dreaming when all this Bollywood music came towards me and happy smiling tram "conductors" (what do you call them when they no longer have to sell tickets and this tram is free anyway?) beckoned me to board.
And did you guess what was in the opening photo? These are "Corn Chos", chocolate covered corn snacks! I walked past the Korean supermarket and decided to go exploring in there. They were, um, interesting. I thought they might be like chocolate covered Pringles but they were a bit chewy and the chocolate looked like it was just smeared on as an afterthought. I hope that doesn't say "MSG added" in Korean! :-) 
I hope you'll consider participating in A Menu for Hope. Congratulations to Pim for holding this fantastic campaign and Helen at Grab Your Fork for hosting the Asia Pacific region. Please go to those sites to see what this is all about.
Impressionists
We went straight to the top level where the Impressionist/Post-Impressionist works are and this was where we concentrated our time. It was such a treat to see the works of artists such as Renoir and Monet, and witness Degas' devotion to ballet (and ladies bathing!) but what really stood out for me were Seurat's "The Circus" and van Gogh's "The Church in Auvers-sur-Oise, View from the Chevet".
For more Monet, Marmotton is just on the edge of Paris.
The "Mona Lisa" is tiny when you do get to it! We were lucky in that there wasn't a crowd 3 deep around probably the most visited work there but most people are there to see that and the others of the big trio, the "Venus de Milo" and "Winged Victory of Samothrace". Again picking my favourites, I was mesmerised by Canova's sculpture of "Cupid and Psyche" and the Etruscan "Sarcophagus of the Spouses". The latter was very moving and although rather morbid, the couple in a loving embrace expresses so much joy and love, you can't not be moved.
Make sure you ask what the tart of the day is, this apricot one was delicious!
