On Top of the World

Here I am on top of the world...or at least at the top of Paris.  I went to the Pompidou today and rode the escalators up to the top!  The view was amazing.  For some weird reason I didn't think it was going to be quite so high!  I got more and more nervous as I continued to climb up high, but up I went.  I quickly snapped a few photos of the view and then went inside the building.  I hate heights and my stomach flip flopping all over the place!  Yikes!!!

The escalators are pretty cool.  They are in these tubes that zig-zag up the outside of the building. 

Do you see the teeny tiny Eiffel Tower out there?  

Surprisingly, I think this was my favorite museum so far! It was full of fun, colorful and funky stuff - pop art that really makes no sense to me.  It was also full of other more modern painters that we all know and love - Matisse, Picasso, Kandinsky, Mondrian.  I loved it all.  Okay this one I didn't really love:

There was a big white tent, wailing music, sand and a palm tree in the middle of the tent with alphabet letters projected on the ceiling.  All I could think of was Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.  I don't think that was what the artist was going for.  I have no idea what it was supposed to represent.  There were other weird ones...lots of plastic bottles strung together.  I didn't get that either.  

This was the only thing that resembled "art" to me in this part of the museum.  You can't really tell, but it's made from a grocery bag, newspaper, feathers and beads.  The artist (I can't remember his name) took a lot of mushrooms in the 70s while he created art.  Not very surprising!  It looks like someone raided a teacher's craft drawers.  It looks like a first grader made it too!  But really, I loved this museum!  

The rest of the museum was filled with amazing work!  

I know I look bored to death, but inside I was screaming "oh my gosh!  It's a real Picasso!!"  I was totally trying to look calm, cool and collected so I didn't make too much of a fool of myself.  

 Mondrian - love the yellow!

Georgia O'Keefe - love it all!

There was a music festival going on in the area so bands were playing, people were dancing and there was a ton of good people watching.  So after wandering around for quite a long time, I went outside and sat and watched.  

Eccos at the Pompidou

Then this happened - 

I finally ate some glace! They made it into this rose for me!  This is from a place called Amarino. I had lemon and strawberry.  It was super yummy and almost too pretty to eat.  Loved it. 

I met a man while I was eating my glace who was a fabric importer for 15 years and has recently lost his job.  He now draws caricatures for living at 10 Euro a pop.  He was sweet and a little sad.  I didn't get my picture drawn (I kind of felt bad about that) but he asked me to dinner.  Ha!  I politely declined and went on my way.  Who knows if his sad little story was even true.  He was sweet though.  Not my type however!  Too funny.  

Nearby there is a fun pool with funky fountains in it.  It was colorful and fun.  Sat and watched more people from there.  It is surrounded by a bench so you can sit and enjoy the fountains up close.  

Headed home after listening to music and all that people watching.  Stopped for the ingredients of my favorite French dinner - bread, cheese and a tomato with some fruit.  Doesn't get better than that!