Marmottan Museum and 16th

This morning I went to a place on my list in the 16th arrondissement for a good coffee. I have now had coffee in all of the 20 arrondissements. I also have documentary evidence that I have been to all 20 in the form of the typical Parisien street sign which includes the arrondissement number.

After coffee I walked to the Marmottan Museum. The building , originally a hunting lodge, was passed down to different people and organisations,  aquiring assorted collections along the way.  Now mainly Empire and Restoration furniture and impressionist paintings. In 1966 the museum inherited the largest collection of Monet's paintings in the world from Monet's son Michel.

I have never been a big fan of Monet. Today, though , I went round this large room - on my own - and found the one I liked the best. I sat in front of it for a while and quite enjoyed it, imagining myself on a nearby park bench looking at the pond and the relections. Afer I looked at the rest of the paintings - I quite liked one by Renoir of Manet, quite relaxed, smoking a pipe, reading a newspaper - I went to the shop, but my favourite Manet was clearly not one of the popular ones. I bought a postcard of it, but that was all there was. I bought myself a small jigsaw of my second favourite .

This afternoon I went to a nearby hotel that had been recommended and sat in their very quiet and interestingly decorated lounge for a peaceful cup of coffee for an hour reading the New York Times.  I felt justified in reading that newspaper because yesterday morning I had puzzled over a French newspaper about what Macron and Le Pen were up to.

This sign, a bit hard to read, is in the first and I have just finished reading a book by Colette.

This is in the 17th on the wall of a library.