Paris the Sixth—Louvre Day

This is an update of the amazing trip I took to Europe last summer. Slowly but surely I’m posting about every day I spent on that excellent continent. To read earlier updates, click herehereherehereherehereherehere and here. And here. And here and here and here and here and here and here.

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Here are some excerpts from my journal on Day Six:

20110808-021608.jpg

This week has flown by in some ways and dragged in others. I am getting really sick of group work, but there seems to be no end in sight. I have been at the Louvre for nine hours today with my group. I am sore and tired like usual, but fulfilled (also like usual). We will be here probably a few more hours.

20110808-021624.jpgNike of Samothrace, Unknown, c. 200-100 BCE

It’s been nice to see the Louvre again but this time with someone who knows the history of the place. It’s a satisfying feeling to see paintings and sculptures that I’d only ever seen in textbooks before. Like the accomplishment of a lifelong goal. 

20110808-021733.jpgOath of the Horatii, Jacques Louis David, 1748

I also liked seeing the Mona Lisa again, not so much because it’s a beautiful painting (I’ve never thought it was), but because I could look at it from a bit of a different perspective than I did the first time I saw it back when it was my one and only goal for the entire city of Paris. This time, I was able to step back and think, “Why the heck did I care so much?”

By the way, seeing the Mona Lisa in real life is not an easy feat because it’s always swarming with people like this:

In fact, that’s been my experience with most aspects of this trip. I don’t know if it’s because I’m older or just more cynical generally, but either way this trip has shown me that it’s really good I didn’t major in Art History/Museum Studies after all. I love it and will always have an interest in it, but I’m so glad I did not choose to dedicate my life to it.

 

20110808-021651.jpgVenus de Milo, Unknown, c. 300-200 BCE

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Can you tell that by Day Six I was getting a bit artlogged? I was exhausted from the rigour of the course, I was completely fed up with group work, I was frustrated with my internet situation, and all things combined had taken their toll on my cheery tourist optimism.

I tried my best to rally and enjoy being in Paris because I WAS IN PARIS, but by Day Six, I was emotionally, intellectually, and physically drained.

I felt exactly like these people (cashed out on one of the few-and-far-between couches in the Louvre’s great hall): 20110808-021742.jpgI was weary to the bone, but I knew I needed to step it up if I was going to enjoy the trip I worked so hard for. It seemed a terrible shame to waste my trip being cranky.

Luckily, that night I had a breakthrough.

But you’ll have to stay tuned to find out what it was…

About Camille

I'm Camille. I have a butt-chin. I live in Canada. I was born in Arizona. I like Diet Dr. Pepper. Hello. You can find me on Twitter @archiveslives, Facebook at facebook.com/archivesofourlives, instagram at ArchivesLives, and elsewhere.
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