Paris, France: The Wrap Up

It wasn't the best flight experience prior to arriving in Iceland (my luggage was too big and I wound up tragically discarding it), but the bear and I managed quite well. On the train ride from Charles De Gaulle Airport to Paris with leisure books of Paul Celan and Jean-Michel Basquiat, I enjoyed a tofu and spinach knish and a LARABAR (things stuffed into my bag from Mom's Organic Market). By then, my overstuffed tote bag was riddled with holes from the weight. I tried not to think about left clothes, towels, and tossed Inkkas sneakers.  I have bought some new shoes. It's just not the same.

After checking in, I headed to the Musee d'Orsay, a museum that I missed the first two Paris visits. It was always closed and unattainable.The line wasn't long and I immediately walked inside the impressively designed museum in little time. Auguste Bartholdi's small version of the gift to the United States.

Always a pleasure to see Jean Auguste Dominique Ingre paintings. He has an illustrious collection here and at the Louvre where one can see his famous The Odalisque and The Turkish Bathers. This oil painting from 1854 above is a splendid, colorful study encased in a dramatic gold frame entitled, The Virgin Worshiping The Host.

Portrait of Sarah Bernhardt, Georges Clarin, oil on canvas, 1884 or 1907.

A Young English Woman, Fernand Khnopff, marble, 1898. 

The first Paris evening starts to come through openings of the grand second floor Roman numeral clock.

My dream Art Noveau bedroom.

Walking through the neighborhood after enjoying Cloud Cakes Vegan Cafe.

A beautiful orchid shop.

Shakespeare and Company is a fantastic bookstore where books fill every nook and cranny. They have spiraled stairs and labyrinth mazes that please the bookworm spirit. I spent a grand time up in the poetry section reading Sylvia Plath and Audre Lorde.

On a Friday night, I spent four hours at the Louvre, happily browsing through paintings and sculpture. I was thrilled to see Marie-Guillemine Benoist's Portrait of a Negress, which reflects a depressing time of great portrait artists rendering a specific woman of color and titling the model her race and gender as opposed to her real name. I wish they were a bit more original-- call her the brown Ariadne, a mortal portrait version of the Egyptian Goddess Isis, or some other enchanted fable deity. I liked imagining that she had a purpose, a legacy to behold. I couldn't just take a picture and walk past. I stood there idolizing every inch of her, inventing answers to riddled mysteries forming in my mind.

A tiny, blurred capture of Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa. It's my second time seeing this small world famous portrait of mystery. And just like before, the vast crowd made it difficult to get a great picture, much less a proper view at the composition. In this case, the art history textbooks give better clarity.

Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, one of my favorite women painters to discuss, has many gorgeous paintings at the Louvre including this one, Self Portrait with Daughter, oil on canvas, 1789.

Hotel Josephine in Montmatre is named after famous actress, dancer, cabaret musician, and French agent Josephine Baker. I would love to stay there sometime-- not for the free Absinthe samples-- for the eclectic rooms patterned in beautiful flowers, bright colors, jazzy black and white photographs, and cozy large beds.

Every now and then, I took pictures of buildings just because the architecture astounded my artist eye.

Unfortunately, the Museum of Romantic Life was closed. I had been looking forward to seeing this former home of Romanticism painter Ary Scheffer-- a place where he used to rendezvous with author George Sand (the great female writer who was born Amantine Lucile Dupin). The two apartment also had an array of famous guests like Ingres, Eugene Delacroix, Charles Dickens, and more. It is now one of three literary museums in Paris.

A cute Montmatre souvenir shop. 

Passing through Moulin Rouge. Of course, I watched Baz Luhrmann's film later on that evening for nostalgia's sake. Plus, I love Ewan McGregor singing me to sleep.

I spent most nights at the Seine River, reading books and thinking. I found it very peaceful and quiet, the smooth ripple of the water, the sights of the boats passing to and fro. In the distance, there is Notre Dame Cathedral. I looked at the majestic gargoyles, large, grotesque, and powerful creatures that grace atop various pillars. I thought back to this Fox Kids cartoon, Gargoyles, that I used to watch with my family. It was a great idea-- statues coming to life after the sun set and transforming back to stone in the daylight.

Bringing Basquiat to the Seine.

I had the luck of having a falafel joint in the neighborhood. They had a €8 meal special (falafel sandwich, little chopped fries, and a drink). The falafel was delicious, especially the crispy fried eggplant at the bottom (really spectacular). The sesame sauce, however, was bland and uninteresting. I wish they had used some flavorful hummus.

I stopped in the Museum of the Modern Art of the City of Paris and found the most oddly constructed desk of dark gray and bright crimson red.

I also enjoyed the modest paintings of Anna-Eva Bergman. Ranging from small intimate scale to large masses of texture exploration, her works are flat oceanic landscapes with a stream of centered lines that operate as a point of temporary escape.

One of many Eiffel Tower selfies.

A quick pencil sketch. The trees made it especially challenging.

Abandoned pastel rainbow colored carousels.

I didn't get to visit the Centre Pompidou. I walked past it several times.

Views of Iceland from the window. Very, very cold yet a beauty in the ice caps, a picturesque end to a nice early winter vacation.

Vegan Mofo Post #16: Pumpkin Spice Golden Milk

A hot mug of golden milk with pumpkin spice makes everything so sweet.

I haven't had a Califia Farms Ginger AlmondMilk in forever. While some stores just aren't carrying it around, the price for a small bottle went for around $3 or more. I still remember the first taste. It was a pretty yellow and brown speckled drink with a spicy kick. For me, I realize that I was paying for the experience of eating out at Whole Foods Market, getting a drink to have alongside my hot bar food. Plus, I have to save as much as possible for the upcoming overseas trip.
Why not make golden milk on the cheap?
Now this is a simple beverage to concoct. Everything needed is in the fridge and cabinet.
If you need a break from pumpkin lattes and apple cider, golden milk is a treat perfect at any time of the year-- hot or cold.

Pumpkin Spice Golden Milk Ingredients and Preparation

1 1/2 cup almond or coconut milk
2 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of ginger

In a small pot, bring milk, maple syrup, turmeric, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and pinch of ginger to a boil, stirring continuously along the way.
Serve hot.

A delicious easy drink.

Also good with a warmed pumpkin bagel with Field Roast Chao.

Playing the Tourist

Another short little adventure to Chicago, Illinois. I haven't been to the Windy City in almost eight years or so. Back then, I was in Rosemont, rarely going beyond Wizard World Chicago. Now the times have changed. Birds fly into the photographs.

I had a splendid three days in majestic Chicago. Warm, pleasing weather (despite a mild morning Wednesday morning rain) added beneficial enjoyment to a city of profound art and historic skyscrapers. I walked almost everywhere and rode trains, taking in the majestic nature. I met up with former PAFA alums, including a classmate and explored highlights through their eyes. Plus, I ate a marvelous dinner with a fellow black woman vegan Twitter friend. My trip wasn't purely secluded mini vacation, but a time to fully interact and engage with people, to truly get to know them further. For that to happen among industrial backgrounds, famous landmarks, and delicious food (okay, there were bad food experiences, but I'll get to that later), made my short visit amazingly wonderful. I couldn't have asked for better company.

It took hours to find my temporal resting place. This wasn't the first instance of Google Maps steering me in the incorrect direction. Once my phone eventually bid me adieu, dying in the middle of my panic, I had a moment of sitting on the ground, watching the sun threaten to fall below horizon, leaving me a stranded mess on the other side of my location, Yes, I was almost half an hour away, having walked the opposite direction. A policewoman geared into the correct way. Her companion asked if I wanted to call a taxi. Of course not. Twenty minutes is nothing. I found my location, drank the free water, rested my head on a Frida Kahlo pillow, and smiled my relief.

The next day, I visited The Art Institute of Chicago, meeting a fellow PAFA alum (who recently graduated from the School of Art Institute's graduate program).

Inside Trip Advisor's Top Museum (love the independent film inspired insignia), you'll find famous works like Georges Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon At the Island of Grand Jatte," Edward Hopper's late night diner special "Nighthawks," and Grant Wood's iconic Midwestern "American Gothic." However, if you're like me, you would appreciate works by Beauford Delaney, Gabrielle Munter, and Cauleen Smith.

We visited the Africa section first, drawn in by elegant fabrics, compelling weaving, and commendable blacksmithing. The fabrics alone are remarkable.

Twine and painted wood with fabric.

This is a breathtakingly exquisite Royal Tunic and Coronet of Yoruba in Odo-Ona Iilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria that was owned by Oba (King) Dele Adeshina of Odo-Ona Ilorin. It's comprised of glass beads, cloth, and string, early 2oth century.

Moccasins fit for the king.

This is the back of the tunic-- just sophisticatedly detailed!

Posers posing in Jeff Koons' elaborate gold mirror.

It was such an honor to see the Marc Chagall stained glass windows of a serene, calming blue with little shards of color like magical prisms embedded into corner walls.

Marc Chagall continued. So as we sat in front of the gorgeous piece of art, I had charged my dying phone between two computers-- an artwork installation of some sort. I turned around for a moment, chatting with my friend. When I looked back, a man was holding onto my phone, clutching it while scrolling with the computer mouse. I had to let him know that the phone was mine, that it needed to be charged. He apologized and set it down. He and his companion leave, but not before the next couple sit down and shout, "Sir, you've forgotten your phone!" It was downright hysterical. I suppose that the better solution would have been to charge at a nearby café.

Views of Chicago skyline from my friend's automobile. We were on our way to see Jennifer Packer's show (she was a visiting critic to both of us).

Runners jogging on a supremely gorgeous day. The water was absolutely riveting, the beads of sunlight sparkling on the glittery river, a sight to behold with the many scattered yachts sitting atop.

Downtown Chicago at night.

The American Writer Museum actually exists.

The Chicago water taxi line was packed. One day, I'll get on and find a new destination.

Ohio and Michigan's old rivalry with Ohio coming out on top! Yay!

I would love to thank this stranger who took a bunch of lovely photos of me by the Buckingham Fountain, one of the several existing structures featured in one of my favorite films, Love Jones. I was soooo ecstatic to see it in person. Such an astounding sight to see.

Anish Kapoor's reflective "Cloud Gate" otherwise known as "The Bean" lets visitors see themselves in obscurity alongside the background of skyscraper glory.

Underneath "The Bean."

Seeing myself in the object itself.

Last glimpse of "The Bean," seemingly located in the pocket of the city.

Bon voyage, Chicago. I hope to visit again very soon.