I am constantly reading all the other great travel posts, both for information and inspiration.  Sometimes, these posts expose me to new places or things that I put down on my must-see list.  Other times, they convey the emotions of travel, a destination, or experience.  Sometimes they’re fun and just downright silly.
Whatever the reasons a post catches my eye, it makes me feel part of a very special group of people – travel bloggers.
Here are some great reads from this past week:
My Bella Vita explains her theory on how to learn Italian – an entire month without speaking anything but …read more

Paris is a city full of museums, and one of my favorites is the Musée d’Orsay.  While some may prefer the Louvre (and it is full of artistic treasures), my art preferences run toward the Impressionists found at the d’Orsay.  And, for the record, my other favorite Paris museum is the Musée Rodin.
Located in the 7th arrondissement (1 Legion of Honor), along the banks of the Seine, the museum is a former railway station.  It had a number of other “lives” before being turned into a museum that opened in 1986..  It’s soaring glass and iron roof make for …read more

One of my favorite places in Paris was the Pantheon, a neo-Classical church in the Latin Quarter.  It was modeled after the Pantheon in Rome, and topped with a dome similar to Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London.  Although it was originally an abbey, it now primarily serves as a burial place for many famous French heroes, leaders, artists, and writers.
This beautiful building was constructed as a result of a promise made by King Louis XV in 1744.  He was suffering from a serious and mysterious illness (later believed to be gout), and vowed that if he recovered he would …read more

One of my favorite museums in Paris was the Musee Rodin in the First Arrondissement.
Surrounded by beautiful gardens, this collection of sculptures and other artwork was wonderful.
I took the photo of these hands, and don’t even recall what the sculpture was called.  For some reason, I found them compelling.
Join a group of other travel bloggers who are sharing photos today as part of Photo Friday.  I loved the travel photos, and think you will, too!
 
Photo credit:  personal collection

 
Location:  The interior pillars and a glimpse of art from inside the Pantheon in Paris.
There’s marvelous murals on the walls, all sorts of interesting frescos, niches, an cubbies, and some beautiful windows.  It was amazing to wander about, and every time you turned around there was something awe inspiring.
 
Photo credit:  personal collection
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Playing with photo editing software today – always a fun thing to do with travel photos.
I like making the Eiffel Tower even more artistic looking that it really is!
 
Photo credit:  personal collection
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I spent some time today at a blogging conference, and met up with fellow travel-blogger Pam from Nerds Eye View.  As is often the case when travel bloggers get to talking, the discussion soon turns to places we’ve been, places we’re going, and places we want to go.
Pam is a great photographer (click on her link above and go check out her stuff), and we also discussed how much photos added to the travel blog experience.
So today, I’m sharing a photo taken on my trip to Paris last fall. 

The photo was taken on a visit to the Louvre.  …read more

I’ve been having lots of fun of fun playing with the new collage option of Picnik. 
Of course, I wanted to share my “masterpiece” with you.  These photos are from the Rodin Museum in Paris, and show a part of the museum and its grounds, as well as a few of Rodin’s marvelous sculptures.

Picnik is a web-based photo editing program that is easy to use and fun.  While it may not do the heavy lifting of some of the other photo editing programs, it’s easy to learn, is compatible with many online photo storage programs, and will occupy you …read more

Standing in the center of the Place Charles de Gaulle (also called the Place de l’Étoile) at the western end of the Champs-Élyseés, the Arc de Triomphe is the largest triumphal arch in the world. 
It honors those who bravely fought for France, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars.  ,  Beneath the arch is the tomb of the unknown soldier from World War I, marked by the very first eternal flame.  The flame burns in memory of those who died, but were not identified, in both WWI and WWII.  An inscription reads “Here lies a French soldier who died for …read more

Today’s matchbook of Bateaux Parisiens comes from Jon at Travel Photo Daily.  He said that he just came across it, but that is was at least five or more years old.  It brought back lots of great memories of my trip to Paris last fall, so a very big THANKS for the contribution.
Bateaux Parisiens is a cruise company that conducts sightseeing, lunch, and dinner cruises on the Seine, along with operating a river-boat shuttle called Batobus.
I opted for an evening sightseeing cruise, and for an hour we cruised the Seine while the hostess pointed out a number of attractions.  …read more