No manic Monday here… just an interesting day of art, a visit to to 12th arrondissement and finishing off with dinner at Willi’s. Quelle belle journée!

We met up in the hotel lobby after breakfast. The plan was to take the Metro, so we walked over to the station to begin the journey. Our first stop was at the Grand Palais Immersif for the ‘Éternel Mucha’ Exhibition. The Grand Palais Immersif is located close to the Bastile and near the Gare de Lyon.

We arrived a little early, so we walked around for a bit. In that immediate area, there were the Arsenal Boat docks, the memorial statue where the infamous Bastille prison once stood, and an outdoor art exhibit related to women’s equality, domestic abuse sufferers and minority women.

After walking around, it was time for the doors to open, so we moseyed back to line up at the entrance.

The exhibit told the story of Alphonse Mucha’s artistic style, from his place in the Art Nouveau movement to his creative graphic arts style. I had often seen and admired his work without knowing much about the artist.

The exhibit started off with a multi-media presentation in the main salon. It featured many of his works along with the story of how his style evolved and changed over the years.

After the main presentation, we walked through halls and small rooms where specific features were highlighted, such as his studio, models and photography. Following along the path, you next came up to a display of various examples of his posters -be they for shows or advertising products.

There was then a display of some modern instances where the Mucha style has been used – mostly in Japanese Hentai.

Leaving the venue, we walked a short distance over to the Viaduct Des Arts, but before exploring we opted for a little lunch and a beverage. We stopped at a place called La Botaniste that worked out perfectly. It was just enough to tide us over to dinner and the beverages were refreshing.

Feeling sated, we ventured over to the artisans. The individual workshops and stores are built into the arches of what was originally a railroad bridge. There were about fifty artisan shops specializing in crafts of all types – jewelry, ceramics, fashion and perfumes among other things. It was really interesting and was in a section of town we had not seen in previous visits. The only problem: most of the shops were closed on Monday.

But that didn’t take away from the walk through the area.

Our next step was to find a Metro Station to head back to the hotel. We ended up back at the Bastille station and fifteen minutes later, we were back at our Saint Germain des Pres station. The short walk back to the hotel left us with plenty of time to relax before dinner.

For our final dinner in Paris, we chose Willi’s Wine Bar. We had 7:30 pm reservations and instead of grabbing cabs, we took the bus over. Sue mapped out our route and we already had Navigo passes, so it would be a new experience. It turned out to be an easy experience. We only had to ride the bus for four stops and then walk for another two blocks before we arrived.

Willi’s is an icon. We first visited way back in 1996 thanks to due diligence by our friend Dave. That’s when we started collecting the posters that are now the basis for our home decor. We’ve been back a few times since then and it’s always special.

So on this night, we introduced Jan and Dave to Willi’s and shared a great evening with them.

The wines are always great there and we started with a bottle of Chablis with our appetizers. Since three of us were having Guinea fowl for our main plates, the bartender suggested a Corsican red wine that matched perfectly.

Desserts were also delicious. We had a rich chocolate terrine and also almond-praline tarts. They were all heavenly.

Now, happy and full, we made our way out and back to the bus stop. It had rained while we were eating, but it stopped before we walked over. The ride home only took a few minutes and in the blink of an eye, we were back at the hotel.

These first few days in Paris flew by, and next we’re off to Èpernay. Break out the champagne flutes and we’ll meet you there.