Day 3: Sticking with Plan A

Returning to the Musee d'Orsay, we encountered another large group of people waiting to be admitted. Today, though, we managed to distinguish between the ticket buyers and the pass holders lines.

Not wanting to go 0 for 2, we decided to suck it up and get in the appropriate line, which snaked back and forth six times before we reached the entrance. It was at least a half hour wait; we didn't keep track.

During our slow progress, I overheard someone not too far behind us say, "We have to leave at 12:30.

But then he quickly added that it wasn't his first visit.

It was 11:50 when we reached the entrance.

Most museum visitors went straight to the 5th level to view the Impressionism exhibits. I was particularly transfixed by Monet's "La Port d'Argenteuil", which, much more than any other painting of its type, looks to be illuminated from within.

When we left the museum, the lines were nearly as long as when we arrived.