Waiting in the rain for the Degas exhibit at the Musée d'Orsay
Some German friends came for dinner last night. They had brought their three sons to Paris and were determined to show them some culture, so they first went to the Edward Hopper exhibit at the Grand Palais. To their horror, there was a three-and-a-half-hour line. So they decided to go to a smaller museum that they hoped would be off the beaten path-- the Jacquemart-André. They were also looking forward to its nice café. Unfortunately, they didn't realize the J-A has a big Canaletto exhibit. The line was at least an hour long, and it was raining. To their surprise, their 17-year-old, who had never shown any interest in art, wanted to go back to the Hopper. "If people are willing to wait three and a half hours, it must be worth seeing!" he said.
Museums here have learned that big exhibits bring in the crowds and the cash. It is becoming harder and harder to visit places like the Louvre or the Sainte-Chapelle without crowds, even on a rainy weekday in the off season.
Paris is indeed a city of wonderful museums. It's hard to live here without getting caught up in museum mania. At dinner parties or cocktails here, if you haven't seen the latest big show of Monet, Van Gogh, Hiroshige, Hopper, or Canaletto... you'd better fake it!
