Elderhostel - FRANCE - Brief Article

In May '01 we attended "The Impressionists," a fine-art program in France with Elder-hostel (75 Federal St., Boston, MA 02110; phone 877/426-8056 or visit www.elderhostel.org).

The cost of the 2-week program was $2,668 per person, double occupancy, including airfare from New York's JFK, 13 nights' accommodation, all meals, lectures, museum fees and extras like a boat trip and a concert. For our West Coast departure we paid an extra $165, flying Air France nonstop from San Francisco to Paris.

We were met by our program coordinator in, Paris and transferred by bus to our hotel, Les Jardins de Paris Gobelins, followed by lunch. After an orientation meeting and dinner, we got some much-needed rest.

The agenda for the next six days in Paris consisted of four 2-hour lectures covering the birth and development of Impressionism. In addition, we had a guided tour of both the Louvre and the Musee d'Orsay, a bus tour of Paris, a visit to the villages of Barbizon' and Moret-sur-Loing, a concert at the Sainte Chapelle, a Seine River cruise and much more.

On the seventh day we departed by bus for Rouen. On the way we made a stop at Giverny for lunch at the Musee d'Art American and a guided visit at Monet's house and water lily garden. During our 2-day stay in Rouen we had a walking tour of the city, a visit to the Musee des Beaux Arts, a tour of the cathedral, two more lectures and a wonderful dinner with a French host family.

The following day we were up early and off for an all-day bus trip to Normandie, with a a stop at Aiguille d'Etretat before continuing on to an overnight stop in Honfleur. Our bus trip ended with a return to Paris, including a stop in Auvers sur Oise where Daubigny lived and where van Gogh spent the last two months of his life.

During our concluding three days in Paris, we were kept busy with lectures on Neo and Post-Impressionism, a visit to the Musee Marmottan, a tour of the Paris Opera House and a farewell dinner and still had time to explore Paris on our own. Following breakfast on the last day, we were driven to the airport for our long flight home.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Martin Publications, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group