Malmaison

[annettecinca]

I just wanted to comment on the beautiful pictures and review on the home page, but haven't been successful in posting a comment there (maybe I should put this under "technical questions"!). At any rate, great report Luc, love the photos, and it sounds like a very worthwhile site to put on my list for next time. Thanks for taking the time to write it up for us ;D

[trechic]

I agree with Annette, Luc...loved it - and have added it to my itinerary as well.

[Truffaut]

There's a minor catastrophe with the Malmaison article. I put up the article and the rest of the blog disappeared I'm working on a resolution as we speak (well, actually, I'm trying to resolve that, list items on our antiques website, roast a chicken, clean house for the arrival of houseguests next weekend, a create a French property joint ownership corporation--all at the same time.....)

[annettecinca]

Looks like you got it working, T--at any rate the other blog articles are there for me! Thanks for all your hard work on this site. I'm sure it takes a lot more of your time than we realize

[sandy]

Malmaison was on my "to-do" list on my last visit, but unforunately we didn´t have the time to go there. When researching I found out that there´s a free tourist train that goes from Ruel to the Château de Malmaison and the parc de Bois-Préau, and you can hop on and off at every stop. Here´s the link:

www.rueil-tourisme.com/EN/agenda_unique.php?Id=4935&annee=2007&dep=0

I hope I can do it next time.

[annettecinca]

This is a good thing to know, Sandy! Thanks

[geordy]

I know you listed it as a half day excursion but did you eat anywhere while there guys? U had Lunch in Paris before/after?

[luckyluc]

We had lunch, back in Paris. But there was a selection of restaurants in Malmaison, if one choose to spend more time. The gardens are quite extensive, but the weather was not cooperative on the day we went.

[Truffaut]

geordy said:

I know you listed it as a half day excursion but did you eat anywhere while there guys?

Uhh, G plucked a couple of wild blackberries from Joséphine's garden. Does that count? (They were delicious!)

[joan1]

Sandy thanks for that link,, what a wonderful help this board is!!!
I will have to go back and read the article and blog,, I have always wanted to go to Malmaison, but never fit it in,, it will be a priority this time.

Truffaut,, you do amaze me,, I exalt you mult tasking,, it is not a skill to be taken for granted!

[mez]

Sandy, thanks for the link. Another thing to add to the to-do list.

Mez.

[Darcy]

Great report!

I visited Malmaison in May, spent most of the day there and loved it, as I knew I would because I've been a Napoleon and Josephine fan since I was a kid. Fortunately, the weather was nice and the roses, hundreds of them, were in full bloom. The land behind the chateau is a lovely wildflower meadow with a nice walking path through it.

Be aware that, during the summer only, the chateau is open all day but other than that it closes for a long lunch. During my visit it was open all day but the gift shop closed for the long lunch. If I'd known that, I would have gone there before walking through the gardens. Btw, it was really crowded when I visited, there were at least ten other people there!

[Becky (Berkeleytravelers)]

I recently bought a small book, "Walks Through Napoleon & Josephine's Paris" that looked promising (but of course have not yet had a chance to do the walks, so don't know whether to recommend it!). Once I've tried it out, I'll comment further . . . .

[sandy]

Now that I read your reports I´m so sorry that I couldn´t go to Malmaison, we planed to go there on the last day but we had to cut our trip and Malmaison had to be cut as well. One more reason to go back to Paris!

[Darcy]

Becky, I have the same book but I'm afraid that I have not put it to good use yet either, except that I have enjoyed reading it.

[Truffaut]

The "Walks Through...." books are somewhat interesting just because they're different. The guides provide a little background information, but you really need to have a deeper historical understanding to get the full impact. Also, I find that the guides sometimes focus too much on the N & J link (for example, it takes you to Palais Royal and tells you about it being a hotbed of the revolutionaries, but it doesn't tell you anything about Cardinal Richelieu, Marie de Medicis, the childhood of Louis XIV, etc.). There are also a few other books by the same publisher--"the Impressionists' Paris", "Picasso's Paris"--come to mind.

[geordy]

I have the Impressionist's one. I've had it for some time and it was interesting because a couple of the walks took me to areas I had not yet explored at the time. And they give restaurant/cafe suggestions in each walk/map. Some of them involved with the history.

[Darcy]

Oh, goody, another book I have to buy! Thanks

[Truffaut]

Geordy,
I think the Impressionist and Picasso books are better than the N&J exactly because they guide you toward lesser known areas of Paris. To me, the N&J guide simply takes you to the Palais Royal, former site of the Tuileries, etc. that any other guide could do (and probably with greater depth).

[Becky (Berkeleytravelers)]

We've done several of the "Impressionists" walks - some were quite good, although others basically take you to an intersection and then say something like, "if the house were still here, this would be the place where X had a studio for six months." Nothing wrong with that, but the walk that went over into the Montmarte area was not very interesting (others, however, were quite fun and interesting).