Our French Adventure - Amiens

 Another easy day trip from Paris was to Amiens, this time by train. Amiens lacked the charm and historical feel of Rouen, particularly as you left the train and into the modern architectural playground that was the train station, but it did have something Rouen didn't have. A feeling of familiarity. Most places you visit the first time feel new, but Amiens felt like somewhere I had been before, and not in a bad way. It almost had that feeling of being back at home, which was a lovely feeling as you don't get it very often.

 Perhaps most notable about the Cathedral is the stained glass windows at the end of the nave, which had so much detail and colour I could have spent all day there gawking at them. They were a modern restoration, and had beautiful little simplistic scenes from the bible, that were both easy to follow and full of colour & contrast.

Amiens Cathedral is unusual in the fact it had a relatively short building timeframe of just fifty years, beginning in 1220. There is a sense of relative unity across the cathedral, save for the slightly mismatched towers at the front. But otherwise, the same Gothic style prevails throughout, and combined with it being the largest Cathedral in France, there's plenty to see!  

The impressive entrance, with the central rose window and the tourist train that nearly ran us over while we were leaving! Nothing says you've had a memorable holiday like being mown down but a tourist train trap!

Next up, we headed to the Picardie Museum, and when I say this could possibly be one of the best museums I have ever visited, I really do mean it. This is what museums are all about, a fantastic array of art, sculpture, archaeological finds & historical object, mixed with a beautifully decorated museum with a sense of humour, meant this was an absolute joy to visit. That coupled with the fact it's only nine euro's to visit, you'll be spending all day there very happily! 

The building has this fantastic old yet new, traditional yet modern feel to it, and was so lovingly curated.

We started in the basement, where the Roman & archaeology section is, with these fantastic examples of the craftsmanship of Roman glass.

Before then discovering this beautiful mosaics, I wish I could have a mosaic floor, even it was just a tiny bit, it's so impressive and it would make everyone who visits our house think we were aristocracy!

Next up there is an Ancient Egyptian section, with a wide arrange of statues and art to look at, as well as a sarcophagus, with the layers separated so you got a better understanding of how the bodies were prepared and laid to rest.

But possibly for me, the highlight was the art & sculpture on display. There was such a wide range of artwork on show, including some really interesting and thought provoking pieces. But the galleries themselves were beautiful, from painted ceilings and floors, to bright colour guiding you along, someone had really put some time and thought into how to display the art and how to enhance the experience of the visitors.

One of the many stunning corridors.

And this was the entrance into the main hall, the mixture of colour and mosaic, the sharp edges contrasting with the fluidity of the mosaic, it was just fantastic, and inside the main hall, was some incredible artwork.

This maybe the best filled room of artwork I've ever been in, and I've been to a lot of art galleries! The room itself is sumptuous, with golden detailing on the walls and the red decorated walls, as well as this very interesting picture depicting Lady Godiva on horseback.

Two others that caught my eye was this painting depicting a man being taken over by a personified Absinthe (I think we've all been there before) while this other one has become one of my most favourite paintings. It is called The Voices Of Tocsin (Les Voix du Tocsin) by Albert Maignan, and features one of the most sensational images I've ever seen, of a team of almost naked men & women frantically trying to ring a giant bell from atop a belltower, which the church building burns below them. It's such a striking image, I ended up buying the fridge magnet of it in the gift shop, that's how struck I was with it! The sense of panic and fright is clear in this painting, as well as a sense of dread & desperation in the situation. It gave me chills looking at it! That's the sign of a brilliant piece of art, it gives you emotion looking at it!

And this was a little corner of another room, filled with these interesting little paintings depicting life in various places, Italy, Egypt and the Middle East, it was a wonderful little array of art, and it inspired me to want to paint more. I'm not a massively creative person, but when I'm inspired, then I enjoy painting, writing and general art making. Not that I'm very good at it! 

I know I'm gushing about the Picardie Museum, but it really was a special place to visit, and one of my top 5 museums that I have ever visited! For reference, the others are the British Museum, the Zeugma mosaic museum in Gaziantep, the Poltava art museum & Le Louvre. Two you've probably heard of, but the others not so much! I love it when I visit a museum and feel joy from being there, and that's exactly how the Picardie Museum made me feel. So take this as a glowing recommendation! 

We then had a wander back through the town to the train station, having a browse through some of the shops and debating if we could buy a very nice looking sofa and had it shipped back home, before getting on the train to head back to Paris where the hotel was.

We spotted this fun graffitied apple (I think) on the way past the café we grabbed a drink at, and while on the platform, I noticed that the trains had faces painted on them, or at least, I think it was intentional! Nothing like getting a flirty gaze from a train!