Traveling Back in Time

Road trips can be unpredictable, even with a perfect plan. The topography of the road may not correspond with that of the mind‘s awareness, or the tiny, unreadable roadway numbers on a map. I have an offer to take a daytrip of my choice and I choose to go to Ecouen, a banlieue of Paris, that is, not far away, to see an exhibit at the Chateau d’Ecouen, Musée National de la Renaissance (www.musee-renaissance.fr) focused on the bath and mirror. It is a co-exhibit with Musée de Cluny, Musée National du Moyen Age (www.musee-moyenage.fr), in Paris focused on the body and cosmetics.

The Renaissance period can be of interest for comparison with the modern era. One can appreciate the fact that basic human nature has not changed in these hundreds of years. No one could deny that there is a shared interest today in the bath, cosmetics, and grooming.

In Greco-Roman times, it was important to those within reach of the upper politic. Some of their recipes for perfumes and cosmetics have come down to us. Did you ever wonder what was in your daily moisturizer? The Greco-Roman period as well as the Renaissance where the focus of the Cluny exhibit.

At Chateau d’Ecouen, enhanced by its well-kept grounds, the exhibit was more extensive in the use of its resources.

My friend and I set out early to first reach Senlis. A small city only a little farther away, in the same general direction as Ecouen. The countryside proved to be quite pleasing once we were out the city. Some fields of wheat sway in the wind, waiting to be harvested which probably has been postponed due to recent rains. There were also some fields of corn and green leafy plants we could not identify.

We make one stop on the way at Chateau Pontarmé. My reading public, we’ll have to do our research to determine why this two-story was considered a chateau. It evidently had a moat, but does that qualify it as a chateau? We were puzzled.
Now it is a renovated, private residence set in idyllic surroundings off the main highway.

We reach Senlis and stop first at its bus station. Our view is blocked by an enormous bus, so we kindly ask the driver when he might be moving his vehicle so we can take photographs. It was only a matter of minutes. The station was rebuilt to replace an earlier one burned down during WWI and stands as an historical testament to those years. Architecturally distinctive, it is noteworthy.
(For PSch, poles?)



When we approach Senlis’ cathedral, we see a number of people standing in front. We surmise that a baptismal ceremony is about to begin when we see someone holding a baptismal gown and, also, when the priest comes out to ask everyone to come in for the ceremony. We enter just before it starts to walk through and study the combinative architecture of the church. If ever you want see a mixture of styles, this cathedral is a good candidate. There is no real quarrel though; a serene harmony has been achieved with its merger of late Roman and early Gothic styles.



We felt a bit like intruders during the ceremony, but it was good to see this display of community cohesion because many families had come together for the occasion. We slipped away for cups of coffee and tea and later watched families with their young children depart the cathedral after the ceremony Senlis retains some of its small village ambiance and is worth a side trip.

What comes next is the mind boggling decisions to take this turn, or that road. We want to go through the Chantilly forest, but definitely not through Chantilly, the town, to reach Ecouen. Airplanes taking off from Orly pinpoint where we are. We savor the mostly clear blue skies and far horizons. It feels great to be out of the city.

My most memorable sight was the electrical pylons stringing wires for kilometers left and right of the roads in this particular area. They held sway like colossal behemoths, standing five or more across, with no doubt that the electrical power was heading in the direction of Paris; for example, to light up the Eiffel Tower in its 120th year. We eventually found the right road to go through the forest and pass an inland lake to reach Chateau d’Ecouen.

The chateau is monumental and set in extensive grounds. It overlooks a valley with the town spread out below. The exhibit was informative (there were more paintings illustrating the “rituals of the toilette”) and highlighted the symbol of the mirror that I had not be noted before. The permanent collection covering several floors is also worth a visit. I’m glad we went through the quick-turn barriers in small villages to get there.

For SBC and SSch. Thanks for being there.