Tuesday, August 10, 2010

A Hotel with History


When Claude Monet moved to Giverny he rented his house. A few years later he had sold so many of his Impressionist paintings that he had enough money to buy his home. Well......when young painters learned of Monet's village one hour outside of Paris, they flocked there, especially the Americans. Before long there were over a 100 painters living nearby. The Hotel Baudy was the epicenter of it all. The owners had 20 bedrooms put in, built studios out back, and installed a tennis court out front to please the Americans. Meals were served and dinnertime went into the wee hours with visitors laughing and talking and sharing stories! I imagine it must have been a wonderfully inspiring place. Some of the guests ran out of money, so they traded their paintings for payment. Today no one stays there, but it's a great place for lunch and dinner. I know, I ate at the Hotel Baudy and had a tasty soup and salad! Sometimes restaurant goers leave sketches and they are posted on this bulletin board.

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