One of my favorite parts of the French system is the "carte vitale." This card functions as your health payment card and electronic health record all rolled into one. Need to go to the doctor? Take this card with you and it will have everything your provider needs to know about your health history, prescriptions, and more -- and since there are no "in-network" and "out-of-network" doctors in France, it makes it easy for you to move from provider to provider.
While the "carte vitale" was something I'd taught about before, the Doctolib website (https://www.doctolib.fr/) was brand new. And it is mind-blowing from an American point of view. Broke a tooth and need a dentist? Have pink eye and need an ophthalmologist? How about a belly ache and need a primary care provider? NO PROBLEM! The Doctolib website is a one-stop shop that will list out all the providers and their available appointments...and let you schedule online. No gatekeepers. No referrals. No waiting on the phone for an hour hoping someone will finally answer.
After class and a quick snack, it was time for the Louvre! I'm not going to lie -- I had low expectations of this one. I've been following many FB groups in preparation for this trip (Paris Travel Tips and LesFrenchies are two of my favorites) and many folks talked about how crowded, hot, miserable, and generally unfun the Louvre has been lately. But, thankfully, my expectations were well-exceeded! Was it crowded around the Mona Lisa? Yep, sure was. Was there a lot of cool stuff to see otherwise? Absolutely!
There are students from a variety of majors at UK on this trip, but it's extra special to have some of my CLM (Clinical Leadership & Management) students here with me! We got a quick picture together at the Louvre today.
I learned a lot about the history of the Louvre on our tour -- it was first created as a fortress during medieval times, before becoming a palace and then a home for some of the world's greatest art in the present day. We had an amazing tour guide, but Wikipedia does a decent job of an overview here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre
We saw the basement where the remaining fortress stones are. One interesting tidbit -- each builder/craftsman had their own mark and they put it on every individual brick they made/laid. At the end of the day, that's how they got paid.
I probably enjoyed the sculpture the most -- and it makes me excited for my trip to the Rodin Museum later this month. The picture of the winged figure on top of the boat was the inspiration for the Nike swoosh!
In addition to the Mona Lisa, we saw some other cool Renaissance artwork. The ceiling was magnificent. I also really liked the "Wedding at Cana" painting by Veronese. It was HUGE -- covered most of one wall. I'll be seeing Monet and other Impressionists later this month -- so stay tuned for that.
One pro-tip I picked up before coming -- and very glad I did -- air conditioning in Paris is mediocre at best and non-existent at worst....so, it was suggested that a mini-fan might be good for touring stuffy museums. I get no kickbacks -- but, really like this one that even comes with a flashlight: https://www.amazon.com/Rechargeable-Handheld-Portable-Operated-Flashlight/dp/B07QK9C9KT
And hey, one of my students even said "That fan is so smart. It's just like something my dad would do." If there was any doubt I'm old even to be my students' parents -- that has been put to rest on this trip. LOL
Until tomorrow...
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