Paris: Icons of France

I'm sorry that this post is so late; I've been spending some much needed time with family these past couple days.

But back to Paris!

The first day we were in Paris, we visited the Notre Dame. The famous cathedral and the set of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. As you probably know, the novel tells the story of a hunchback called Quasimodo who is a bell-ringer in the cathedral of Paris. The hunchback falls in love with a beautiful gypsy girl called Esmeralda. Sound familiar? That's because of Disney:

Thanks Disney!

At the time of writing this story, the cathedral was in a terrible state and desperately needed to be repaired. When the book was published, people became interested in the cathedral and everyone insisted on renovating the building, thereby saving it from certain destruction.

So while I'd seen the cathedral before, it had only been in cartoon form. Here was the real thing, right before my eyes:

Do you remember at the very beginning of the film, when Frolllo kills the gypsy woman right on the steps of Notre Dame, and the Priest warns him of the "eyes of Notre Dame?"

This part. It used to scare me when I was little. 

That part is surprisingly accurate. When I walked through the doors, I felt eyes on me. The entire façade is covered in a row of saints, looking on and silently judging. The gargoyles on the top were also quite impressive, though they never did pop to life.

Mady and I. This is the back of the cathedral.

We visited the Louvre on the second day. And while we didn't actually go in, there was plenty to see outside as well, such as the famous pyramids. The glass pyramid was built by I.M. Pei, and was inaugurated on March 30, 1989. They were resisted at first, because the metal and glass clash severely with the old and stately building where it is based.

Mom is getting really impatient for this one. So here it is: The Eiffel Tower. 

Me in the rain... with a ton of other tourists. 

Me and Mady actually visited the Eiffel Tower on three different occasions. The first time it was raining, so we didn't stay long at all; only long enough to snap a couple of pictures. The second time we went, it was dark. That was my favorite visit, because the Tower looked so beautiful all lit up. 

This is one of my favorite photos that I've ever taken.
I may have to invest in a real camera when I go home. 

At eight, the Tower started to sparkle. It was so amazing, and I could feel the excitement in the air. Mady and I were breathless and laughing, and we were running under the tower to the other side to capture the event in a picture. Sadly, none of the pictures turned out great. This is the bast one:

The last time we made our way to the Eiffel Tower, it was the day we were to leave. So we got up early to see it one last time, and get some last chance photos. 

The last day in Paris, but what a great time we had!

Our very last stop was the Arc de Triomphe (Arch of Triumph). It was built between 1806 and 1836, and stands at the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle. The Arch stands 162 ft tall, 150 ft wide and 72 ft deep. It's absolutely massive. The arch is in honor of those who fought for France, in particular, those who fought during the Napoleonic Wars. Engraved on the inside and at the top of the arch are all of the names of the generals and wars fought. There are inscriptions in the ground underneath the vault of the arch which include the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I, where the Memorial Flame burns.

Paris: The Musee d'Orsay

Sorry Mrs. Collins, I didn't go to the Louvre. It was too expensive, and I didn't want to go see art that I didn't know. So Mady and I chose this instead:

The Musée d'Orsay is in the centre of Paris on the banks of the Seine, and right across from the Tuileries Gardens (which I also visited.) It was originally built as a railway station and hotel. The building was also used as a mailing centre for sending packages to prisoners of war during World War II, and prisoners were welcomed there on their return home after the Liberation. It was used as a set for several films, but now displays collections of art from the period 1848 to 1914. The official decision to build the Musée d'Orsay was made in 1977; the building was classified a Historical Monument in 1978 and a civil commission was created to oversee the construction and organisation of the museum. The new museum was inaugurated on December 1st, 1986, and it opened to the public on December 9th.

The building is actually a work of art in itself. It's absolutely massive, at 617 feet long and 246 feet wide.

That's me, posing awkwardly in front of a sculpture of a naked man. 

As much as I love statues of naked people, that wasn't the best part. The Musée d'Orsay has a great collection of impressionist works, including several by Van Gogh, who is probably my favorite. But I only like his swirly ones.

One of his famous self-portraits. The swirly kind. 

Van Gogh's bedroom... I don't know why. 

I really loved this one also.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, "Julie Manet dit aussi L'Enfant au chat"

I said the sculptures of naked people weren't my thing, but they did have sculptures I did like, and of people with clothes on.

I liked this one, because the Alligator is all like "Rawwwwwww"
 and the woman's frantically trying to hold on to her babies, and I just
like the story that it seems to tell. Also, that little stick is not gonna
stop that gator... or is it a crocodile? 

A polar bear.. because why not? 

And this regal Mufasa.

It was amazing to see some of the artworks I had studied and learned about, by artists that were amazing at what they did. We spent almost two and a half hours in the Museum, if that gives any indication of how much we loved it, and how much there was to see. Two hours and we probably didn't even see half of the museum.

Maybe I'm Not Going to Paris...

Mady and I got up around 7, half an hour before our alarms were set to alarm. We got up and were ready in record time, wanting to be out of there. It was really hard to say goodbye to our crappy hotel room (not). We almost just left the keys in the door because no one was there to take them, but lucky for them they showed up at the last minute. 

It was just a short walk to the coach station, after a brief but intense stop in the nearest Sainsbury's. The bus left the station at 10:30 on the dot, just as it was supposed to. Things were going smoothly; I had a nap, read a couple chapters of the book I bought yesterday (Peter Pan), ate a snack. Then we got to the EuroTunnel.

Where things were delayed for almost two hours. There was a train stuck in the middle of the tunnel, and they had to fix it before anything else could happen. 

So as of right now, we won't arrive to check in to our hostel until ten. Or even later. Thank you EuroTunnel. 

I'm going to Paris?!?

Yesterday afternoon, my friend Mady frantically burst in to my room. She half yelled, "Do you wanna go to Paris with me?!" To which the answer was obviously yes. You just don't pass up a trip to Paris when it falls into your lap.

What happened was the girl that Mady was going to go with called and bailed out at the last minute. Mady had already had most things booked though, so that's when she ran into my room and scared me half to death. 

I was very frazzled at first though. I had just emailed my cousin Susan to pick me up for Easter break. She and Ray were going to take me around the local area and then North Wales as well.  So I had a momentary crisis. I called my mom in the middle of work to talk it over, but I decided that I couldn't pass up Paris. I told Susan right away, and I hope they understand. 

The plan is to take a bus from Manchester to London. We'll be in London for a day, and spend the night there. From there we'll catch another bus to Paris, and have three nights there. 

We know we have to see the Eiffel Tower. We plan on going all the way to the top, even though it's kind of pricey. We also want to see the Cathedral of Notre Dame. And of course, the Catacombs are high on my list. We want to eat macaroons and have a coffee in a little street cafe. 

I just can't believe I'm going to Paris! It was the one place I really wanted to see that wasn't in the UK, and now I'm going to see it! Four days in Paris... I can't believe I'm not dreaming!!