We saw Place de la Concorde, built between 1757 and 1777 as a monument to Louis X. It served as the lovely slaughtering sight during the Reign of Terror. Termed “Place de la Revolution” during those years, the guillotine there severed 1,343 aristocratic heads. Ewwww! It was later renamed “Concorde,” which means harmony/peace, so as not to have any negative aristocratic, religious, or political ties.
The Obélisque de Luxor was given as a gift to Charles X by the Viceroy of Egypt. It is from the 13th century BC, so it is Paris’ oldest monument.
My friend Dee and I went to the Orangerie, a museum of some of the most beautiful and calming rooms I have ever seen. There are two huge oval shaped rooms with four of Monet's "Nymphéas" (water lilies) surround the walls in each room. I was so awestruck by the beauty of it all, I just loved it. I would love to have those paintings on the walls in my bedroom. What a calming scene to wake up to every morning! I took lots of pictures, but they just cannot do it justice. The basement of the museum had some of my favorite Renoir's, Cezanne's, Picasso's, etc. What a great find! I would highly recommend going to the Orangerie if you ever can.
We all went to the Louvre for the free student night (Fridays) and it was of course fabulous. It's so huge, I could never even begin to see everything in the three hours we were there. I went through the Greek and Roman god/goddess sculptures, which always capture and amaze me. I bumped into my friend Christine and we went through all the French paintings together, studying for our art history class as we went along. We saw paintings by Fragonard, Watteau, Boucher, Chardin, Corot, Corbet, Daumier, etc and it was just really neat seeing them all in person. We of course saw the "Venus de Milo," "Winged Victory," and "Mona Lisa."
Saturday morning, we did a big tour of Montmartre with Miranda, starting at the Moulin Rouge. Then we walked up through the cute little streets, passing by the homes of many artists, writers, philosophers, etc. It was a little cloudy and gray outside, but still quite enjoyable. There were many adorable cafes, parks, and gardens, including the Moulin de la Galette, where the famous Renoir painting took place :) Yay! That made me really happy to see that because it’s one of my favorite paintings.
We saw the café where Edith Piaf sang her last notes, the famous Lapin Agile, and the apartment where Marcel Aymé, author of “Le Passe-Muraille” lived. This is a famous short story about a man who could walk through walls and his adventures with that power. I did an analysis of it at Carthage last spring in my literature class, so that was really fun to see the statue and Aymé’s home.
As the morning went on, the clouds started clearing up and it became a beautiful warm sunny day just as we got to the top of the hill to see the amazing Sacre Coeur. Its white stone was so beautiful in contrast with the bright green spring grass and lovely blue sky. We learned that in WWII, the bombs dropped all over Montmartre, but just missed Sacre Coeur and the church right next to it. It’s only a normal little street between the two churches, so the bombs missed destroying them by just a few feet. The inside was very beautiful and peaceful. Hearing the choir’s voices rise up into the dome was extremely calming and really made me miss singing at Carthage.
We decided to climb up into the dome afterward, which was really fun and a great view. There were obviously a lot of steps, so it was quite a workout, but well worth it.
After lunch, we walked through the scenic Luxembourg Gardens, which houses the Palais de Luxembourg where the Senate meets. There are many beautiful fountains, statues of famous figures, and pools/ponds. There were children playing on playgrounds, basketball courts, ponies, carousels, older men playing petangue, and it was overall quite lovely. Right near some beautiful blooming cherry trees, there is a small version of the Statue of Liberty that was used as the model for the creation of our Lady Liberty. It made me a little nostalgic for America with the combination of the Statue of Liberty and the cherry blossoms, which always remind me of Washington, D.C. in springtime.
We headed over to the Champs Elysée to see the Arc de Triomphe. We paid to go up to the top, which was so great! It was pretty cloudy, but still marvelous to be able to see the whole city like that. The architecture is so amazing in itself and the statues on the sides are really interesting.
We took a boat tour along the Seine for our last night in Paris. It was an absolutely magical and perfect evening for me. It was so fun to be with everyone and see some of the must awe-inspiring views I have ever seen. The Eiffel Tower at night just blows me away every time.
Sunday was quite a rainy dreary day, but still great and filled with the energy of the city. We did a tour of the Latin Quarter, seeing the Sorbonne, several churches, a museum of the Middle Ages, cute cafés and bookstores, and of course Notre Dame.
Walking into such a calming and remarkable environment during Sunday morning Mass was so peaceful after coming in from the rain outside. With all the music and candles, it felt like a safe haven from the yucky weather outside.
After lunch with the girls, I decided to be independent and enjoy my last few hours of Paris on my own for the afternoon. I got absolutely soaking wet wandering around little streets, but had a goofy smile plastered across my face the whole time. I just really enjoyed my weekend in Paris and did not want to miss one minute of it. I walked past the Hotel de Ville (City Hall), the back of Notre Dame, Saint Chapelle, the Palais de Justice, Hotel Dieu, and Centre Pompidou. I also saw the Pantheon, were Voltaire, Rousseau, Pierre and Marie Curie, Braille, Hugo, Zola, and many more famous French figures are buried. It also houses Foucault’s Pendulem, while proves the rotation of the earth, a very important historical discovery!
After lunch with the girls, I decided to be independent and enjoy my last few hours of Paris on my own for the afternoon. I got absolutely soaking wet wandering around little streets, but had a goofy smile plastered across my face the whole time. I just really enjoyed my weekend in Paris and did not want to miss one minute of it. I walked past the Hotel de Ville (City Hall), the back of Notre Dame, Saint Chapelle, the Palais de Justice, Hotel Dieu, and Centre Pompidou. I also saw the Pantheon, were Voltaire, Rousseau, Pierre and Marie Curie, Braille, Hugo, Zola, and many more famous French figures are buried. It also houses Foucault’s Pendulem, while proves the rotation of the earth, a very important historical discovery!
It was a lovely afternoon and I was sad to leave. Just as we walked up to the train station, the sun came out and so the train ride home was very beautiful. Paris, je t’aime!
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