First up was a stroll down Champs Elysee to Place de la Concorde, one of the major public squares in Paris. Looking one way, back up the Champs Elysee you can see the Arc de Triomphe and beyond that the Grand Arch at La Defense, and looking the other all the way through the Tuileries you can see the Louvre. It's quite spectacular.
Decorated with statues and fountains, the square itself was originally named the Place Louis XV to honour the king at the time. The square showcased an equestrian statue of the king, which had been commissioned in 1748 by the city of Paris. During the French Revolution in 1789, the statue was torn down and the area renamed the Place de la Revolutions. The new revolutionary government erected a guillotine in the square, and it was here that King Louis XVI was executed on 21 January 1793. In 1795, the square was renamed Place de la Concorde as a gesture of reconciliation after the turmoil of the French Revolution. Although it was later changed back to Place Louis XV, and then later to Place Louis XVI, it was finally returned to Place de la Concorde after the July Revolution of 1830, and has remained that way since.
 |
| Place de la Concorde |
The centre of the Place is occupied by a giant Egyptian obelisk decorated with hieroglyphics exalting the reign of the pharaoh Ramses II. It is one of two the Egyptian government gave to the French in the 19th century. The other stayed in Egypt, too difficult and heavy to move to France with the technology at that time, and in the 90s President Francois Mitterrand gave the second obelisk 'back' to the Egyptians. The 3,300 year old obelisk once marked the entrance to the Luxor Temple, and was offered to France in 1829. It arrived in Paris on 21st December 1933 but only three years later, on 25th October 1836 did King Louis Philippe have it placed in the centre of Place de la Concorde.
The obelisk, a yellow granite column, rises 23 meters (75 feet) high, including the base, and weighs over 250 metric tons. Given the technical limitations of the day, transporting it was no easy feat - on the pedestal are drawn diagrams explaining the machinery that was used for the transportation (I'm assuming these are not 3,300 years old!). Missing its original cap, believed stolen in the 6th century BC, the government of France added a gold-leafed pyramid cap to the top of the obelisk in 1998.
 |
| Jardin des Tuileries |
The Louvre is the world's largest art museum, and in 2016 was the world's most visited receiving 7.3 million visitors. We just stopped today for a gander outside and lunch, though way back in 2009 the Don and I (and Toots in a sling) ventured in to the now famous pyramids in search of the more famous Mona Lisa (though anyone know why she's famous? The kids were asking and we didn't have a foggy!).
 |
| Musee du Louvre |
The museum is housed in the Louvre Palace, originally built as a fortress - remnants of which are still visible in the basement - in the late 12th century under Philip II. Due to the urban expansion of the city, the fortress eventually lost its defensive function and in 1546 was converted by Francis I into the main residence of the French kings. The building was extended many times to form the present Louvre Palace, but in 1682, Louis XIV chose the Palace of Versaille for his household, leaving the Louvre primarily as a place to display the royal collection. During the French Revolution, the National Assembly decreed that the Louvre should be used as a museum to display the nation's masterpieces.
The museum first opened on 10th August 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings, the majority of the works being royal and confiscated church property. Today approximately 38,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century are exhibited over an area of 72,735 square meters.
 |
| Ponte des Arts - and no we didn't attach our own Love Lock - obviously only because the bridge now has plastic panels instead of grate |
 |
| Pont Neuf |
From the Louvre we lazily strolled along the river in glorious sunshine to Ile de la Cite and Notre Dame de Paris. Meaning "Our Lady of Paris", Notre Dame is a medieval Catholic cathedral, widely considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture. It is also among the largest and most well-known church buildings in the world, and its immense interior can hold up to 6,000 worshippers.
Built between 1163 and 1345 on a site first occupied by a Roman temple then by two earlier Christian churches, the cathedral was badly damaged following the Revolution; extensive renovations were made in the 19th century, partly due to the goading of Victor Hugo in his novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
 |
| Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris |
We also learned before we went that distances from Paris to every other part of France are measured from the bronze star below, set in the pavement adjacent to the cathedral's main entrance. This marks the exact location of zero des routes de France.
Unfortunately we were too late to climb the 387 steps of the North Tower (massive sigh of relief from the boy's corner) though we might make an effort to get there early another day to do it since it's something I've always wanted to do and never done before. But not surprisingly an ice-cream got us all over the disappointment.
 |
| A holiday means ice cream! |
And then it was time to head home, via the Hotel de Ville, Centre Pompidou (which the kids are convinced is a Science Museum and not one for modern art - which if so we'd have far more luck getting the Don into!), the new Les Halles, and an incredibly complicated Chatelet-Les Halles metro/RER station. Note to everyone: avoid it in every possible way in the future!!
 |
| Hotel de Ville |
 |
| Centres Pompidou |
More walking planned for tomorrow ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment