PARIS
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Palace of Versailles
When you visit the Chateau of Versailles it isn't hard to understand why the French monarchy was overthrown. Versailles was an orgy of splendor, gilt, mirrors,cherubs and ornamental shrubbery. Back then much of Europe was in abject poverty and peasants lived in utter misery. One can’t help but feel a certain empathy for the poverty stricken citizens of the time when you look at the grandeur and opulence of this palace.
At the time when the Palace of Versailles was built, Versailles was a country village. Today it is a suburb of Paris. From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in France. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy which Louis XIV espoused.
Versailles was grand, luxurious and expensive to maintain. It has been estimated that upkeep and maintenance, including the care and feeding of staff and the royal family, consumed as much as 25 percent of the total income of France.
Current estimates place the value of the palace at approximately US $2 billion (1994). This valuation is regarded by many as a gross underestimate. Surviving government records from the period suggest that the current value of the Versailles estate may exceed US $300 billion.
Versailles has been considered as a showcase for French arts and craftsmanship, as a home for a king and a monument to absolutism. Most modern Frenchmen tend to be very proud of the lasting influence that Versailles has had on the world.
On October 5, 1789, a revolutionary mob broke into the private apartments of the king and forcibly escorted the royal couple back to Paris where they were imprisoned. It was the end of Versailles as the royal seat of power, and a year later the artworks and furnishing were auctioned off.
The Chateau is only part of the attraction at the Palace of Versailles. There are the well kept gardens the surround it, the expansive Grand Canal, the two Trianon palaces and Marie Antoinette's charming Hamlet.
Gardens and Grand Canal
The gardens and park of Versailles are massive. The Grand Canal was built for simulated sea battles and is a long cross-shaped artificial lake that is over a mile long. The formal gardens are located on gentle slopes surrounding the Chateau and Grand Canal. The gardens are immaculately maintained with broad alleys and are open to the public. You can rent rowboats on the Grand Canal.
Suggest you select the Hi Resolution display in the upper right of the window. Hold down the left button as you move the mouse about to change views of the gardens.
Genevieve in the Hall of Mirrors
The Hall of Mirrors is a 235-foot-long drawing and ballroom lined along one side with 17 huge 450 kg mirrors - fixtures that were very expensive at that time in history. I have read where it required 5000 hours to make each mirrow. The room was also adorned with exquisite chandeliers, candelabras, vases and elaborate ceiling paintings.
Suggest you select the Hi Resolution display in the upper right of the window. Hold down the left button as you move the mouse about to change views of the room.
An aerial view of the Palace.
The Gardens, Grand Canal, Petit Trianon, Grand Trianon, Château and Marie Antoinette's Hamlet can be seen in this satellite image. The Petit and Grand Trianon are mini palaces located near the Grand Canal. They have been used as residences for Louis XV and his mistress Madame de Pompadour, Marie Antoinette, and Napoleon's sister Pauline Borghese.The hamlet, which is in the grounds of the Petit Trianon building by the side of a lake, dates from 1783. The Hamlet was a favorite getaway for Marie Antoinette. It had thatched roof cottages, ponds, and sheep stables. When life at the Palace of Versailles became unbearable she would live the life of a peasant by dressing in a peasant’s costume and tending sheep. (pic from WEB)
The Louvre is the most famous and visited art museum in the world with over 8.3 visitors annually. The Musée du Louvre's collections number over 380,000 objects, though not one of the world's largest collections, arguably one of the finest.
The Louvre displays 35,000 works of art drawn from eight curatorial departments, displayed in over 60,600 square meters of exhibition space dedicated to the permanent collections. According to the most recent Annual Report, published in 2005, the museum's holdings are as follows:
Near Eastern Antiquities --------------100,000
Egyptian Antiquities -------------------50,000
Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities -45,000
Islamic Art ----------------------------10,000
Sculptures ------------------------------6,550
Decorative Arts ------------------------20,704
Paintings ------------------------------11,900
Prints and Drawings -------------------183,500
We didn't get to see everything on this visit!
The hallmark of the museum's collection is its 11,900 paintings (6,000 on permanent display and 5,900 in deposit), representing the second largest holding of western pictorial art in the world. (pic from WEB)
Glass Pyramid that is part of the main entrance to the museum.
The pyramid is constructed entirely of glass segments, reaches a height of 20.6 meters and has a square base with sides of 35 meters. The structure contains 603 rhombus-shaped and 70 triangular glass segments.
The pyramid and the underground lobby underneath it were created because of a series of problems with the Louvre's original main entrance, which could no longer handle an enormous number of visitors on an everyday basis. Visitors entering through the pyramid descend into the spacious lobby then re-ascend into the main Louvre buildings.
The Raft of the Medusa is one of many very famous painting in the Louvre. It is by French painter Théodore Géricault who is an icon of French Romanticism. An extremely large painting (4.91 × 7.17 m), it was highly controversial piece of art when it was unveiled 1819.
The painting depicts the desperate survivors of the French frigate Medusa at the moment of rescue. The sailing vessel gained notoriety when it struck the Bank of Arguin and sank off the coast of Mauritania in 1816.
Precursor of the critical spirit that so often motivates art today, the subject was a caustic statement on the government then in power. The Medusa sank because of the incompetence of a captain who had obtained his post through political relations. Due to a shortage of lifeboats, 149 people piled onto a raft that drifted for twelve days. Only fifteen survived the ensuing slaughter, madness, and cannibalism. Seen from one corner, the raft appears very unstable, while two diagonals heighten the dramatic tension: one leads the eye to the vast wave that threatens to engulf the raft, the other leads to the tiny silhouette of “The Argus,” the ship that eventually rescued them. (pic from WEB)
Genevieve viewing the Mona Lisa.
Suggest you select the Hi Resolution display in the upper right of the window. Hold down the left button as you move the mouse about to change views of the room.
Napoleon’s Dining Area
The dining room seats over forty and has hidden doors through which the servants could disappear. The rooms are filled with red velvet, gilt, chandeliers, furniture and other decorations. It is a step above a McDonald's Resturant.
Alexander the III Bridge We had an interesting encounter with the Romas on this bridge. A young girl approached me with a ring saying she saw me drop it and wanted to return it. She indicating that it appeared to be very expensive and made of gold. I don't wear a ring and told her to keep it. After a bit she gave up on me and started to bug Genevieve. After some forceful persuasion, Genevieve accepted the ring and started to walk away. The girl then demanded money and Genevieve gave her two euros. The Roma demanded more. Genevieve, realizing this was a scam offered her an option to take the ring back for the return of the euros. She said keep the ring and we really don't know who got taken on this one!
Notre Dame Cathedral
Construction was commenced in 1160 and it was completed in 1345. It is a foremost example of Gothic architecture. Under the 1905 French law on the separation of Church and State, Notre Dame remains state property like all cathedrals built by the Kingdom of France, but its use is granted to the Roman Catholic Church.
This area was overrun with Romas begging for money. Signs were posted warning visitors of pickpockets.
The Ritz
In 1979, the Ritz family sold the hotel to Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed who refurbished it and in 1988 added the Ritz-Escoffier School of French Gastronomy. The hotel was where the owner's son Dodi Al-Fayed and his companion, Diana, Princess of Wales, had visited when Henri Paul drove them from the hotel and crashed in the nearby Pont de l'Alma tunnel.
Driving down the Champs Elysées towards the Arc de Triomphe. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to go to the top of this monument.
The Arc de Triomphe is one of the most famous monuments in Paris. It was commissioned in 1806 after the victory at Austerlitz by Emperor Napoleon I at the peak of his fortunes. The Arc de Triomphe is a monument in Paris that stands in the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle. It is at the western end of the Champs-Élysées.
The arch honours those who fought for France, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars and also includes the tomb of the unknown soldier. In the area above the richly sculptured frieze of soldiers are 30 shields engraved with the names of major Revolutionary and Napoleonic military victories. The inside walls of the monument list the names of 558 French generals. The names of those who died in battle are underlined.
The monument stands over 51 meters in height and is 45 meters wide. From the top there is a panoramic view of Paris and the twelve major avenues leading to the roundabout in which the Arc stands. Pedestrian access to the Arc de Triomphe is via an underpass. The Arch has one lift or visitors can climb the 284 steps to reach the top.
Another view of the Arc de Triomphe. (pic from WEB)
This is how they serve a Brandy in Paris!
A sampling of toilets in Paris. The porta-toilet was unique with a step up to a hole and one had to squat (no seat).
Montmarte, the highest point in Paris, is a tourist delight with it's boutiques, cafe's, art community and narrow old streets. The Sacre- Coeur Church is at the top.
Genevieve, Mary and Dave in Galeries Lafayette, a very ritzy 10 story department store shopping complex in Paris.
The glass dome that covers the Lafayette shopping complex.
The Eiffel Tower The Tower is the most recognizable landmark in Paris and is known worldwide as a symbol of France. Named after its designer, Gustave Eiffel, it is a premier tourist destination, with over 5.5 million visitors per year. The structure was built from 1887-1889 as the entrance arch for the Exposition Universelle, a World's fair marking the centennial celebration of the French revolution.
Over 300 steel workers toiled to join together 18,038 pieces of steel with an estimated two and a half million rivets. Considering the safety standards in place at the time, it is remarkable that only one worker died in the construction of the tower (during the installation of Otis Elevator's lifts).
The tower is 300 meters tall, not including the television antenna on top which adds another 20 meters, and weighs over 10,000 tons. It was the tallest structure in the world for forty years. Maintenance on the tower includes 50 tons of brown paint every 7 years. Depending on the ambient temperature, the top of the Eiffel Tower will shift away from the sun by eight centimeters because of expansion of the sun-warmed metal.
Perhaps predictably, the tower met with resistance from the public when it was first built, many thought it would be an eyesore. Today it is widely considered to be one of the most striking pieces of architectural art in the world. Originally, Eiffel had a permit to leave the tower standing for 20 years, more than recouping his expenses, but as it proved valuable for communication purposes, it was allowed to stay after the end of the permit.
Genevieve and Bob on the second level of the Eiffel Tower. Genevieve refused to go higher.
A night shot. Every hour there was a 10 minute light show with thousands of high intensity strobe lights flashing on the tower.
Bob after returning from the top. Unfortunately it was a very hazy day, limiting both the view and photo opportunities. Click on the link below to see what the view is like from the Eiffel Tower. You can use your mouse to change the view. Be sure to press the left button down when moving the mouse.
On our last evening in Paris, Valentines Day, we splurged and went to the LIDO. This is a a very famous Paris cabaret. The show included colorful costumes, very elaborate stage sets, unique props, singing, dancing, skating and acrobatics. It cost 100 euros and included a half bottle of champagne per person. (Bob and Dave's eyes havn't been the same since - pics from WEB)
