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| A view of Paris with the La defense in the background |
Paris is often called the most romantic
city in the world. Also known as the City of Lights, Paris is home to some of
the world’s most beautiful architecture, art and monuments. From the iconic
Eiffel Tower sparkling in the night, to the magnificent Versailles chateau, to
the tree lined Champs Elysees, the crooked streets of St. Germain loaded with
delicious patisseries and boutiques full of beautiful shoes, to markets
overflowing with fresh produce, brightly colored scarves and fresh cheeses,
Paris is one of the most beautiful, bustling and alive cities in the world.
Hurtling through the motorways of Belgium and France, there
we were, headed to Paris! Early morning, we entered the sleeping city and Paris
looked beautiful under the low light. The buildings showcasing their timeless
magnificence and the city, beautifully planned. Our bus finally stopped at the Eurolines bus bay at Gallieni, a
huge garage of the Eurolines bus service. From the metro station which was right below,
we boarded a train headed to the St. Michel station at the heart of the city,
closest to our hotel. As we emerged from the station, the cool early morning
air greeted us and we found ourselves next to the
Seine river.
From one of the numerous bridges across the Seine, we could see the Eiffel
tower looming up in the distance, the
Cathédrale Notre-Dame rising
silently behind, an imposing structure and below us flowed the glassy calm
waters of the Seine. Walking down to the famous
Boulevard St. Germain and
it's bakeries and boutiques, we found our hotel on a parallel road, a minute's
walk away. It was a 17th century mansion, turned into a hotel, where everything was
antique, the cloak cupboard, the reception desk, and all the crockery, as old
as the hotel itself! It was a nice place and I added it my unique hotels list!
One hour later, refreshed and ready to take on Paris, we
were headed to the
Musée du Louvre. The most famous art museum in the world with about 35,000 pieces of art. Longer than three Eiffel towers laid side by side and with a million sq.ft of open space between it's wings, it is the longest building in Europe. As we entered the plaza, the warm honey coloured marble of the Louvre surrounding us, the main entrance of the Louvre was visible.
La Pyramide. The controversial glass pyramid which had become as famous as the Louvre itself. We descended into the new subterranean lobby of the museum, 60 feet below the ground and covering a 70,000 sq.ft. Passages ran in all four directions, the Denon wing, the Richelieu wing and the Sully wing with the fourth going to the famous
La Pyramide Inversée. We opted to visit the Mona Lisa first and took the Denon wing.
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| Me, the Louvre and the la pyramide! |
Once a Renaissance palace, The Louvre is now the most famous art museum in the world with about 35,000 pieces of art. Longer than three Eiffel towers laid side by side and with a million sq.ft of open space between it's wings, it is the longest building in Europe. As we entered the plaza, the warm honey coloured marble of the Louvre surrounding us, the main entrance of the Louvre was visible. La Pyramide. The controversial glass pyramid which had become as famous as the Louvre itself. We descended into the new subterranean lobby of the museum, 60 feet below the ground and covering a 70,000 sq.ft. Passages ran in all four directions, the Denon wing, the Richelieu wing and the Sully wing with the fourth going to the famous La Pyramide Inversée. We opted to visit the Mona Lisa first and took the Denon wing.
The Grand gallery. 1500 feet long and
wide enough to contain 4 cars laid side by side, the Grand Gallery is known to contain
some of the finest Italian art. Taking in the masterpieces of the Italian
masters and trying to make out the complex geometric design made by the
diagonal oak panels on the floor, we made our way to the
Salle des
Etats. In her own private cell, behind a thick layer of plexiglass
hung the most celebrated painting in the world.
The Mona Lisa. Her mist filled, supernal atmosphere is a
tribute to Leonardo Da Vinci's mastery over the sfumato style, in
which forms evaporate into one another. Her smile intrigued me, a knowing,
secretive smile leading me to believe, as well as many others, that Da
Vinci
had imbibed a secret in her. But her size was even
smaller than expected, smaller than her posters in the Louvre gift shop. The
Venus de Milo, The Winged victory, Madonna of the rocks and The coronation
of Napoleon were my favourites. The modern, progressive sculptures of the
modern world as well as those of the ancient Greeks and Romans were
displayed.
Napoleon's quarters. Located in the
Richelieu wing, this area was once the quarters of King Napoleon. Untouched
Persian drapes, rugs and crockery, magnificent chandeliers and extravagant
furniture cast a majestic aura over whole area that was once quarters of
the diminutive king. Our last stop in the Louvre was the
La
Pyramide Inversée, the inverted pyramid that served as a skylight
and the small pyramid below it which featured in the climax of Dan Brown's
blockbuster
The Da Vinci Code. However the smaller
pyramid below is not fixed to the ground, which disproves Brown's speculations.
We continued down to the The Arc de Triomphe
du Carrousel from where the Musée d'Orsay, the Pompidou
center, the Musée du Jeu de Paume and
finally, the Musée du Louvre, four
of the finest art museums in the world, were visible, on at each point on the
compass. We took a walk in the famed Tuileries Garden further
down, still unable to take our eyes off The Louvre. The Tuileries Garden is a public space and is an icon of Paris. It is quite a nice place to relax and bask under the sun!
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| Dazzling! -The Eiffel tower |
Later in the evening we commuted by the Réseau Express Régional (RER) to
the Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel station.
La Tour Eiffel. The Eiffel
tower. 1,063 ft tall, 81 storeys high and waiting to take
your breath away, the tower was massive and I could feel the 7000 tons of iron
on top of me as I gazed up from the bottom. After 2 hours of waiting in line,
we made our way to the elevator. The first two levels were accessible by both
foot and elevator but the third one was only by an elevator. The ripping wind
caught me square as I stepped out on the deck of the third floor. The view was
perfect, the skyscrapers of
La Défense caught
my
eye first, far away, the distance did no justice to their size at all! As I looked down below, I appreciated how high up I was. Really
high!
The lights began to come on, The Louvre, majestic as
ever, the bright
Avenue des Champs-Élysées just
opposite it, The towers of
La Défense came
next, pin points of light in the distance and finally came the Eiffel tower!
It exploded in brilliant flashes, like camera shots all over
the tower. The tourists below in the Champ de Mars, the long
green space flanking the tower, responding with their own camera flashes. The
whole area around was filled with bright flashes. I was dazzled by the lights. Paris was lit up completely! The Seine glowing a beautiful orange colour, the streets a vibrant mix of
headlights, tail lights and street lights. The powerful beams from the
Eiffel tower flashed above us lighting up the foggy night air. The streets of
Paris retain their crooked beauty, whether viewed from the ground, the Eiffel
tower or a sattelite!
One hour later, refreshed and ready to take on Paris, we
were headed to the Musée du Louvre. The most famous art museum in the world with about 35,000 pieces of art. Longer than three Eiffel towers laid side by side and with a million sq.ft of open space between it's wings, it is the longest building in Europe. As we entered the plaza, the warm honey coloured marble of the Louvre surrounding us, the main entrance of the Louvre was visible. La Pyramide. The controversial glass pyramid which had become as famous as the Louvre itself. We descended into the new subterranean lobby of the museum, 60 feet below the ground and covering a 70,000 sq.ft. Passages ran in all four directions, the Denon wing, the Richelieu wing and the Sully wing with the fourth going to the famous La Pyramide Inversée. We opted to visit the Mona Lisa first and took the Denon wing.
