Paris May 2010

[blueton]

Here are a few pictures of our four day trip to Paris.

We almost didn't make it as the Icelandic volcanic ash was causing disruptions again. Our airport closed a few hours after we had departed so we were really lucky!

We arrived safely at our Hotel The Hotel Du Pantheon.






This was a really nice hotel opposite the Pantheon and centrally located in Latin Quarter. Plenty of reasonably priced restaurants nearby too.


The Arc De Triomphe:



The Eternal Flame beneath the Arch:


We climbed the stairs. This is one view from the top:


After this we walked down the Champs De Elysee and through the Jardin des Tuileries to the Louvre.

This is Cleopatra's Needle in Place De Concorde on the way:

The center of the Place [de la Concorde] 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 nineteenth century. The other one stayed in Egypt, too difficult and heavy to move to France with the technology at that time. In the 1990s, President François Mitterrand gave the second obelisk back to the Egyptians.


The obelisk once marked the entrance to the Luxor Temple. The Ottoman viceroy of Egypt, Mehmet Ali, offered the 3,300-year-old Luxor Obelisk to France in 1829.

The obelisk arrived in Paris on December 21, 1833. Three years later, on October 25, 1836, King Louis-Philippe had it placed in the center of Place de la Concorde, where a guillotine used to stand during the Revolution.


The obelisk, a red granite column, rises 23 metres (75 ft) high, including the base, and weighs over 250 metric tons (280 short tons). Given the technical limitations of the day, transporting it was no easy feat — on the pedestal are drawn diagrams explaining the machinery that were used for the transportation.

The obelisk is flanked on both sides by fountains constructed at the time of its erection on the Place.

Early morning on December 1, 1993, the French AIDS fighting society Act Up Paris carried out a fast and unwarned commando-style operation. A giant pink condom was unrolled over the whole monument.[3]


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.

Without warning, in 2000 French urban climber Alain "Spiderman" Robert, using only his bare hands and climbing shoes on his feet and with no safety devices, scaled the obelisk all the way to the top.

Place de la Concorde - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Inside the glass pyramid and down into the Louvre:



There were countless works of beauty and far to many to detail here.
Here are a few:








This one seemed quite popular.
I thought she had quite an enigmatic smile...






This was another one that drew a few crowds!
It is the famous Venus De Milo (Aphrodite).
(Should have gone last week as it seems her arms fell off...)



After visiting the Louvre we walked for about another 15 minutes to reach the Ile De la Cite and the Notre Dame.


I really liked Notre Dame and took quite a few photos - a few of which follow:









































We headed back to our hotel form here to find a Movie being filmed at our sister hotel next door:

There were old cars and actors dressed in period. We had to wait for the take before we could enter our hotel.





After a meal, and on retiring to our hotel for the evening we noticed the light show at the Eiffel Tower:





The follwing day we headed by tube to Montmartre.

I'll summarise from Wikipdia:

Montmartre is a hill (the butte Montmartre) which is 130 meters high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district. The other, older, church on the hill is Saint Pierre de Montmartre, which claims to be the location at which the Jesuit order of priests was founded. Many artists had studios or worked around the community of Montmartre such as Salvador Dalí, Amedeo Modigliani, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh. Montmartre is also the setting for several hit films.

Montmartre - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The pictures that follow show the Sacre Coeur and Artisans that work in this area:



















Having climbed the 300 steps to the Dome:












Inside the Sacre Coeur:








The area behind the Sacre Coeur where all the artisans paint and sell their work. Some amazingly talented artists here:






















Later in the evening we took the tube to the Eiffel Tower.
We had intended to go to the top but left it too late .
We had done it before though so not to worry .

Here are a couple of pictures of Paris's greatest landmark:



There is a light show on the hour that lasts for about five minutes.
The sparkling lights below are part of this.






For our final morning we visited the Pantheon which was directly opposite our hotel. Today this is a secular building where many of the 'Great and the Good' of France are interred.

Some famous name include Victor Hugo, Voltaire, Alexandre Dumas, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Louis Pasteur, Louis Braille, Marie Curie and a host of others.

Here are some pictures:









Church next door:


Inside the Crypt:
Voltaire:




Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas:








The main Hall:







In the picture above you can see the famous Foucault Pendulum as a simple proof of the earth's rotation. See the quote below for more information.

The Foucault pendulum (pronounced /fuːˈkoʊ/ "foo-KOH"), or Foucault's pendulum, named after the French physicist Léon Foucault, was conceived as an experiment to demonstrate the rotation of the Earth.

The experimental apparatus consists of a tall pendulum free to oscillate in any vertical plane. The direction along which the pendulum swings rotates with time because of Earth's daily rotation. This is because the plane of the pendulum's swing, like a gyroscope, tends to keep a fixed direction in space, while the Earth rotates under it. The first public exhibition of a Foucault pendulum took place in February 1851 in the Meridian Room of the Paris Observatory. A few weeks later, Foucault made his most famous pendulum when he suspended a 28 kg bob with a 67 meter long wire from the dome of the Panthéon, Paris. The plane of the pendulum's swing rotated clockwise 11° per hour, making a full circle in 32.7 hours.

Foucault pendulum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This ended our trip to Paris.
We missed the volcanic ash on our return too so arrived home without delay.


We had a great time and enjoyed the history and ambiance of Paris.

[Andiline]

Thanks for the pics! I've been to all the famous tourist sites but not been up on Arc de Triomphe or Sacre Coeur. The Pantheon-area is one of my favourite areas in Paris. Need to go back there soon.

[blueton]

Thanks.

Yes I saw and read your trip report after posting this.
Awesome pics. The glass relections are superb.

[Doggiemom]

Love it!!!

I am planning a trip to Paris in July! where did you stay?

[blueton]

Hi

We stayed at the Hotel Du Pantheon.
(see first picture in trip report).

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_R...de_France.html



The hotel next door is under the same ownership too:
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_R...de_France.html

[Doggiemom]

Thanks for the info. I have not booked a place to stay yet as this is going to be a last minute thing!

[Andiline]

Linda, the Pantheon-area is a great one. Close to the Jardins du Luxembourgh, Notre Dame and student quarter (cheap, great restaurants). RER/metro are everywhere as well. Don't know the hotel but you should check it out.

[bigwally]

Originally Posted by Andiline

Thanks for the pics! I've been to all the famous tourist sites but not been up on Arc de Triomphe or Sacre Coeur. The Pantheon-area is one of my favourite areas in Paris. Need to go back there soon.

Andiline, you seem to spend a lot of time in La Défense, but I think you know that already.

Lovely TR!

We're going again in October, just for a quick weekend side trip during a visit to the UK. Possibly NOT going to stay at the Hotel Du Louvre this time....it's gotten awful expensive. Maybe we'll try the Holiday Inn St. Germain Des Prés instead - it's been a long time since we've stayed there and we've liked it before.

One thing is for certain though...we're definitely having dinner at Sgt. Recruteur on at least one of the evenings, possibly even both!

[Mercy]

Wow your pictures are amazing...thanks for sharing!!

[u2girlie]

Awesome pics! I'll be in Paris in June 2011 but I think I'm only there for 2 days. It's a school trip with my niece's high school. I'm a paid guest (meaning - not a chaparone )

[blueton]

Originally Posted by Mercy

Wow your pictures are amazing...thanks for sharing!!

Thanks.

[blueton]

Originally Posted by u2girlie

Awesome pics! I'll be in Paris in June 2011 but I think I'm only there for 2 days. It's a school trip with my niece's high school. I'm a paid guest (meaning - not a chaparone )

Thanks.
Lots to see so I am sure you will have a great time there.

[Andiline]

Originally Posted by u2girlie

Awesome pics! I'll be in Paris in June 2011 but I think I'm only there for 2 days. It's a school trip with my niece's high school. I'm a paid guest (meaning - not a chaparone )

Let me know when you will be there. We might be able to make a peep meet in the evening...

[TAPPY]

Awesome pictures....thanks for taking the time to do a report !

[Rissask]

WOW.

Amazing!


Thanks so much for taking the time to do this report. Excellent. I can't wait to get to Paris one day. Such beauty.

The obelisk is flanked on both sides by fountains constructed at the time of its erection on the Place.

Early morning on December 1, 1993, the French AIDS fighting society Act Up Paris carried out a fast and unwarned commando-style operation. A giant pink condom was unrolled over the whole monument.

hee hee hee