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Saturday, December 02, 2006
Day
14
Friday, September 14, 2001
We
checked out of the Thistle Victoria and took a cab to Waterloo Station.
Waterloo Station, London
We
boarded the Eurostar from Waterloo Station in London for a 3 hour
ride to the Gare du Nord Station in Paris via the Chunnel,
a tunnel that runs underground and under the English Channel.
When
England and France decided to link their two countries with a 32-mile rail
tunnel beneath the English Channel, engineers were faced with a huge challenge.
Not only would they have to build one of the longest tunnels in the world; they
would have to convince the public that passengers would be safe in a tunnel this
size.
The
Channel Tunnel, also called the Euro Tunnel or Chunnel, actually consists of
three tunnels. Two of the tubes are full sized and accommodate rail traffic. In
between the two train tunnels is a smaller service tunnel that serves as an
emergency escape route. There are also several "cross-over" passages
that allow trains to switch from one track to another. Just one year after the
Chunnel opened, this engineering design was put to the test. Thirty-one people
were trapped in a fire that broke out in a train coming from France. The design
worked. Everyone was able to escape through the service tunnel.
Tunnel boring machine used in the
construction of the Channel Tunnel, London, England
Trans
Mache Super Trains
The sleek Eurostar trains (Trans Mache Super Trains) each carry 794 passengers (210 in first class and 584 in second class) and reach speeds of 180 miles per hour in France, with speeds through the Chunnel of 80 miles per hour. The sensation is when you look out the window of a jet just touching down
We
arrived at Paris’s Gare du Nord Station and got in a long line to get a
taxi. There appears to be a shortage of taxis in Paris.
We then went to the Clarion St. James at Albany hotel where Sandy
and Mary were scheduled to stay for the duration of their trip to September
21st.
Map
of the area where we stayed in Paris
The Clarion
St. James et Albany, originally built as a private residence during the
reign of Louis XIV in 1672, is an elegant structure enclosing a beautiful
central garden and courtyard. Because of it's architectural significance, it has
been designated an historical monument. Located in the heart of Paris in the
fashionable area of the Rue Saint Honore and the Rue de la Paix,
the hotel faces the Tuileries gardens (Jardin
des Tuileries)
and is only a short distance from the Louvre and the Orsay
museums.
Clarion St. James et Albany Hotel, Paris
Tuileries gardens
Here
is a quick description of each of the three main sections of Paris:
Rive
Droite
– This is the Right Bank. On the map it is the area North of the River.
Historically this has been the "upper class" or snobby section of
Paris. The "Old" Paris. On the Right Bank the main Boulevard is the
Champs Elysees. When you walk down this street you will see that it is more
upper class and the crowd there seems more conservative and older.
Rive
Gauche – This is the Left
Bank. On the map it is the area South of the River. This has always been the
"second class" section of Paris. This is the University District where
the younger students, artists, and philosophers would be. The Main Boulevard is
the Boulevard Saint Germain. The crowd here is much younger and this area seems
more wild.
Isle de la Cite – This is the Island in between the Right Bank and Left Bank. Notre Dame, St. Chapelle, and the Concierge (police station) are all on the Island. Originally Paris was only that Island. Paris grew out from the Island in every direction. The original bridges to the Isle de la Cite all had houses built on them.
That
evening Sandy and I went on the giant Ferris wheel, Carrousel du Louvre,
from
the millennium celebration at Place De La Concorde, to the left of the
Ferris Wheel. Our hotel is in the top right area of the photo below.
Carrousel du Louvre
Day
15
Saturday, September 15, 2001
We took a two hour bus tour of Paris via the Cityrama Double Decker Bus Tour. We discovered the beauty of Paris in the comfort of their double decker buses.
Points of interest on the tour:
The Opera Garnier
In the afternoon we took the underground Metro to Porte de Clignancourt, located in northern Paris, to shop at the world famous antique malls located near the Paris flea market. The antiques for sale there are what you would find in fine museums in the US.
As it
is the best-known of the city's antique markets, the prices are the highest
here. The flea market to the north of Paris at Clignancourt covers four
miles, and is the world's biggest flea market.
Day
16
Sunday, September 16, 2001
We took
a tour of the art museum, Musee Louvre. When planned to get there early
as it is known to have very long lines to get it. When we got there the line was
about 100 to 200 yards long as people entered the glass Pyramid.
However, an hour or two into the tour, we looked out the museum windows
and the line was totally wrapped around the Pyramid courtyard with a line at
least a quarter of a mile long.
You
must go to Louvre’s own website at http://www.louvre.fr/louvrea.htm
for
a virtual tour of the museum.
The Joconde - Mona Lisa
Mary Lisa, Mona Lisa, Sandy Lisa
Venus de Milo
The Winged Victory of Sarmothrace
Liberty
Leading the People
Tom – The Louvre
Sandy – The Louvre
Mary, Tom, Mark – Napoleon’s Apartment in The Lourve
A
Short History of The Louvre - The Museum
The
library of Charles V - installed in one of the towers of the original fortress
of Philippe August - was eventually dispersed. François I began a new
collection of art with 12 paintings from Italy. These included works by Titian,
Raphael, and Leonardo da Vinci, the most famous being the – Joconde -or Mona
Lisa. The royal collection grew and by the reign of Louis XIII, numbered roughly
200 pieces. Henri II, and Catherine de Médicis continued to enlarge the
collection, as did others. When Louis XIV died in 1715, there were 2,500 pieces
of art and objects.
Until
the Revolution, this collection was strictly for the private pleasure of the
Court. Finally, the idea of a museum (originating with Louis XVI) was realized
on 10 August 1793, when the Musée de la République opened to the public.
Napoléon
greatly increased the collections by exacting tribute from the countries he conquered, but most of these were returned
in 1815 after his defeat at Waterloo. Under Louis XVIII the Venus de Milo was
aquired (for 6000F) shortly after it was rediscovered on the Island of Melos in
1820.
In
1848 the museum became the property of the State. With an annual budget devoted
to aquiring new art, the collections continued to grow. Private donations also
augmented the Museum's holdings.
Today,
the catalogue lists nearly 300,000 works, only a fraction of which are on
display at any one time. Le Grand Louvre - begun in 1981 is transforming the
museum once again enlarging it substantially. The Richelieu Wing - which had
``temporarily'' housed part of the Ministry of Finance since the 18th century -
was opened in 1993.
We
only toured the 1st floor
(which was the top floor) of the Louvre. I
think it would take a couple of days to see the entire museum.
Notre Dame cathedral
Notre Dame cathedral
Notre-Dame
History
Proceeded
by a Gallo-Roman temple to Jupiter, a Christian basilica, and a Romanesque
church, construction of Notre-Dame de Paris began in 1163 during the reign of
Louis VII. Pope Alexander III laid the foundation stone. The idea to replace the
Romanesque church occupying the site - the Cathedral of St. Etienne (founded by
Childebert in 528) - was that of Bishop Maurice de Sully (who died in 1196).
(Some accounts claim that there were two churches existing on the site, one to
the Virgin Mary, the other to St. Stephen.) Construction was completed roughly
200 years later in about 1345.
The
choir was completed in 1182; the nave in 1208, and the west front and towers circa
1225-1250. A series of chapels were added to the nave during the period 1235-50,
and during 1296-1330 to the apse (Pierre de Chelles and Jean Ravy). The transept
crossings were build in 1250-67 by Jean de Chelles and Pierre de Montreuil (also
the architect of the Sainte-Chapelle). It was essentially completed according to
the original plans.
During
the Commune of 1871, the Cathedral was nearly burned by the Communards - and
some accounts suggest that indeed a huge mound of chairs was set on fire
in its interior. Whatever happened, the Notre Dame survived the Commune
essentially unscathed.
Now in
1991, a 10 year program of general maintenance and restoration has begun, and
sections of the structure are likely to be shrouded in scaffolds for the
foreseeable future.
During
its history, Notre Dame has been the site of numerous official and other
ceremonial occasions. These include:
- 1239; The Crown of Thorns placed in the Cathedral by St. Louis during the construction of Sainte-Chapelle.
- 1302; Philip the Fair opens the first States General here.
- 1430;
Henri VI of England is crowned here.
- Mary
Stuart becomes Queen of France after her marriage to François II, and is
crowned here.
- 1572;
Marguerite of Valoi is married to the Huguenot Henri of Navarre here.
- 2
December 1804; After the anointing by Pius VII, Napoléon seizes the crown
from the pontiff and crowns first himself, then Josephine.
- 26
August 1944; The Te Deum Mass celebrates the liberation of Paris. (According
to some accounts the Mass was interrupted by snipping from both the internal
and external galleries.)
- 12
November 1970; The Requiem Mass of General de Gaulle is held here.
- 31
May 1980; After the Magnificat of this day, Pope John Paul II celebrates
Mass on the parvis in front of the Cathedral.
In the
afternoon we took the Metro subway to connect with the train that goes to Palace of Versailles,
or, The
Chateau of Versailles.
Take
a 360-degree virtual
tour:
The
Old Chateau
Back in 1623, Louis XIII - father of Louis XIV - built a 'hunting lodge, a
little gentleman's chateau' of brick, stone, and slate at Versailles. The king
liked it so much that he soon had it enlarged by his 'royal engineer and
architect', Philibert Le Roy (this early chateau survives in the buildings that
flank the Marble Courtyard). Then from 1661 to 1668 the young Louis XIV, known
as the
Sun
King had his own architect, Louis Le Vau, embellish the residence. Yet this
'little house of cards', as the memorialist Duc de Saint-Simon called it,
remained too small. Extensions were deemed necessary.
The New Chateau
Le Vau was once again charged with carrying out the work. From 1668 to 1670 he
built the 'envelope', which Saint-Simon severely criticized for contrasting with
the old chateau: 'the beautiful and the ugly, the vast and the restricted, were
stitched together'. Indeed, Le Vau's 'envelope' entailed wrapping the old
chateau in a second building whose uniformly white stone facades served as a
fine garden setting. Work on this building, whose central terrace was inspired
by Italian baroque villas, was taken up by François d'Orbay on Le Vau's death
in 1670. It houses the State
Apartments
Official Residence
In May 6, 1682, Versailles became the official residence of the Court of
France, supplanting the palaces at the Louvre and Saint-Germain-en-Laye. From
1678 to 1684, meanwhile, the terrace of the new chateau was transformed into the
Hall of Mirrors, symbolizing the power of the absolute monarch. Feverish
building activity then gave birth to the North and South Wings, the Orangery,
Stables, and Grand Lodgings; the vast construction site was headed by royal
architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. The last major feature built during the reign
of Louis XIV, the Chapel Royal, was completed in 1710 by Robert de Cotte.
The Grand Reconstruction Project
Toward the end of the reign of Louis XV, around
1770, Jacques-Ange Gabriel built the Opera and began reworking all the facades
on the chateau's town side. Only the right wing, which threatened to crumble,
was executed. It strictly obeyed the rules of French classical architecture, as
seen in its colonnaded pavilion. Inside, the grand staircase known as Grand Degré
was begun in 1772, but only recently completed in 1985. A symmetrical pavilion
on the other side of the courtyard, planned by Napoleon I, was finally erected
in 1820.
The King's Bedchamber
Louis XIV's bedchamber occupied the exact center of the chateau from 1701 onward. It was a key setting for events in the Sun King's day and was arranged to reflect this ceremonial function. A gilded wood baluster separated public space from private space; the alcove, where the bed is set, was a place reserved for the monarch alone. The decoration is particularly rich, comprised not only of gilded woodwork and heavy brocade embroidered in gold ( restored in 1980), but also paintings by the finest artists. These paintings by Le Valentin, Van Dyck, Domenichino, and Lanfranco were chosen by the king himself and set into the wood paneling, indicating how the most valued pieces in the royal collection were integrated into the decor.
The King's Suite (Apartment du Roi)
The
layout of royal apartments was dictated by the requirements of public and
private life. As early as 1683, Louis XIV abandoned his Grand Apartment,
henceforth open to all, in order to live in his own suite, known simply as the Apartment
du Roi, which included the King's Guards Room, Antechamber for Grand Couvert
repasts, Oeil-de-Boeuf Salon, King's Bedchamber, and Council Cabinet. The
majestic painted ceilings and marble walls of the Grand Apartment gave way here
to carved woodwork in white and gold, and plain ceilings. This lighter style
reflected a new taste on the part of Louis XIV who wearied of allegories and
henceforth wanted 'youthfulness strewn everywhere.
The Hall of Mirrors : Close-Up on a Masterpiece
The hall measures 73 meters long, 10.5 meters wide, and 12.3 meters high. At one
end is the Salon of War, at the other is the Salon of Peace. Seventeen windows
overlooking the garden are matched by seventeen arcaded mirrors along the wall.
These exceptionally large mirrors were made in a Paris workshop founded by
Colbert to compete with Venice's glass factories. The arches are set on marble
pilasters whose gilded bronze capitals are decorated with the symbols of
France—the fleur-de-lys and the Gallic cockerel—according to the new 'French
order' of architecture invented by Le Brun. The finest ancient statues in Louis
XIV's collection, as well as busts of Roman emperors, dot the walls. The solid
silver tables, lamp holders, and orange-tree pots that originally adorned the
gallery, however, were all unfortunately melted down by Louis XIV himself in
order to finance his wars.
The Queen's Bedchamber
It
still looks today as it did when Marie-Antoinette left Versailles during the
French Revolution in 1789. The Rococo-style woodwork, as well as the ceiling
painting by François Boucher (1703-1770) were commissioned around 1730 by Louis
XV in order to please his wife, Maria Leszczinska. Marie-Antoinette found this
terribly old-fashioned, and decided to replace all the furnishings, notably
commissioning silk hangings woven in patterns of lilacs and peacock feathers,
garnishing the alcove and the enormous four-poster bed (restored in 1976).
After
touring the Palace of Versailles we stopped at a French restaurant for a
late afternoon meal. We then walked back to the train station and headed back
for Paris. That evening we walked to the area north of our hotel to the Opera
House.
Day
17
Monday, September 17, 2001
Mark & I bid farewell to the ladies and
depart for London. Security was high at
Paris’s Gare du Nord Station as
we encountered bomb-sniffing dogs as we made our way through the station to
catch the Eurostar back to
Waterloo Station in London and spend the night at the Thistle Victorian Hotel.
The Guinea Grill
Today was Mark’s birthday, so I treated him to dinner at The Guinea Grill, one of the best pub-diner combos in the West End. Mark and Mary had spotted it the previous week when they were at the American Embassy. The Guinea Grill was crowned champion Steak and Kidney Pie maker of Great Britain for the third time in 1997.
The Guinea Grill is in Bruton Place, a
tiny mews off London's Berkeley Square, a step away from the American Embassy
and Bond Street. It is a historic building on a site which has been a pub since
the 15th century. Apparently posh Berkeley Square in Mayfair was once an
enclosure -- or pound -- for stray hogs; in 1423 a small alehouse was built
alongside it, and a witty landlord raised a sign proclaiming The One Pound One.
Owned by London brewers Young's, it is a famous
hostelry that attracts the famous -- British stars such as Oliver Reed
and John Cleese and a positive galaxy of American celebs: Bill Cosby,
Ted Danson, Senator George McGovern, Sylvester Stallone
(and his body guards). Henry Mancini once signed the Guinea's visitors
book with a bar of music. Host Carl Smith will never forget the night Bob
Hope scrawled his signature: "He
came across for the D-Day celebrations and the restaurant was full of American
war veterans. He sort of wandered in and said 'You got any lamb chops?' and you
should have seen those veterans' faces!"
Before Carl's time, when the pub had a backyard
with chairs and tables under a canvas roof, Frank Sinatra apparently sat
outside one night in absolute bliss eating a steak next to a bucket catching
torrential rain.
Apparently, so many Americans drop in that
Young's Chairman John Young once commented: "The Guinea Grill is better
known in New York than it is in London."
Thistle Victorian, London
We took a cab back to our hotel and stopped by the Harvard Bar for a fine cigar and cognac. The Harvard Bar is true to its name with wood paneled decor and comfortable, leather arm chairs in an 'Old English' style.
Day
18
Tuesday, September 18, 2001
Mark
& I checked out of the Thistle
Victoria Hotel and went next
door to Victoria Station
to catch the Gatwick Express train to Gatwick
International Airport. We
arrived 3 ½ hours early upon the advise of Continental Airlines. The baggage
check in was a hundred yards long and security very tight.
We then departed on a direct flight 10 to 11 hour flight to Houston in a Boeing 777. In Houston, Mark barely made his connection to Phoenix and my connection to Denver had just left when I got to the gate. They booked be on a later flight and I finally got home at about midnight. It was good to be home.
Sandy
and Mary remained in Paris and returned on Friday, September 20th.
That afternoon, they took the subway back the to antique mall and flea markets
in northern Paris.
Day
19
Wednesday, September 19, 2001
Sandy
and Mary took a chateau tour via a tour bus.
Mary – Chateau Bus Tour, France
Day
20
Thursday,
September 20, 2001
Sandy & Mary took the subway to Porte de Clignancourt to the flea market and antique shops.
Day
21
Friday, September 20, 2001
Sandy
and Mary flew directly from Gatwick
International Airport to
Houston. They bid each farewell and Sandy returned to Denver, Mary to Phoenix.
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