'Paree' City of Light, Bridges, Sidewalk Cafes and Love Locks
Metro (Sortie = Exit)
The Lourve
Eugene Delacroix's most famous
Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel
Taken from the exact place Hitler stood in June 1940-Sureal
Wide angle views
Eiffel Tower from Arc de Triomphe- Zoom
To describe this city in a word: 'Awesome'. The best way to present the best of Paris is in pictures, not words, suffice to say that the initial outstanding feature of the city upon arrival is the architecture. The city has structures, mainly but not only churches and cathedrals, that range from middle ages, Romanesque and Gothic and so very much is in tact, preserved and still in use.
The city has a vibrant street culture reflected in alfresco cafes, restaurants and bars along with street stalls and hawkers of all descriptions.
The Seine is the spine of the living Paris and the bridges that traverse it are the vertebrae gauranting the life of the city.
And last but not least the City of Love which has many facets but one in particular that catches the eye, love locks!
We arrived by Eurostar from London at Gare de Nord, one of several major long distance and international rail terminals that service all points of the compass. We changed to the metro and after navigating the ticket machine travelled the 2 stops to Gare de Lyon from which the Hotel Palym was a 2 min walk. The choice for this was heavily influenced by the station being our departure point for our journey to Spain. It turned out being advantageous for the ease of access to other services we required.
Paris
Gare de Lyon
Station from Hotel window
Gardens of Tuileries
Place de la Concorde
Auguste Rodin-Le Baiser 1889
Av de Champs-Elysees
Arc de Triomphe
Eternal flame to unknown soldier at base of Arc de Triomphe
Metro on Champs-Elysees
Grand Palais
Early 2oth century works by Viennese artist Frantisek Kupka
on exhibition at the Grand Palais
Petit Palais
Underneath the arches!
Views from 2nd level of Eiffel Tower
Notre-Dame Cathedral
Heavy security presence everywhere
Just a small sample inside Notre-Dame
Around area of St Chapelle
Place Dauphine
On the Seine
Love locks. Placed on infrastructure of bridges by couples declaring their love. The locks generally have short messages attached or inscribed. A number of years ago one bridge was under stress from the locks attached and the authorities removed 45 tonne of locks.
Parisien Ngaire
Monument celebrating Bastille
Stalingrad Paris, not Russia. Paris has named many streets and monuments to famous WW11 identities and places.
Interior of famous Trainbleu restaurant at Gare de Lyon
Dinner on the Seine
Dining on the Seine with live music.
Left Bank and Latin Quarter
The Latin Quarter
'And you can't go anywhere without---'
And Last but not Least 'Paris at Night'
Dinner on the Seine
Monday evening we experienced a river boat cruise with dinner. It was a fantastic evening which added to our wonderful time in Paris.
Left Bank and Latin Quarter
These famous Paris locations have been the at the forefront of French bohemian culture, student radicalism, art and literature. The twenties and thirties was the cultural peak with the likes of Picasso, Hemingway, Isadora Duncan, Norman Mailer and Henry Miller to name just a few.
The most beautiful area is the 'Le Jardin du Luxemberg' or:
The Luxemburg Gardens
And Last but not Least 'Paris at Night'
Au Revoir