Le Sainte-Chapelle, or “The Holy Chapel,” was commissioned by King Louis IX of France to house his collection of relics from the Passion of Christ, including (allegedly) the Crown of Thorns. It contains, as we read, one of the most extensive “in-situ” collections of 13th century stained glass in the world.
The building’s exterior definitely looked Gothic: several spires stabbed up into the sky, and the chapel’s primary tower could be seen from both sides of the river. As we approached, we could tell that the stained glass windows would be really impressive.
We entered through a lower floor, which was cozy with smaller stained glass—and a gift shop, of course. We quickly found the stairs to the main chapel, and found ourselves in awe of the windows. The whole room felt alive with color, as the fifteen windows (approximately 30 feet high) depicted major events in the Old and New Testaments in beautiful primary colors.
A placard indicated that the windows were meant to be read counter-clockwise, so we spent some time trying to decipher each window’s events. This was a way medieval Christians learned the Bible, being illiterate. I tell you what: I’m grateful for my literacy, because I could barely understand a single scene on those windows. They sure were lovely, though.
Our primary reason for visiting, however, resulted in disappointment. We were under the impression that the relics of the Passion were still housed in the chapel, in a beautiful silver reliquary. I’d read that, in addition to the Crown of Thorns, the reliquary housed a piece of the Cross, and the Holy Lance.
Above: Empty altar where the silver Passion Relics reliquary once stood.
Unfortunately, the French Revolution screwed everything. The reliquary was melted down, the steeple and baldachin removed, and the relics “dispersed,” whatever that means. What few survived (including, we read, the Crown) are now kept in the Treasury at Notre Dame, unavailable for view.
From the Sainte Chapelle, we crossed to the left bank of the river, and walked south to the Pantheon in the Latin Quarter. Originally dedicated as a church to St. Genevieve, the Pantheon now functions as a mausoleum for distinguished French citizens.
It was a deceptively large building, which we realized upon entering. The main floor contained various statues, as well as a cool instrument/monument to physicist Leon Foucault, who somehow demonstrated Earth’s rotation with a 67-meter pendulum hanging from the dome.
Above: Foucault's Pendulum
We descended into the Crypt of the Pantheon, which first boasted--on opposite sides of the main aisle--the tombs of philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and writer Voltaire(aka Francois-Marie Arouet).
Further back in the necropolis, we located small rooms that were built to hold 6-8 tombs each. In one of these, we located famous authors Victor Hugo (Les Miserables, The Hunchback of Notre Dame), Alexander Dumas (The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers), and Emile Zola (The Masterpiece, Germinal).
In another, we saw the tomb for Nobel winner Marie Curie, and patron of the blind Louis Braille (and yes, his tomb was also identified in Braille).
After ascending and exiting, we snacked on some baguette on the Pantheon steps, then walked back across the river to Notre Dame and got in line for the Tower. We were told to expect over an hour wait, so while Annie stood in line I scoped out a hot dog and coke for us to split while we stood.
Above: Notre Dame drain spouts, viewed from line.
We are veteran line waiters, so having food, drink, and shade darn near spoiled us. We gained entrance around one hour later, and began our climb to the top. The employees had visits down to a near science; twenty or so people were allowed admission every fifteen minutes, and upon entry your time at various stages of the climb and view was managed.
Regardless, once we reached the tower terrace, we were afforded GREAT views of Paris. We could see Sacre Coeur off to our right, the river trailing off into the distance from the foot of the cathedral, and the Eiffel Tower off to the west.
The main reason people climb the tower, I think, is for the postcard view of the gargoyles. I didn’t know they were all different shapes and sizes. Each one was unique, and quite photogenic. A couple reminded me of girls I once dated.
Above: Check out the curves of that hot one on the left!
Lastly, we climbed into one of the bell towers to see its medieval bell. It was huge--but we caught no sign of Quasimodo, unfortunately.
After ogling the killer view long enough, we took the metro home to our hotel, and were quickly informed by our concierge that WE WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE CHECKED OUT TODAY. That’s right; I somehow completely overlooked the fact that we were scheduled to depart Paris today, and were booked in Nice tonight.
Despite the major screw up, we salvaged it as best as possible: our Paris hotel was okay with us staying over, so we just had to eat the cost of this night in Nice.
Since this last night in Paris was proving expensive, we decided to just blow it out: We went to Louis Vuitton. Now, anyone who knows me, knows how much I hate malls and shopping, so I hope it’s a testament to how much I love my wife that I not only went to this fashion palace, but even waited in line to do so. That marked the first time either of us EVER waited in line to enter a store; the fifteen-minute wait was embarrassing, but was (somewhat) explained by the fact this was the “original” Louis Vuitton store. There were passing women--and effeminate men--snapping photos of the store or posing in front of it, so I guess this was a tourist site on the fashionista’s itinerary.
We bought Annie a purse. Hooray!
From this expensive, heartbreaking store on the Champs, we returned Annie’s new bag to our room, buying me a beer en route--which was MUCH needed! We then made our way south to the Eiffel Tower, which lit up at 9:30. FYI, the tower also bursts with “sparkling” lights for five minutes on each hour, so we wanted to see/photograph the sparkling on our last night in Paris.
We just missed the 10pm sparkling, having turned the corner just in time to watch the lights go out. The 55-minute wait gave us the opportunity to scope out the best vantage point for a comfortable view of the 11pm sparkling. I prepared our primary camera, while Annie prepared to capture some video footage on the waterproof camera Christy gave us.
When the sparkling recommenced, the Tower looked wonderful. We both agreed that it was a beautiful addition to an already-photogenic attraction, and became a great way for us to spend our last night in Paris.
As we watched the Tower, and its reflection in a fountain pool beneath us, we overheard a woman nearby (also, presumably, on her last night in town) begin crying and saying goodbye to the tower. “Adios, Eiffel Tower,” she cried, “I will miss you! Adios!”
Check out the video Annie artfully shot (albeit sideways; I'll try to fix later):
On our way home, we bought a chocolate crêpe, and bought me another beer. Ah, Paris!
Paris July 25 Album:
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| Paris: July 25, 2011 |
Location:Paris, France
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