barryparistime-blog

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We met in the morning at the Musée d'Orsay, one of the biggest museums in the world, which also has the largest collection in existence of impressionist pieces. Originally the building was a train station, then it was used as a mailing center during World War 2, and now finally a museum. The building itself was incredible, my personal favorite landmark was the giant clock on the top that you could look out of and enjoy a view of the whole city. We talked about the rise of Impressionism, heavily driven by the invention of photographs. Now that pictures could be "perfectly" captured, it was more about the interpretation of a scene rather than perfect representation. In addition, painters could now take paint with them easily in cans, so there was a certain fascination with painting outside and trying to capture nature. One of the coolest things for me was seeing some of Monet's paintings of his gardens in Giverny, which I could easily recognize as we went there last week. The next night I went to visit my mom's French friend, who lives in Paris. I thought I was going to Perrine's apartment for dinner with her friends, but it turns out she's actually a high end arts dealer and the address she gave me was an art show at her gallery. She had an invitation to go to a private arts show at the museum of modern art that night but couldn't make it, so she gave me the invitation- it was incredible and the best way to end a fantastic few weeks in Paris.

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On Tuesday we went to the Grand Mosque of Paris. The land for the Mosque was given to Parisian Muslims from North Africa to reward them for fighting in the French army in World War 1. The building was very beautiful and it was really interesting to see a Mosque after all the Churches we've been going to. We were able to tour the whole area which included gardens, a giant praying room (just for men), and the grave of the founder of the Mosque. The architecture was definitely different; the main things I noticed were more asymmetry and modesty in the Mosque l, as well as no pictures being present- versus churches like Saint Chapelle that were covered with pictures of stories with stained glass. I thought the story about the people in the Mosque hiding the Jewish Parisians to protect them from the Nazis was particularly interesting. Afterward we went to do a "Jam sesh" altogether at a dance studio rented out for us. It was great combining skills in the moment with all the talent that's on this trip!

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[barryparistime-blog]

On Monday we met at the Stravinsky fountain, a contemporary fountain located next to the Centre Pompidou. The fountain is decorated with sixteen different sculptures, with moving/spraying water, representing works of the composer Igor Stravinsky. A Russian born composer, Stravinsky is considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century and is known for his stylistic diversity and pushing the boundaries of music at the time. Ironically, he abandoned composition in school because his professors told him he had no talent, but then studied privately later with the composer Rimsky-Korsakov and became an overnight star from his works. Stravinsky spent much of time in Paris and composed much music for the Ballet Russe, such as The Firebird and The Rite of Spring. It's only fitting that next to the Stravinsky fountain is the Centre Pompidou, which houses a vast public library, the largest modern art museum in Europe, and a center for music and acoustic research. It's named after the French president who commissioned it to be built. The whole design is fascinating, with the pipes being colored for what they carry, and many levels with an escalator in a plastic tube to help you ascend or descend to the different levels. The artwork was also incredible. My favorite was the stuff on the fourth floor, which was more interactive and experimental- something I really admire modern art for.

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On Friday I went to the Monet Gardens, the House and Gardens of the famous Impressionist painter Claude Monet (just a short train ride away from Paris). Many of Monet's paintings were completed here, and inspired by his gardens which he carefully cultivated for over 20 years. He had the goal of perfectly capturing the French countryside, so the gardens perfectly served his purpose as a model. His paintings are incredibly famous today, and he is known as the founder of Impressionist paintings. I also ate the best crepe I've ever had before at lunch!! (Pictured with a jug of apple juice) The next morning I went to the Marché aux Puces de Saint Ouen, a large flea market on the outskirts of Paris, which some consider to be the largest in Europe. There are whole different sections of the market depending on what you're looking for, and it's filled with old antiques from the 19th and 20th century. What I found to be so fascinating was the large number of old things you could look through, each with its own history and giving a glimpse into the past. It's amazing to look through even if you're not looking to buy anything!

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We met in the morning to spend a day at the Louvre. I had been once before but I was excited to come back to see more- the museum is so massive it would take me weeks to cover everything that I wanted to! The Louvre has a very interesting history, as it was first built as a medieval fortress, then expanded to a palace, and now a museum with a shopping mall underneath... the famous glass pyramid structure in the middle was completed by a Chinese American architect in 1989 to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the French Revolution. I mostly focused on the historic artifacts and sculptures in the lower levels, since last time I focused more on the paintings. It was so amazing seeing some of these famous artifacts such as the Great Sphinx of Tanis, giant Assyrian sculptures, and the Code of Hammurabi (a personal favorite of mine for the day). I also thought it was so crazy how you can walk through the original moat of the castle (built about 800 years ago) under the museum. After spending a few hours downstairs, I made my way up to the paintings and walked around for a little bit, revisiting some of my favorites. After the museum I decided to check out the Pantheon on my own. I was a little skeptical after studying in Rome, but it was amazing- especially the size and grandeur of it. Inside all the walls are covered with paintings of the most famous Catholic heroes of France- my personal favorite was a sequence of paintings for Joan of Arc. Downstairs in the crypts many famous French heroes, politicians, and artists are buried- including Victor Hugo, Rousseau, Voltaire, and Moullin. Completed just during the outbreak of the French Revolution, we can all be thankful it survived the turbulent time following!

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In the morning I went to Sacre Coeur (the heart of Paris), a beautiful church with a basilica located in the highest part of the Paris. It was built in the late 1800s and showed a resurgence of Parisian confidence in Catholicism after the violence of the French Revolution and destructive wars that followed. I walked up to the top of the dome and the view of the city was incredible! Afterward I met up for class, and we went back to the Palais Garnier, checking out some areas we missed the previous day... like the room where the dinners would take place before the shows, and the giant balcony in the front of the building. After a lunch break and discussion, I split off to try Angelina, which had amazing chocolate and tea. I also returned to the Lafayette Galleries and explored it more. I had never noticed the beautiful ceilings before! That night we all met up to watch a ballet at the opera house, and it was the most amazing ballet I've ever seen. I always enjoy dancing but ballet is more about the music for me... this was the first time I ever experienced dancing affecting me emotionally on its own. Each piece was amazing; the first was so interactive with the audience, the second emotional, the third trancelike, and the fourth mesmerizing. Being able to watch this in such a historic and grand place was an incredible experience!

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We spent the whole day at the Opera house in Paris, with a special pass to go backstage! The Palais Garnier, also known as the Opera Garnieor just the Opera, was built from 1861 to 1875. It was the main venue for the Paris opera till the opera Bastille opened in 1989, and is now mostly used for the ballet. It's famous for being the basis of the Phantom of the Opera, and we saw the lake underneath the building where the phantom is supposed to live! Although they allowed people of lesser status and wealth attending the opera to enter in the front, they were required to climb up many wooden stairs to get to their seating area, nicknamed the chicken box. There was hardly any visibility in this area if any, and had a screen covering the whole balcony. They had a screen because the people in the chicken box would take their dinner with them and throw their trash over the edge, and this was their solution! The ceiling in the main hall honors many composers... the artist did it for free and didn't destroy the original because he was so honored. Looking down from the ceiling, it's a long way down and it's partly because of this that the theater loved hiring sailors. They didn't mind working below the theater in the dark without much fresh air, or climbing high above the stage- and they needed work when not on ships! This is why so many sailor words are used today in theater.

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Starting at the age of 4, King Louis XIV's reign of 72 years and 110 days is the longest recorded of any monarch in European history. He wanted a centralized state governed from the capital, and sought to eliminate the remains of feudalism by convincing members of the nobility to inhabit the palace of Versailles. His strategy worked and he became one of the most powerful monarchs in French history, establishing absolute monarchical rule which lasted till the French Revolution. Over the course of four building campaigns he turned Versailles from a hunting lodge into the spectacular palace of Versailles, and moved the royal court here. Louis XIV was an avid supporter of the arts and a very accomplished dancer. He had music played to him all the time. Even during hunting he would have ballets with instrumentalists performed on horseback. In the palace the King was on constant display, as a public figure. Many people thought the King could heal diseases since he was a vessel of god, so there was much appeal of wanting to be touched by himself to be in his presence. The Hall of mirrors is where everything happened, celebrations etc. Dedicated to the personal history of Louis XIV, it has 17 windows, each window opposing mirrors. The Paintings in the room are about the first 17 years of his reign.

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We started out the morning at The Notre-Dame Cathedral, a medieval church and one of the best known churches in the world. There are still four Notre-Dame masses a day. The building has amazing acoustics and was one of best places to sing in the world for many centuries. Luckily for us a bread festival was also occurring right outside! Outside in the back of the church we had a little concert from Professor Rotem and made some friends with Chinese tourists. People used to dance in churches , but in 1200 stopped- dancing could mean you were possessed by spirits!! In the French Revolution, it became the "temple to the supreme being." Victor Hugo basically saved the church with his novel. He raised money and awareness to restore it. Afterward we went to the Saint Chapelle which was the private chapel for the King- much smaller but more ornate. We stopped for lunch and some amazing Glacé, and went to Shakespeare and Company- a renowned bookshop in which many famous writers would lounge and write their masterpieces. After a walk through the beautiful Luxembourg Gardens and a stop at Gertrude Stein's apartment, we finished the day at Le Bob Marché- which had an incredible selection of fashion and food.

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First we went to the Galerie Vivienne, a historic shopping area built in the 1820s during the industrial revolution- and a precursor to modern shopping malls. The tile pattern on the floor was modeled after those in Pompeii! Afterward we went next door to Le Palais Royale, which used to be a palace for the Cardinals but was given to King Louis XIII and usually used to house extra royal family members. Today it houses a lot of government offices. Then we walked through the Jardin des Tuileries, and spotted the Obélisque de Louxor and the Place de la Concorde, where many people were executed during the French Revolution, including the King and Queen. We walked down the Champs-Élysées, stopping for some Macarons and shopping along the way. At the end of the road was the Arc de Triomphe, where we took the metro down to the Eiffel Tower. The Tour Eiffel was built in 1889 by Gustavo Eiffel, to commemorate the 100 year Anniversary of the French Revolution. Eiffel built a lot of railroad bridges, and you can tell this experience went into the tower, which was built in only two years. It was originally only supposed to be up for 20 years, but it became important with broadcasting radio, so the Parisians decided to keep it. When it was first built many hated it and called it an eyesore, but now we know it as one of the most recognizable landmarks of Paris!