Ooh La La - Paris by Night

Paris is the "City of Lights".  Need I say more?

The Arc de Triomphe

The Arc de Triomphe is a 165 foot tall arch that was built to honor France’s armies.  It offers a great view of the city, but you have to climb 284 steps to see it!  It was a climb, but the view was worth it!

The Musée d’Orsay

The Musée d’Orsay is a former train stain located along the banks of the Seine River in central Paris.  In the 1970’s it was converted to a museum housing mostly Impressionist paintings (Monet, Manet, Renoir, Degas, etc.).  There is other artwork on display as well – French Conservative statues, Realism, post-Impressionism – but the Impressionists is what the museum is really known for.  Unfortuantely cameras are not allowed in the museum.  However, after touring the museum, I snuck back in with my pocket camera to snap a couple of photos of the old rail station clock.  It was truly spectacular.

Rodin

Auguste Rodin was a famous sculpturer and painter who lived in Paris in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.  His former home and gardens, just across the street from Napoleon’s Tomb, are filled with his artwork.  Here are a few samples:

Singing in the Rain

We saw these guys on the bridge behind Notre Dame heading over to Ile Saint Louis.  (video by lori-o)

Pont Alexandre III

The bridge over the Seine River going from the Hotel des Invalides over towards The Louvre is called the Pont Alexandre III.  As you can see it is done up with a lot of gold and iron.  Like most of the rest of Paris, it is a beautiful sight.

Napoleon's Tomb

Today we stopped by the Hôtel des Invalides, the home of a military hospital, the French Army museum, and the reason for our visit – the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte. 

Notre Dame

Sunday morning we went to the "Chant" service at Notre Dame.  The service was in Latin and French.  Very interesting.  Here are a few photos from Notre Dame.