Day #39: More Paris

The idea today was to start at the Cathedral of Notre Dame, wind my way through the Latin Quarter, then visit the Saint Chappelle Cathedral. After dinner, it would be on to the Louvre.

That was the plan, but when I arrived at Notre Dame, it was cloudy. Now, I may not know much about European cathedrals, but I do know that stained glass + clouds does not equal breathtaking. So I detoured for a bit, hoping that the clouds would lift and the sun would come out.

I detoured to visit the Cluny Museum in the Latin quarter. Officially called the National Museum of the Middle Ages, the Cluny Museum is only semi-interesting except for its one big showpiece: a series of unicorn tapestries. Woven in the late 15th century, these six tapestries show a woman, a lion, and a unicorn and symbolize the five senses (plus something else, scholars are apparently divided on the meaning of the sixth). My favorite was the one that symbolized sight.

After spending a good hour in the Cluny Museum to see that my faith had been justified and the clouds had lifted. So on to the Cathedral of Notre Dame! The Cathedral's reputation is well deserved and the rose windows are breathtaking.

Next, I went walking through the Latin Quarter. As the home of the Sorbonne, this neighborhood got its name from the fact that students came from all over Europe to study and the only language they had in common was the language of learning: Latin. Once a place that showed the old city of Paris, it is now overrun with tacky tourist shops and Asian restaurants.

Crossing back over the river, I next went to see the Cathedral of Saint Chappelle. Built to house the reputed crown of thorns from Jesus' crucifixion, the Cathedral is more famous now for its breath-taking stained glass window display. I walked up only to see that it was closed for lunch. No problem, I just popped next door to the Conciergerie, Paris's most famous still-standing prison. I say still-standing because the Bastille does not exist anymore. The Conciergerie was where the Revolutinary Authorities held people before efforting them off to the guillotine. Its most famous prisoner was Marie Antoinette.

After the Conciergerie, I went back to the Saint Chappelle, only to find a long line. Apparently, the church is right next to the Palais de Justice (which houses the French Supreme Court and the Paris criminal courts), so all tourists had to go through a metal detector. 45 minutes later (thankfully, I had a book to read), I went through the metal detector and was in! Excited, I mounted the stairs to the upper chapel . . . only to be terribly disappointed. Apparently, the famous stained glass windows were undergoing a restoration, so some of the windows were covered up. Don't get me wrong, the remaining windows were amazing, but when almost all of the main windows behind the altar are covered up, its not quite the same.

My last stop of the day was the Louvre. Conveniently open at night on Fridays, this cut out some of the crowds. The museum offers two big highlights: the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo.

The Venus de Milo did not disappoint. Elegantly carved and well-displayed, it left me enthralled. And I usually am not a big statue person.

The Mona Lisa, on the other hand, was a little disappointing. It is behind glass and we were roped off from getting within 15 feet of it, so it was hard to get a good luck at the nuances of the painting. I much preferred another Da Vinvi painting they showed of Saint Anne, with Virgin and child.

My final stop at the Louvre, after a swing through the Egyptian section, was to see the famous Lace Maker by Vermeer. Only to find out that it has been loaned out to a museum in Kyoto. They did have the Astronomer by Vermeer nearby, but it was still disappointing.

Overall, the Louvre underwhelmed me. Maybe it is because their art displays did not jibe with what I like in art, but still, I think I like the Orsay Museum better.