22nd June, 245pm
Oops. Forgot to update this, but has been a bit rushed lately. Or rather, just the last 2 days. I'm now sitting on the Ryanair flight enroute to Stockholm, having just left Paris.
On the 20th, we visited Notre Dame early in the morning, and attended Mass. Yes, this unbelieving, paganistic person attended, 'cos it turns out that Jordan and Sophia were Catholics, and it was a Sunday, so 4 of out the party were baptised Catholics apparently. Sigh. The church was really old and grand ( Notre ) and the whole time I was there, the theme to "Bells of Notre Dame" from the Disney cartoon kept ringing in my head. Didn't really think to see if we could go up to the Belfry though. :p
The outside of Notre Dame
The entrance to the church, lined with engravings of saints.
Mass was ... interesting, considering the service was in French and the hymns were in Latin. Obviously, I didn't understand a word, besides the odd Latin word I managed to pick out. Stained glass windows were amazing. The interior of the church, though, was rather plain, different from my previous impressions of Catholic churches.
Inside Notre Dame, preparing for Mass.
Stained glass inside Notre Dame
The famous Rose Window of Notre Dame
Buy a candle for 2euros and put it here, with a prayer.
Listening to the Mass said in 2 foreign languages, one of which isn't spoken as a language on Earth anymore, made me realise just why it was so important to quit the old practice of saying Mass only in Latin, and translating the Bible to English. Such a simple translation literally put the Words of God into the hands of the people, and suddenly, religion became a whole lot more accessible and understandable to a lot of people. It was as if the Holy Spirit had gifted them with the power of tongues.
After that we went to the Louvre, walking along the River Seine.
View of the Seine
Only after walking along that stretch do you believe that Paris truly is the city of lovers. The Seine was so peaceful at that time of day, and the weather was so fine, cool enough to make you want to snuggle up with someone and walk along the river. *Sigh* And the surrounding shops the same 'quaint' architecture you see all over Paris. You can almost imagine someone playing the accordion, singing a mournful love song.
The glass pyramid of the Louvre.
Then we reached the Louvre. It's immense, consisting of 3 wings. Not surprisingly, considering that it used to be a palace before the Revolution. The only regretful thing is that the explanations of the exhibits are in French. Mon Dieu. So for the first few explorations, I could only walk by and admire the paintings, but that was about it. Later on, I found plaques ( in English ) with more information, but only about the artist. I managed to find several paintings that I recognised too, the most famous being the Mona Lisa.
The actual painting is actually rather small and unimposing in size, and if it were not for the fame surrounding the enigmatic smile, it would have certainly been forgotten amongst all the other grander paintings. As it is, though, that's history for you.
Even if you were not a student of art, or had no knowledge of art, some of the skill involved in the production of those paintings would astound you. Imagine painting something so full of colour and light that the subjects would seem to come alive after you turned your back to it. Imagine painting something that would be 2 storeys high, and longer in width. Imagine painting the face of God, his divine face full of love as you added each additional brushstroke.
That's how you start appreciating art.
As usual, I also got seperated from the group during my explorations, and it was while I was admiring some French paintings that this security guard approached me. He apologized for his poor English and asked me stuff like why was I in Paris, what part of the Louvre did I like, how long I would be staying in Paris. The thought struck me that oh god, he's trying to hit on me. Finally he said something about his shift being over soon and a cup of coffee, and I go, non, non. He got the message. Eek! Much as I like the idea of romance, it's not my intention in Paris to have a one night stand with a guy who's obviously much older than I am, and whom I've only just met! The irritating thing is that now Jordan has found it funny to keep calling me "hot chick" after I told the rest about the incident. Grr.
The Louvre took up pretty much most of the afternoon, 'cos it was so damn huge, and I didn't even get to explore all the wings. Oh well, got more out of it than the National Gallery at least.
After that, we made our way to dinner near Montmarte, at this pretty nice restaurant nearby. Then it was to Sacre Coeur. ( Sacred Heart )
This is a church that stood at the top of a hill overlooking Montmarte. ( God overlooking the sinners of Paris. Hm. ) To get there, we had to climb these bunch of stairs like crazy ( pant pant phew ) but the view of Paris at the top is gorgeous. The place apparently is a favourite hangout for youths, who like to sit or lounge at the white stairs leading up to the entrance of the church. We sat there for a time, enjoying the view, and it was a pity when we had to leave. Just sitting there, with the view of Paris spanning beneath you, really puts one at peace. Whether it was due to the influence of the Church or whatever, I don't know.
On the 21st was our visit to Eurodisney!! Admittedly, there is an air about the place that makes one feel like a child once more. Maybe it is the childish association of Mickey Mouse, or the childhood memories it evokes, or the thousands of delighted-to-insanity kids running around the place. No matter. The moment we stepped in, we seemed to have lost 10 years. Well, maybe just me and Wiki. She seemed like a happy little kid, running to all the shops, posing with the characters.
and so did I!
Sadly, none of the guys are fated to be King of England.
There are actually 2 parks in EuroDisney, the Park itself, and the Studios Park. At the Studios Park, the shows and exhibits mainly revolve around the Disney movies and the special effects used. One, on the tram ride we took, was particularly impressive. The scene was a mining camp, and then suddenly, there was a series of explosions at several spots. Then a flood of water came raging towards our tram! It was so realistic that Jordan, sitting nearest to the scene, instinctively put up his arms to cover himself. Whoa. ( And he had been saying, before the ride, that I'll be the one to get wet. Ha! )
We also went for a car chase show, where they demonstrated, with stunt actors and dummy cars, how car chases were filmed. Whoa whoa whoa. Don't mess with these jokers on the road is all I can say. They handled the cars like they were part of the car, so flawless was their steering. Absolut control, man.
Then there was the Armaggeddon set, where the bunch of us were trooped onto a replica of the spaceship sent to destroy the asteroid. When you're in one of those things, they really make you feel as if you're on the set. Even when something blows up in front of you. :p
The Aerosmith rollercoaster did it in for me though. I expressed severe hesitation at sitting that ride, and Sophia convinced me on the grounds that it won't be too gut-wrenching, seeing as that it was an indoor one. Wrongo. The thing spun in endless cartwheels and threw us this way and that, all to a blasting Aerosmith soundtrack in the background. At the end of it, I was literally crawling out of the car. Never again.
The Park mainly consists rides and stuff inspired by Disney films or cartoons, and we sat a whole bunch of them as well. Only thing is that maybe I'm too old? Some of the animatronics and puppets didn't really impress me all that much. A little fun, but not impressive, but it's definitely a place to bring the kids while they're young.
As old as we were, though, we still got quite a kick out of the rides, the whole gang even ending up on the merry-go-round, on different horses. :p As I said, the atmosphere of the place. Its air of childish innocence and fun is infectious. Even after that, we seemed to be on a roll, only ending when our train reached Montmarte and we had to face the prospect of packing up for the day ahead. Sigh. Oh well, there goes the Disney magic. For a while there, we were all young again, carefree, worry-free, and only concerned with fun. Now...
Now we're all on the plane towards Stockholm, where Greg will bring us around, and out of Paris, city of lovers. One day, maybe I'll come back here with my husband/lover/boyfriend. I think I'll enjoy the atmosphere much more then. *wink*
There're too many photos to share here. For the rest of the EuroDisney photos, go to the Photobucket album.
On the 20th, we visited Notre Dame early in the morning, and attended Mass. Yes, this unbelieving, paganistic person attended, 'cos it turns out that Jordan and Sophia were Catholics, and it was a Sunday, so 4 of out the party were baptised Catholics apparently. Sigh. The church was really old and grand ( Notre ) and the whole time I was there, the theme to "Bells of Notre Dame" from the Disney cartoon kept ringing in my head. Didn't really think to see if we could go up to the Belfry though. :p
The outside of Notre Dame
The entrance to the church, lined with engravings of saints.
Mass was ... interesting, considering the service was in French and the hymns were in Latin. Obviously, I didn't understand a word, besides the odd Latin word I managed to pick out. Stained glass windows were amazing. The interior of the church, though, was rather plain, different from my previous impressions of Catholic churches.
Inside Notre Dame, preparing for Mass.
Stained glass inside Notre Dame
The famous Rose Window of Notre Dame
Buy a candle for 2euros and put it here, with a prayer.
Listening to the Mass said in 2 foreign languages, one of which isn't spoken as a language on Earth anymore, made me realise just why it was so important to quit the old practice of saying Mass only in Latin, and translating the Bible to English. Such a simple translation literally put the Words of God into the hands of the people, and suddenly, religion became a whole lot more accessible and understandable to a lot of people. It was as if the Holy Spirit had gifted them with the power of tongues.
After that we went to the Louvre, walking along the River Seine.
View of the Seine
Only after walking along that stretch do you believe that Paris truly is the city of lovers. The Seine was so peaceful at that time of day, and the weather was so fine, cool enough to make you want to snuggle up with someone and walk along the river. *Sigh* And the surrounding shops the same 'quaint' architecture you see all over Paris. You can almost imagine someone playing the accordion, singing a mournful love song.
The glass pyramid of the Louvre.
Then we reached the Louvre. It's immense, consisting of 3 wings. Not surprisingly, considering that it used to be a palace before the Revolution. The only regretful thing is that the explanations of the exhibits are in French. Mon Dieu. So for the first few explorations, I could only walk by and admire the paintings, but that was about it. Later on, I found plaques ( in English ) with more information, but only about the artist. I managed to find several paintings that I recognised too, the most famous being the Mona Lisa.
The actual painting is actually rather small and unimposing in size, and if it were not for the fame surrounding the enigmatic smile, it would have certainly been forgotten amongst all the other grander paintings. As it is, though, that's history for you.
Even if you were not a student of art, or had no knowledge of art, some of the skill involved in the production of those paintings would astound you. Imagine painting something so full of colour and light that the subjects would seem to come alive after you turned your back to it. Imagine painting something that would be 2 storeys high, and longer in width. Imagine painting the face of God, his divine face full of love as you added each additional brushstroke.
That's how you start appreciating art.
As usual, I also got seperated from the group during my explorations, and it was while I was admiring some French paintings that this security guard approached me. He apologized for his poor English and asked me stuff like why was I in Paris, what part of the Louvre did I like, how long I would be staying in Paris. The thought struck me that oh god, he's trying to hit on me. Finally he said something about his shift being over soon and a cup of coffee, and I go, non, non. He got the message. Eek! Much as I like the idea of romance, it's not my intention in Paris to have a one night stand with a guy who's obviously much older than I am, and whom I've only just met! The irritating thing is that now Jordan has found it funny to keep calling me "hot chick" after I told the rest about the incident. Grr.
The Louvre took up pretty much most of the afternoon, 'cos it was so damn huge, and I didn't even get to explore all the wings. Oh well, got more out of it than the National Gallery at least.
After that, we made our way to dinner near Montmarte, at this pretty nice restaurant nearby. Then it was to Sacre Coeur. ( Sacred Heart )
This is a church that stood at the top of a hill overlooking Montmarte. ( God overlooking the sinners of Paris. Hm. ) To get there, we had to climb these bunch of stairs like crazy ( pant pant phew ) but the view of Paris at the top is gorgeous. The place apparently is a favourite hangout for youths, who like to sit or lounge at the white stairs leading up to the entrance of the church. We sat there for a time, enjoying the view, and it was a pity when we had to leave. Just sitting there, with the view of Paris spanning beneath you, really puts one at peace. Whether it was due to the influence of the Church or whatever, I don't know.
On the 21st was our visit to Eurodisney!! Admittedly, there is an air about the place that makes one feel like a child once more. Maybe it is the childish association of Mickey Mouse, or the childhood memories it evokes, or the thousands of delighted-to-insanity kids running around the place. No matter. The moment we stepped in, we seemed to have lost 10 years. Well, maybe just me and Wiki. She seemed like a happy little kid, running to all the shops, posing with the characters.
and so did I!
Sadly, none of the guys are fated to be King of England.
There are actually 2 parks in EuroDisney, the Park itself, and the Studios Park. At the Studios Park, the shows and exhibits mainly revolve around the Disney movies and the special effects used. One, on the tram ride we took, was particularly impressive. The scene was a mining camp, and then suddenly, there was a series of explosions at several spots. Then a flood of water came raging towards our tram! It was so realistic that Jordan, sitting nearest to the scene, instinctively put up his arms to cover himself. Whoa. ( And he had been saying, before the ride, that I'll be the one to get wet. Ha! )
We also went for a car chase show, where they demonstrated, with stunt actors and dummy cars, how car chases were filmed. Whoa whoa whoa. Don't mess with these jokers on the road is all I can say. They handled the cars like they were part of the car, so flawless was their steering. Absolut control, man.
Then there was the Armaggeddon set, where the bunch of us were trooped onto a replica of the spaceship sent to destroy the asteroid. When you're in one of those things, they really make you feel as if you're on the set. Even when something blows up in front of you. :p
The Aerosmith rollercoaster did it in for me though. I expressed severe hesitation at sitting that ride, and Sophia convinced me on the grounds that it won't be too gut-wrenching, seeing as that it was an indoor one. Wrongo. The thing spun in endless cartwheels and threw us this way and that, all to a blasting Aerosmith soundtrack in the background. At the end of it, I was literally crawling out of the car. Never again.
The Park mainly consists rides and stuff inspired by Disney films or cartoons, and we sat a whole bunch of them as well. Only thing is that maybe I'm too old? Some of the animatronics and puppets didn't really impress me all that much. A little fun, but not impressive, but it's definitely a place to bring the kids while they're young.
As old as we were, though, we still got quite a kick out of the rides, the whole gang even ending up on the merry-go-round, on different horses. :p As I said, the atmosphere of the place. Its air of childish innocence and fun is infectious. Even after that, we seemed to be on a roll, only ending when our train reached Montmarte and we had to face the prospect of packing up for the day ahead. Sigh. Oh well, there goes the Disney magic. For a while there, we were all young again, carefree, worry-free, and only concerned with fun. Now...
Now we're all on the plane towards Stockholm, where Greg will bring us around, and out of Paris, city of lovers. One day, maybe I'll come back here with my husband/lover/boyfriend. I think I'll enjoy the atmosphere much more then. *wink*
There're too many photos to share here. For the rest of the EuroDisney photos, go to the Photobucket album.
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