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A Labyrinth of Art in the Louvre
Visiting Louvre Museum in Paris has become a clichÃ© for anyone travelling to Paris. Hence, I’m barely surprised by the lines at its entrances when we were there. Since this is one of the worldâ€™s largest museums. One could spend one whole day here but barely scratches the surface. What we are talking here is a massive area of over 650,000 square feet displaying tons of art pieces! The whole place is like a labyrinth which I see it as the ultimate place for a game of hide-and-seek LOL.
Of course, not everyone is arty-farty kind, yours truthfully included. Spending a bulk of travel time in a museum does not add up for me. But if you only want to visit one museum in Europe, let it be Louvre Museum.
Even knowing that the place is gonna be huge, Iâ€™m still found myself overwhelmed by the vast area of the museum and itâ€™s tricky to move around with the given Louvre map. The 3 wings which form a U-shape are Denon, Sully, and Richelie. Plus the different floors in each wing complicate things a bit further. And is it humanly possible to completely cover all the exhibits? I wonder.
Like everybody else, one of the main objectives to visit Louvre was to catch a glimpse of Mona Lisa. The masterpiece of Leonardo da Vinci is up right there among the famous paintings in the Louvre. So we started with the Denon exhibition wing and was greeted by the famous Greek god Nike aka Winged Victory of Samothrace at these stairs.
Upon reaching Mona Lisa, there were a massive amount of people trying to get a close-up shot or selfies with her.
Though my visit was more of a blitz, I am totally amazed by the sheer size of the museum and its priceless art collections. Can’t say I like them all since Art preference is very subjective. But here are some paintings which kinda stood out for me.
And of course, some of the sculptures…
My favourite place of them all is the exquisitely decorated Napoleon III Apartments at Richelieu exhibition wing. And I find it as opulent as the Chateau of Versailles, but maybe on a smaller scale.
Entering via Carrousel du Louvre
Most people will seek to enter via the Louvre Pyramid main entrance, which is why the queue is always the longest there. If you are visiting Louvre via the Metro, alight at Palais Royal – MusÃ©e du Louvre. Which you will see the underground shopping mall – Carrousel du Louvre. The mall is directly linked to the Louvre, so just follow the signage until you see La Pyramide InversÃ©e aka the inverted pyramid. The queues here are usually shorter compared to the one at the main entrance.
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What are your thoughts about Louvre? Leave a comment and share it with me.
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January 10, 2015
Grandeur of Chateau de Versailles and Eiffel Tower
Visiting the awe-inspiring Chateau de Versailles is often cited as one must-do day trip in the travel guide to France. The massive palace and gardens built by King Louis XIV have been the symbol and benchmark for another palace. The supremo of grandeur and extravagance where the French royals once stayed have marvelled visitors for the longest time. Getting to the palace is straightforward too, so do not miss out a Versailles tour when you are in Paris.
We took a 30 min train ride on RER C line from Paris to Versailles Rive Gauche. Itâ€™s easy to make your way to the palace from the train station. Just follow the crowd if clueless – the bulk of people who disembark are heading to Chateau de Versailles anyway.
Spending a day at Chateau de Versailles
First of all, we were greeted by the imposing royal gate which stands at the entrance. And like all popular Paris attractions, what awaits us next was a snaking queue under the hot afternoon sunâ€¦ It took almost an hour for us to pass through the security check. Hence, itâ€™s best to buy your Versailles tickets in advance too, so you donâ€™t have to waste more time queuing in the ticket line.
The whole of Chateau de Versailles is tastefully furnished. Gold accent, marbled walls, giant chandeliers, decadent stuff, exquisite paintings, and sculptures. The attention to details had turned Chateau de Versailles interior into one stunning and awe-inspiring place. And I can still vividly recall how amazed we were. God knows how much fortunes were spent in building this lavish palace.
King Louis-Philippe has decided to turn Chateau de Versailles into a museum in 1833. So common folks like us can finally have a glimpse of the French royal familyâ€™s privileged life.
This is the chapel where the royal family attended mass.
There are just so much to see inside, the stunning artworks on the ceiling alone can cause severe stiff neck.
And not forgetting the countless paintings and sculptures seen everywhere in the palace.
Hereâ€™s the Queen’s chamber decked out in nice floral patterns with gold accents. This room is also where royal births took placeâ€¦in public view! According to the written explanation – this is to ensure that the royal heir is legitimateâ€¦OMG.
And probably the most well-known place in Chateau de Versailles will be the Hall of Mirrors. The stunning hall which witnessed the signing of Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I is oh-so-beautiful! If only I can ditch the crowd.
Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower must be one of the first things that come to mind when anyone mentions about Paris. Hence, I have no doubt it would be on any Europe first-timersâ€™ wish list – mine included. Since 1889, the metallic tower stood proudly on Champ de Mars which is along Seine River. It is visible from most parts of the streets and looks amazingly beautiful in the day and night, be it near or far.
The proud creation of Gustave Eiffel
Known by the French as La Tour Eiffel, named after Gustave Eiffel, the engineer who designed and built it. Monsieur Gustave would probably be overjoyed to know that his creation has remained popular a century later. In addition to being one of the most recognized landmarks in the world. And Iâ€™m bewildered about the fact which the Eiffel Tower was supposed to be built in Barcelona until the design proposal was turned down. Wow, just imagine Eiffel Tower in Barcelonaâ€¦hmm.
The construction in Paris was no bed of roses either. And Parisians had strongly protested against the idea initially. Thank goodness it was built else it’s almost impossible to picture France without their Iron Lady.
We didnâ€™t ascend to the top as it was overly crowdedâ€¦bad planning. But still, we were both gratified to see Eiffel Tower up close. These photos were taken when we spent about an hour walking around the grounds.
We then make our way across Seine River to the Gardens of the TrocadÃ©ro where Chaillot Palace is located, which is yet another good place to view the tower.
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What are your thoughts about Versailles and Eiffel Tower? Leave a comment and share it with me.
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December 27, 2014