Saint Denis Basilica

Apparently, 1800 years ago, the Bishop of Paris was a guy called Denis. One day, he was beheaded, after which he proceeded to pick up his head and carry it for a full 10 kilometers (which is 6 miles, to all you Americans)... preaching a sermon the whole way. Now that is someone who just can't stop talking!

Anyway, the church of Saint Denis was built over his grave and eventually the Abbey and Basilica were built on the same spot. The basilica happens to be featured in Pillars of the Earth (a MUST read, by the way), making it especially fun for us to visit. In our firm resolution to take better advantage of living in Paris, we decided the now-Paris-suburb of Saint Denis deserved a drop in.

Though not as well preserved as Notre Dame, Saint Denis' gothic architecture is nonetheless awe-inspiring:

The facade was decorated in sculptures and reliefs:

It possessed the necessary flying buttresses to allow for more windows and light inside:

And it also sported breathtaking rose windows:

The exterior revealed the grime of centuries in an industrial neighborhood:

But the interior was beautiful, light, colorful, and airy:

In a side chapel was a royal crown and robe, appropriate here because Saint Denis Basilica was the coronation and burial place of France's royalty for centuries:

We visited the crypt, where Chris barely fit and we saw the tombs of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI (the ones beheaded during the Revolution):

We also visited the enter-only-if-you-pay section that housed the tombs of most of France's royalty:

A common occurrence for some of the grand tombs was a praying, robust figure of the king and queen on top, with a naked, grotesque figure lying on the actual tomb... Strange contrast:

Especially interesting was the tomb of Clovis I (465-511), the first king to unite the Franks:

In retrospect, I can't believe we didn't go sooner... It was fabulous.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Chateau de Vincennes

Chateau de Vincennes, a former fort and royal residence in what is now simply of suburb of Paris, is definitely one of the less-visited sights in the greater Paris area. But I'm so glad that Oliver and I made the trip to the end of the line 1 metro to see it...

The gate tower (complete with drawbridge!) welcomes you into the grounds:

Which house, among other things, a gorgeous 14th century Saint Chapelle (modeled after the one built by Louis IX in Paris):

The interior had been renovated and was wonderfully light:

Some of the other buildings within the walls are home to offices of the ministries of Culture and Defense:

At the heart of the compound is the donjon (old castle keep) dating to the 12th century:

With a formidable entrance:

And medieval towered walls:

It offered beautiful views of the other parts of the chateau's grounds:

Since the keep, formerly a palace, was most recently used as a prison, there were interesting remnants of those days, including paintings on the walls done by prisoners:

And some serious doors:

Overall, a well-spent afternoon on the edge of the city:

Project 52: Week 6

The theme for this week was Words. I chose to highlight three words at the heart of the French nation:

Liberty. Equality. Brotherhood.

Stop 4: Pompei

Our last day in Italy involved a step back centuries in time to the Roman life of togas, idol worship, and... a volcano. I've heard about Pompei for years (it's a hot topic of conversation when you take Latin from 5th to 11th grade), but nothing prepared me for the size of the preserved town or the vast array of real-life details to be seen there.

To make it all even better, it was practically empty. Rhys kindly drove us there our last morning and even acted as tour guide (while willingly carrying Oliver's diaper bag for me - could I ask for anything better!?!?), since he had been this past summer - it was perfect.

The views of the empty town stretching in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius were simply breathtaking:

I could picture carts and people trudging down the narrow streets (complete with better sidewalks than Rome, I might add):

Oliver was a good sport, too:

And seemed to enjoy exploring with me:

We saw an old bakery (which we Parisians had to visit, of course), complete with flour mills:

And a pizza-style oven:

The Roman-style fast-food joints were all over town - counters complete with bowls to hold the prepared food:

Chris was especially thrilled to find the famous Cave Canem (Beware the Dog) mosaic (yes, he also took Latin in high school...):

The baths had some beautiful carvings on the ceiling:

And we finally came across a few other tourists when we made it to the area near the main forum:

Although the forum area was the most dilapidated, I also found it to be the most beautiful:

The Temple of Jupiter with the now-cratered top of Mount Vesuvius (apparently the same eruption that covered Pompei in ash blew off the top that used to connect the two peaks) in the background says it all:

A civilization that, in many ways, fathered our own now lies in ruins... but its effects live on. Our trip to Italy was both thrilling and sobering: beautiful history, architecture, and art, but much of it crumbling with time - a reminder of the temporal nature of even the greatest things.