Isn't that steel-gray sky beautiful?1. They hold a contest.
2. The winner gets to build the building.
3. The Parisians hate it.
It's apparently the inevitable course of events for any new building in Paris. Such is the story of the big glass pyramid in the picture above.
Originally the Louvre was three separate galleries, and at some point in the last few years, a contest was held to create an grand entrance for the museum. The glass pyramid is completely out of place, but it was a pretty killer entrance.
So if you've never been to the Louvre, let me preface this all by saying that the place is huge. No, "huge" is a bit of an understatement. No, we use a specially created word to describe things the size of this place... ginormous. Yes, ginormous. I was in the Louvre for easily 3 hours, probably 4, and I didn't see it all. I even fast-walked past huge chunks of the museum, only taking cursory glances at the art as I walked by.
I wish I knew what I was looking at. I never was much for visual art, but the splendor of this place can not be denied. This is the art gallery to end all art galleries. That reminds me, if you're ever in the Louvre... look up. The ceilings in this place are unbelievable. I probably took just as many pictures straight up as a did facing forward. The entire building is an impressive work of art.
It cost 9 Euro to get in, and the ticket is good all day. You can leave and come back to your heart's content.
While I was in the Louvre, a strange thought occurred to me. My family has never been one to travel, but about 15 years ago, they actually managed to get out of the country together for a few days. Dad was on a cruise, and mom flew over to Paris to spend a week (or was it two?) with him. They visited the Louvre (before the pyramid was created) as well. It was neat to realize that I got to walk around in the same places my parents had from years before, thousands of miles away from home.
So when in Paris, visit the Louvre. Of course it's cliche, but even if you're not an art lover, you can't help but appreciate the magnificence of the place.
BTW, the Louvre contains the crown jewels of Louis XV, which was the 2nd set of crown jewels I've been able to see on this trip. (Scotland was the other one)
2 comments:
Them's my jewels!
Looking at those makes me think how sad it is that now a'days instead of creating something AMAZING to behold, people take their wealth and just invest it. Almost gone are the days when increadible wealth meant you could build a monument to whatever in your life you thought beautiful or might happen to worship! Unless of course you visit Dubai.
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