I failed on the picture taking on day two. I must have been really tired from the 2 previous days of non-stop travel. I know we were all feeling it as we got up in the morning. We were having fun, but would need a vacation after our vacation!
First stop (after my chocolate and plain croissants along with whatever else I ate for breakfast) was St Chapelle. I don’t remember why this church was important historically, but it turned out to be my favorite church of the entire trip. It’s located on the island in the middle of the Seine, a few blocks from Notre Dame. It is known for its beautiful stained glass windows.
Inside is a small chapel-like space, but it is breathtaking when lit by the glow from the windows. It turns out that this is where the commoners used to worship, though it seemed far from common to me.
Until I headed up the narrow spiral staircase to the second floor and saw these:
Floor to ceiling, fit for royalty.
If you zoom in, the squares are all different scenes — I’m not sure if they’re just from the Bible, or also from history. Just looked it up (thanks Google!) It depicts over 1,100 biblical scenes. St. Chapelle
This is the famous “Rose window” which depicts the apocalypse as told in the book of Revelation. I would love to peek at it up close!
Unfortunately for us, one side of the upstairs was under refurbishment so we couldn’t get the full effect from all the windows, but that’s just one more reason to return. The benefit of visiting in winter is cheaper prices and less crowds, but the flip side is having to view the sites in less than perfect form. I think it’s worth it to come in winter.
Next we walked a few blocks to Notre Dame. It was supposed to rain all day today, but we didn’t get even a drop.
We arrived right at noon in time to hear the beautiful bells and witness the noon mass.
(super short clip. I didn’t want to be one of those people, standing there with my phone videoing the entire thing.)
Here you go! Someone else spent 10 minutes videoing it so I didn’t have to.
I didn’t take any photos in the church because they were having a service, but there is a separate treasury room that houses some of the more ornate church relics and I took a few photos there.
A wide variety of bejewled communion cups — this one was the plainest of them all.
I think Harrison Ford is looking for this . . .
Windows from the front of the church. Pretty, but I had already been spoiled by St. Chapelle
We went outside to wait in line to go up to see the gargoyles, but they only let a few people up at a time and it was going to take an hour or longer to get to the front of the line, so we took a few photos and abandoned the idea.
It’s interesting that they are decorative, but also act as downspouts/gutters for rain. I bet it looks like they are vomiting off the side of the building during downpours. I saw one that was “drooling,” but that’s it.
After that we spent way too much time trying to find the Conciergerie, the famous prison where Marie Antoinette was imprisoned and beheaded. It was right next to St. Chapelle, but we walked by it several times before noticing the signs. We were too distracted by various “naughty Paris” postcard and poster displays right on the street. Coming from a place where some women won’t even show their faces, it’s crazy to see nude behinds on display without a second thought.
It turns out the Conciergerie is more of a “this is what it was like at the time” kind of place with simulated prison cell displays, a chapel that is on the spot where Marie Antoinette’s prison cell might have been and no guillotines. Not very exciting. I was also dragging by then as it was well past lunch, so that could have been part of my unenthusiasm for it.
I was very enthusiastic about our cooking class that evening, but that will have to wait for a post of its own.