Day 23 The Catacombs and Opera Garnier
This morning we shared one last breakfast with some of our group members. I was very thankful for the elevator as my ankle was still extremely tender. We talked over plans for the remainder of our adventures and enjoyed a simple breakfast. One of the things I love most about this hotel, other than the stellar view from our room, was the breakfast.
After breakfast Mom walked down the road to see about our new hotel room just a block away. We had plans for the day involving a late tour of the Opera Garnier. Emily and Mom wanted to go check out the Catacombs of Paris as well. Upon her return mom reported that we could change rooms, so we went upstairs to gather our items before departing for this new hotel. We waved good-bye to Dimitri and to our other group mates who were down in the lobby for breakfast and took off down the block to our new hotel. We were very pleased with our new room. For this girl though it did have some issues. The room itself felt like an apartment in a way. There was a bed just inside the door upon entering. To access the rest of the room you had to walk up a steep staircase where you then had access to a sizable bathroom, and another bedroom. It was a very nice place. I settled myself in the upstairs bedroom along with mom. From here we had a large and beautiful window which we could see into the large bathroom window. It really was an incredible room with a big screen TV. The room also had AC! Beautiful! Although I do admit that I missed looking out the window to see the Eiffel Tower. I can only say that because I am so spoiled! Finally after a little while Emily and Mom headed out to go and check out the Catacombs of Paris while I stayed behind to rest up in preparation for our Opera tour later on today. |
Paris Catacombs - Written by MomEmily and Mom took the Metro to the Catacombs. We got a bit of a late start as we had to move Lori to our new hotel and get her settled for the day. Of course the new hotel had some seriously steep stairs to the room she would be staying in, with the mini refrigerator at the bottom of those steep stairs and the bathroom and bedroom at the top! We had pre purchased the tickets to the Catacombs so we decided to go ahead and use them!
The Catacombs are located at Place Denfert-Rochereau, which is a very picturesque area with a view of the lovely architecture known as Haussmannian buildings and the Lion of Belfort statue. The statue is a bronze reduction statue of the original which was designed by Frederick Bartholdi, sculptor of the Statue of Liberty. The lion symbolizes the heroic French resistance during the Siege of Belfort where the French managed to protect the city against a Prussian siege whilst being seriously outnumbered. After departing the metro, we crossed the street and spotted a long line wrapped around a small black building which looked very unassuming. We have since learned that the ideal time to go to the Catacombs is prior to their opening ( by about an hour) or close to 3 pm. When we got there, the line stretched impressively around a gated park. We rushed to take our place in line and... waited. And waited. And waited some more! We were in line 2 1/2 hours before we finally got to the black entry building. By this time, Mom really had to use the bathroom and assumed there was one inside the building. Nope! The entry person pointed in the direction of a bathroom that was across 2 streets so Mom darted over to use it while Emily stood to the side to wait some more. The public toilet was something Mom had never before seen. After each person used it, the entire bathroom was sanitized before the next person was allowed to enter! A French woman tried to explain this process to Mom who understood very little French and just nodded! Back to the catacombs and we were finally allowed to enter! There are initially 130 steep stairs while you descend into the underground caverns which house the remains of six million Parisians. The Catacombs were the solution of what to do way back in the 1700's with seriously overcrowded cemeteries. The limestone mines under the city already existed as the materials were extracted to build Paris back in the early 1300's. Cemeteries around the city were filled to capacity and had to be closed due to risks in human health. In 1785, the process began to transfer the remains subterraneously in black cloth covered wagons and deposit them in the now famous mausoleum. At first, the remains were deposited pell mell, but Louis-Etienne Hericart de Thury, envisioned a place where people could visit and remember the deceased and arranged for the remains to be artfully arranged in areas we can now see. Upon entering the Catacombs, one walks under a plaque that reads "Arrête, c'est ici l'empire de la mort" [Halt, this is the realm of Death ] adds a bit of a chill to the experience. While now being used as a tourist attraction, in years past, the tunnels were used by the French resistance as well as the Nazis during their occupation of the city in WW2. Only 200 people at a time are allowed underground, so it doesn't feel rushed or crowded in the catacombs. We were able to walk through at a casual pace and see all of the displays opened to the public. At the end, you ascend back up to street level and Emily visited a fun little gift shop. They do check your backpack or purse presumably for any "souvenirs" you might have gleaned from the depths of the tomb. We slowly walked back to the metro and took it back to our hotel to see how Lori was faring. |
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Opera Garnier After Hours Tour
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Despite my injury yesterday I was not going to miss this experience! The Opera Garnier has been a fascination of mine since the first time I saw Phantom of the Opera. When I found out that I was going to have the opportunity to go to Paris this was one of my must see places. Additionally Mom did some extra research and found an after hour tour of the Opera where we could see the grand building without the typical crowds that one might find in the Opera House.
I could feel my excitement mounting as we ( including Mom and Emily who had returned from the Catacombs) came up from the Metro and got our first view of the Opera house. Our first stop was the gift shop around the back of the museum. From here we continued around the monument to the side entrance. It was lovely. The outside of the building was glorious, but the inside held so much more. Once we went through the security line and checked in we waited with some others in the Season-ticket holders' rotunda, a room which is located in the bottom of the opera house. Historically this was the room used as the main entrance into the Opera. This circular room allowed season-ticket holders to enter from the east and heads of state to enter on the west. The room was designed to give the illusion of several caves converging in this circular location. This room is located directly beneath the auditorium. The beautiful mosaics covering the floor were created by two Italian artists living in Paris at the time - Cristofoli and Mazzioli who made all of the mosaic floors within the Palais Garnier. Few items remain in this room which was used until the Second World War. The remaining artifacts in the room are the Sevres vases which were designed by Garnier and can be seen in four side niches around the room. In this room we also observed a decorative piece in the ceiling which we later found out was Charles Garnier's signature etched into the ceiling. We waited for a little while, admiring the decoration and fine detail of the floor and ceiling, before our tour guides arrived and divided us into different groups for the tour. |
They try and stagger each tour group to provide that "after hours/have the place to myself" atmosphere. There were about 20 people in our group as we moved into the Grand Staircase (Grand Escalier) to begin the tour. Our first view was of the Bassin de la Pythie by Marcello, translated to the Basin of the Witch. Pythie being an oracle of the Temple of Apollo who is the Greek God of music, poetry, medicine and the civilized arts. He was also known as the Sun God. This bronze statue is fitting as it embodies an Indian version of Pythie, a gypsy of sorts which comes alive with power and strength and shows the forbidden passion of the knowing woman and is an allegory of the hidden side of the opera. Garnier also designed the bronze candelabras seen to either side of the central statue. The basin was empty during our visit, but I imagine it is quite a spectacle when it is full and the lights of the candles dance gleefully upon its surface.
Around the corner we encountered the beginning of the Grand Staircase, opening up to the 98.5 foot high vault, and extraordinary and colorful ceiling with a painting by Isidore Pils's - The Triumph of Apollo. Looking up from this very bottom level up to the high ceiling was Garnier's favorite vantage point of the Grand Staircase. As you will see Garnier had quite an incredible vision in mind for this glorious building. The details he expected one to see in his wonderland are so numerous that it is hard to truly take in each little detail. The marble columns, for example, consist of various types of marble in colors of red, green, and white, all speckled with various other colors in between. The Grand Staircase itself was designed to look like a theater with balconies positioned off the the different floors. This allowed visitors a place to stand and enjoy the majesty of this main stairway. |
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The grand foyer was an absolutely incredible room whose beauty was inspired by the Hall of Mirrors of Versailles per our guide. The ceilings and ceiling panels were decorated by Paul Baudry. I was personally filled with awe upon entering this room. The decorations in the hallway were just fabulous. There were busts positioned near the windows of Charles Garnier. He also had the artist of the room work his face into the paintings above. There is also speculation that other faces found in the paintings across the room depict other great faces/names throughout history.
This room was meant for people to go and talk during intermission and prior to the performances. The hallway is separated into the west and the east. At both ends of the hall there is a Sevres vase (measuring at 6.5 feet high) by Joseph Cheret. The Moon Lounge (West) and The Sun Lounge (East) are located on either end of the grand foyer and are used as an entry into the long hallway. These rooms were used both as smoking rooms and the Sun Lounge was used for entry into the Galerie du Glacier. |
Our final stop of the night was the historic Box 5 saved as the box for the infamous Phantom of the Opera. From the other side of the door we could hear the vague sounds of an ongoing play practice taking place. Due to it being a dress rehearsal we were unable to go inside and see the auditorium. Bummer! Our group stood outside the room, listening to the inner sounds echoing through the auditorium and contemplating the excitement of standing outside of Box 5. When I visited London, UK in 2011 I had the amazing opportunity to see the Phantom of the Opera. I closed my eyes and went back to that moment. How exciting.
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Soon we were retracing our steps, walking back down the steps of the Grand Staircase, taking in the beauty and solitude of this beautiful creation! They led us around to the souvenir shop, and like that this long awaited tour was at an end. I was so thankful to have this beautiful opportunity to walk the halls of the Opera Garnier. I think that it was beneficial to have an after hours tour of the building as I can only imagine what crowds are attracted during the day.