by Anne Harrison

I lay in bed, staring at the flood-lit towers of Notre Dame through my sky-light. Founded by Saint Landry in 651 AD, the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu was the first hospital in Paris, and still cares for ill Parisians. The ghosts of some 1300 years of medical history glide along its marble corridors, whispering in consultation outside the wards, then pass into the old-fashioned lifts to visit the fourteen quiet hotel rooms hidden on the sixth floor.

Early drawings of the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu show a main hall divided by pillars into three aisles, with four rows of beds per aisle. Like many medieval hospitals, the Hospitel catered for the poor, offering food and shelter in addition to basic medical care. (With wolves attacking Paris well into the 1400’s, this proved a vital social role.) By 1515 the Hospitel spanned both sides of the Seine, and Francis I built the Pont au Double to allow the transport of patients across the river, its name coming from the double denier toll used to pay for its construction.

AMBROISE PARÉ (1510 – 20/12/1590)

Ambroise Paré rose to eminence as the King’s surgeon, serving four kings: Henri II, Francis II, Charles IX and Henri III. Noted for his humility, Paré once remarked “Je le pansai, Dieu le guérit,” (I bandaged him, God healed him). Paré saw knowledge of anatomy and dissection as essential for surgery, and created the Confraternity of Saints Cosmos and Damian, distinct from the Confraternity of Barber Surgeons who were not true doctors, for they did not understand Latin.

This era in French History was marked by both civil and religious war, including the Bartholomew Day’s Massacre of August 2nd, 1572. (The signal for the slaughter of the Heugonauts to begin was the ringing of the bells of St-Germain-l’Auxerrois matins.) As a consequence of personal experience, Paré wrote widely on the management of trauma. His 1545 Method of Treating Wounds describes how, lacking boiling oil to put on amputated limbs, he instead used a mixture containing rose oil (which contains the mild disinfectant phenol). To his surprise, this mixture gave his patients a better recovery. Paré also promoted the ligature of blood vessels during amputation to minimize haemorrhage.

BICHAT (14/11/1771 – 22/7/1802)

Despite refusing to use a microscope, Marie François Xavier Bichat is remembered as the father of modern histology and pathology. An anatomist and physiologist, he initially worked in Lyon. During the Revolution, however, Bichat fled to Paris, where he accepted an appointment at the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu in 1793.

At this time, the Hospitel employed the then large number of eight physicians and one hundred surgeons. Often housing more than 3500 patients, with up to six patients per bed, it gained the reputation of the most unhealthy and unhygienic hospital in France.

Political instability continued, with the memory of the French Revolution, followed by the execution of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, haunting the country. (Louis XVI’s diary entry for July 14th, 1789, says much with its brevity: Rien – nothing). During Bichat’s appointment, Napoleon was promoted to general, then married the creole Josephine in 1796. (Apparently reluctant, Josephine was encouraged in the match by her current lover). Two days later Napoleon marched off to conquer Italy.

Bichat lies buried at Père Lachaise Cemetery. Once a poor district haunted by outlaws, La Cité des Morts now boasts to being the world’s most visited cemetery. Amongst the 300,000 people buried here are Abélard and Héloîse, Proust, Bizet and Jim Morrison.

DUPYTREN (5/10/1777 – 8/2/1835)

Guillaume Dupytren became assistant surgeon at the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu in 1803, Professor in 1811, then Chair of Clinical Surgery and Head Surgeon in 1816. He also established a benevolent institution for distressed physicians.

His appointments coincided with the Napoleon’s First Republic. Even those few parts of Europe Napoleon failed to conquer were influenced by Neoclassicism, and the high-waisted Empire Fashion. Then came the reactionary Congress of Vienna in 1815, establishing a balance of power which somehow lasted until 1914. Yet the ideas of liberalism, equality, nationalism and democracy could not be quenched, as witnessed by the insurrections of 1830 and again in 1848, when barricades and rioting blocked the streets of Paris.

DIEULAFOY (1870s)

Best known for his treatise on appendicitis, Dieulafoy’s triad – hyperesthesia of the skin, exquisite tenderness and guarding over McBurney’s point – is still memorised by medical students. At this time cholera outbreaks regularly swept through the overcrowded city. Partly for hygiene, but also to develop broad avenues allowing rapid troop movement (and to prevent rioters barricading narrow streets), Baron Haussmann began redesigning Paris. The slums surrounding the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu on the Ile de la Cité, so vividly described in Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, were levelled in 1864, and the present building begun in 1877.

To combat both disease and revolution, the Parisian sewers were modernized, and opened for public tours in 1867. Society ladies could be seen floating by in luxury sluice carts, steered by white-clad sewer men.

HARTMANN (1860-1952)

Hartmann’s appointment to the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu proved eponymous: Hartmann’s procedure, Hartmann’s pouch, Hartmann’s critical point, Hartmann’s forceps, to name a few.

In 1874, a group of artists (including Monet, Degas and Pissaro) organised an exhibition in Paris, and Impressionism was born. Baron Haussman continued to beautify Paris, and in 1889, Eiffel built his temporary tower. The Dreyfus Affair of 1894 divided the country, leading to the rise of the Left and the separation of Church and State. (Consequently, the Augustine nuns left the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu in 1908, where their order had tended the sick for centuries). This Golden Age of The Third Republic – La Belle Epoch – ended only with the First World War.

TODAY

The Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu remains a working hospital, with a special interest in ophthalmology and dermatology. It is also a perfect place to stay in the true heart of Paris, where the celtic Parisii founded a fishing village on a small island in the Seine over 2,000 years ago.

If You Go:

♦ Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu website
♦ Parisian visitors Bureau
♦ An institution not to be missed: shakespeareandcompany.com
♦ Time Out: a guide to all things Parisian

Ghosts of Paris: Private Evening Mystery Tour

About the author:
Anne Harrison lives with her husband, two children and numerous pets on the Central Coast, NSW. Her jobs include wife, mother, doctor, farmer and local witch doctor – covering anything from delivering alpacas to treating kids who have fallen head first into the washing machine. Her fiction has been published in Australian literary magazines, and has been placed in regional literary competitions. Her non-fiction has been published in medical and travel journals. Her ambition is to be 80 and happy. Her writings are available at anneharrison.com.au & anneharrison.hubpages.com

All photos are by Anne Harrison:
The towers of Notre-Dame
A typical Parisian market
The Arc de Triomphe, Symbol of Napoleon’s achievements
The inner courtyard of the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu
Eiffel’s temporary tower

by Elizabeth von Pier 

All my life I have traveled with someone. First it was my husband, then after he died, various friends and family. So this was my first solo trip (at the age of sixty-something!). I was meeting family in Italy afterward so somehow that future connection made me feel more comfortable going alone to Paris. Also, I know the city fairly well. So, I rented an apartment for two weeks in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the centrally located St. Germaine des Pres quartier, and set out for the adventure of a lifetime.

I found I enjoyed traveling alone because I could do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. But dining out was a problem for me because I don’t like to eat out alone. So, for the most part, my dinners were an assortment of take-out foods I got at various stalls and epiceries and I ate by the window of my apartment, watching the Parisian world go by.

My “home” in Paris was a third floor flat overlooking an upscale boulevard. Across the street were two popular and competing cafes, the Cafe de Flore and Les Deux Magots. One morning I watched them set up their tables and chairs getting ready to open for business as the homeless family who spent the night six feet away folded up their blankets, packed their belongings into a cart, cleaned up the debris, and set off down the street.

I typically started my day power-walking in Luxembourg Gardens [TOP PHOTO]. The flowers were still beautiful, even in October. I admired the statues of kings, queens, gods, goddesses, and cherubs holding urns filled with flowers. People picnic on the grass and lovers kiss. One couple was kissing my first time around the park, and was still at it my second time around. Sundays are the biggest day when everything steps up a notch. There are hundreds of joggers doing their laps, groups of people are practicing tai-chi, ponies are lined up waiting to take little ones for a ride, teens are rehearsing dance steps, families are waiting in line to get into the marionette show, children are at the edge of the pond sailing their toy boats, and bands are playing Israeli and other dance music. The big fountain at the southern end is turned on, with its ferocious-looking fish, turtles, horses and goddesses. I left smiling ear-to-ear.

I would pass the Eglise Saint Sulpice, known as the “Notre Dame of the left bank”, on my way to Luxembourg Gardens. Usually there were beggars near the door, holding out weather-worn hands for a few euros. Inside the church are beautiful Delacroix frescoes and outside in the piazza is an elaborate fountain. Little pre-schoolers played at the edge of the fountain laughing and squealing in French. As I walked by, I often heard the bells tolling, calling the faithful to services, a glorious sound to my ears.

On occasion, I got mistaken for a local as I pointed some lost tourists in the right direction. But on one of those days, my ego was quickly deflated when a group of art students doing a project on “integration” asked for a photo of me dancing with one of the male students (“integration” of the old and the young, I presume).

I took some time each day to visit one or two of the many attractions of this city. There are way too many to describe, but there were some that especially interested me. I flaneured (strolled) to the lovely Place des Vosges and the Musee Carnavalet, one of the mansion-museums owned by the City of Paris that are free to the public. I shopped at the bookstalls on the Seine and came upon an outdoor exhibit of avant-garde photography. Now I’m wondering if that photo of me dancing with the young student might someday show up in a public venue like this! And of course I walked the Champs d’Elysees, stopping in several car showrooms to see their prototypes and custom one-of-kind models.

It rained one night while I was reading in bed. It was a heavy downpour so I went to a window overlooking the boulevard and everything seemed to be shimmering. The shop windows displaying high fashion were all lit up and reflected in the wide wet sidewalks. And the raindrops looked like sparkling gold in the yellow street lights.

The Musee l’Orangerie has some beautiful works by Monet, including his water lilies. The canvases are magnificent, each 50 to 60 feet long and are mounted right onto the walls. The four paintings capture Monet’s garden in various light. The student quarter is an enjoyable area to wander and get lost in. Rue Mouffetard, one of Paris’ famous market streets with dozens of delightful specialty food shops, is in this area. Nearby is the Grand Mosque de Paris, awe-inspiring and tranquil with tiled arcades, a minaret and an interior patio garden modeled after the Alhambra in Spain.

One Saturday evening there was a free organ recital at Notre Dame. Being in that mammoth cathedral at night with its colossal stone pillars, dark side altars and images of the hunchback and the gargoyles up above was haunting. So was the music. I came back to the flat to see the homeless family across the street return to their usual spot. Later, feeling guilty with a full belly and looking down at them from my lovely, warm and comfortable apartment, I got dressed and went out to give the mother some euros. It was even worse than I thought. There were three sweet little cherubs all under four years old sprawled out, mouths open, sound asleep and snuggling next to her warm body.

There is a fabulous view from the open-air roof terrace of the Tour Montparnasse, a 59-story modern skyscraper and one of the most hated buildings in Paris. And you avoid the long lines at the Eiffel Tower. I strolled there leisurely and revisited some places I especially loved in the past–the Palais-Royal, a former palace that now houses lovely shops and cafes, Galerie Vivienne, one of Paris’s 19th century covered arcades; and the fabulous Opera House where I sat on the steps and listened to a street performer playing a violin.

I highly recommend going across the river to the Jewish quarter where there is a small take-out joint on rue des Rosiers that makes THE BEST felafel wraps loaded with veggies and sauce. You can’t miss it because there’s always a long line at the take-out counter on the street. Order your wrap and enjoy every morsel as you sit on the curb or lean against the building like everyone else.

One morning, I decided to check out the City Pharmacy close to my flat. French pharmacies are found on every block and identified by a neon green cross. They are both weird and delightful places where you can fill a prescription, but you can’t buy tampons or help yourself to Tylenol; it must be fetched for you by an official Pharmacist in a lab coat. And the walls are covered with shelves and shelves of skincare products, all claiming to re-hydrate, plump and re-rejuvenate. In every narrow aisle, there are at least two “assistants” to point out your flaws and help you spend your euros.

After listening to too much sales talk and feeling even worse than when I first went into the pharmacy, I went to lift my spirits at my favorite and, I think, the most beautiful bridge in Paris, the bronze lamp-lined Pont Alexandre III. Its elaborate decorations include Art Nouveau lamps, cherubs, nymphs, and, at either end, gold winged horses valiantly prancing atop large cement pillars.

The metro is the best way to get to Montmartre but keep in mind that you have to climb 180 steps to get out from underground. This area attracts bohemians and artists (and tourists) and is very charming with its steep hills and narrow cobbled streets. At the top is Sacred Coeur, a basilica that looks like a big cream puff. On weekends, wine flows, scrumptious foods are available, musicians play, people dance, street artists draw, and the shops do a booming business.

I have found the Parisians to be very polite, friendly and helpful. Whenever I needed help, I said “Bonjour, Madame/Monsieur. Parlez-vous Anglais?” And they always answered “just a leetle beet.” Then we proceeded en Anglais.

So my vacation at an end, I wrapped things up, packed my suitcase, and said a fond farewell to the nymphs in Luxembourg Gardens and the gargoyles on Eglise St. Sulpice. I thought about the homeless family who sleeps across the street and said a silent prayer for them as the bells of Eglise St. Germaine tolled.

Literary Paris: Private Book Lovers’ Tour

If You Go:

contact@apariscommechezsoi.com for apartment rental at 1 rue du Dragon, Paris.
La Coupole, 102 Boulevard du Montparnasse, 75014 Paris, France, tel. 33 1 43 20 14 20.

Ghosts of Paris: Private Evening Mystery Tour

About the author:
Elizabeth von Pier is a retired banker who has travelled extensively around the world. She typically travels with other women and brings that perspective to her writings. This, however, was her first solo trip. Ms. von Pier lives in Hingham, Massachusetts and has been published in TravelMag.co.uk and Journey Woman.

Photo credits:
Luxembourg Gardens by Jebulon / Public domain
Eglise Saint Sulpice by Mbzt / CC BY-SA
Notre Dame by Madhurantakam / CC BY-SA
Paris Metro station by DIMSFIKAS / CC BY-SA

Paris, France

by Anne Harrison

Where else to begin exploring Paris, but where the city began? Walking through the Île de la Cité covers some 4000 years of civilisation, from when the first Gauls settled here to those living statues who now pose outside Notre-Dame for tourists.

Paris began her life on a boat-shaped island in the middle of the Seine. The city’s coat of arms proudly displays a boat tossed by the waves, above the motto fluctuat nec mergitu: she is tossed by the waves but does not sink. By the 3rd century BCE, the Parisii tribe had established a fortified settlement on what was to become the Île de la Cité, although other Celtic tribes had lived here from at least 2000 BCE. (Canoes dating back to almost 4000 BCE have been found on the banks the Seine.)

The Parisii chose well: a temperate valley of fertile lands, with a river not only full of fish but perfect for trading from the Adriatic to the Mediterranean. Beneath the surrounding hills lay stores of lime and gypsum – now known as plaster of Paris – later used to build La Ville Lumičre. So strategic a site, in fact, Julius Caesar invaded in 52 BCE, establishing a major Roman town – Lutetia (Lutčce) – which flourished until the Barbarian invasions.

Le Crypte du Parvis de Notre-Dame stretches for some 120m beneath the Parvis de Notre-Dame (un parvis being a square outside a church). In 1965 work on a planned car-park uncovered archaeological finds dating not only from Roman times but back to the island’s first inhabitants. On view are Galleo-Roman ramparts and streets, rooms with an underground heating system called hypocaust, cellars, and remnants of the original Parisii wall.

Emerge from the crypt, and the buttresses of Notre-Dame soar to the sky. This area had long been sacred; the Romans built a temple to Jupiter here (perhaps replacing a site of worship used by the Parisii), which in turn was replaced around 528 CE by the first Notre-Dame (built with stones from the Roman arena on the Left Bank).

The Salian Franks invaded from Germany in the 400s, founding the first Frankish kingdom under Clovis in 466 CE. In 506 CE Clovis made Paris her capital, moving the royal court to the Île de la Cité (as it then became known). With the Royal Court remaining here until the 14th C, the island became the seat of royal and ecclesiastical power in Paris.

In 1163 Maurice de Sully, Bishop of Paris, began plans to replace Notre-Dame and St-Etienne with a large church suitable for the city’s growing population. Taking some 200 years to complete, and partly destroyed during the French Revolution, the cathedral remains a breath-taking wonder. Take time to climb her towers: the reward is not only an amazing view of Paris, but also coming face to face with the cathedral’s famous gargoyles.

At 1 Parvis Notre-Dame stands the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu. The first hospital in Paris, it was founded by Saint Landry in 651 CE, and still cares for ill Parisians. The ghosts of some 1300 years of medical history glide the marble corridors, whispering in consultation outside the wards before passing into the old-fashioned lifts to visit the fourteen quiet hotel rooms hidden on the sixth floor.

Victor Hugo brought the slums surrounding the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu vividly to life in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, including Le Rue des Marmousets, one of the narrowest and darkest streets on the island. Until the 19th C, Notre-Dame was largely obscured by a maze of mediaeval streets and buildings.

Under a burgeoning population the Île de la Cité had become a place where ‘plants shrivel and perish, and where, of seven small infants, four die during the course of the year’. (Victor Considerant, 1845). Diseases such as cholera proved epidemic. Authorities viewed the island as a cradle of discontent and revolution, where narrow streets were easily barricaded by paving stones – with the widest street measuring only 5m, the army had difficulty dislodging rioters.

As a consequence, in the latter half of 19th C Napoleon III directed Baron Hausmann to renovate Paris. In redesigning the island Hausmann swept away alleys and homes, beggars and brothels, churches, cabarets, markets – and much of the island’s character. Coloured stones in the Parvis du Notre-Dame mark the outline of part of this mediaeval area plus its main thoroughfare, Le Rue de Neuve Notre-Dame. Nearby, a circular plaque marks kilomčtre zéro, from which all distances in Paris have been measured since 1768.

From here, wander down Le Rue d’Arcole. This eastern end of the island was once a city within a city, a maze of streets under the control of the Cloister of Notre-Dame. This is all that remains of a once bustling mediaeval heart, where the likes of Abélard studied and taught. Some mediaeval maisons remain, as do narrow streets such as Le Rue de la Colombe, which dates from the 13th C. Traces of the Gallo-Roman wall are outlined in paving stones on the street, and No. 4 boasts a door reputedly from the 13th C tavern which occupied the site.

On the nearby Rue Chanoinesse, a 14th C baker was renown for his pâtés – until it was discovered they were made from murdered foreign students. Both No. 22 and 24 are 16th C gabled canonical houses, while at No. 26 the entry is paved with tombstones. No.10 is reputed to be the house of Héloďse’s uncle, where she and Abélard fell in love.

Revolutionary Paris lies in the opposite direction. Le Rue de Lutčce, (taking its name from the original Roman settlement), leads from Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu to Le Boulevard du Palais. At its start, to the right lies the flower market, one of the few remaining in Paris. On Sundays it transforms into a bird-market, filling the streets with birdsong.

At No. 10 Boulevard du Palais is Le Cour du Mai. Crowds gathered here during The Revolution to watch condemned cross the courtyard from the adjacent Conciergerie to carts waiting to take them to the guillotine at La Place de la Révolution.

A short stroll but an ethereal world away is the Sainte-Chapelle. Often called “The Gateway To Heaven,” it was built by Louis IX between 1246-48 to house a piece of the True Cross and the Crown of Thorns. The upper chapel is considered one of the highest achievements of Gothic art. Many of the windows date from the 13th C, depicting Biblical scenes beginning with Adam and Eve and ending with the Apocalypse of the great Rose Window.

Pass back along Le Boulevard du Palais to Le Quai de l’Horioge. Le Conciergerie was built as an extension of the Capertian palace in the 14th C. The prisons held the likes of Marie Antoinette during The Revolution (her ghost has been seen both here and at Versaille); of the 4,164 ‘enemies of the people’ who passed through the Conciergerie during the Reign of Terror, more than half were guillotined.

At the end of Le Quai de l’Horloge stand the Tour de César, Tour d’Argent, Tour de l’Horloge and the Tour de Bonbecis, all built between 1250 and 1300 as part of the now vanished Capetian palace. On the Tour de l’Horloge is Paris’ first clock, built in 1371. Along with parts of the Conciergerie, these towers and Saint Chapelle are all of this area to escape Hausmann.

Where Le Rue de l’Horloge reaches Le Pont Neuf is La Place Dauphine. Made by joining two small islands to the Île de la Cité, it was designed by Henri IV as a discreet meeting place for bankers and merchants. Even today it brings a touch of the countryside into Paris. It opens onto the Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge in Paris. (It is actually two bridges.) The first stone bridge in Paris not lined by houses, the Pont Neuf was once a lively place where Parisians did their banking, were entertained by street performers, and could even have their teeth pulled. Reputedly, at any hour of the day, one would pass here a monk, a loose woman, and a white horse.

Beyond the Pont Neuf is Le Square du Vert-Galant, (the nickname of the amorous Henri IV). The square actually lies at the original level of the Île de la Cité during the Gallo-Roman period, some 7m lower then Le Parvis du Notre-Dame. A picnic spot for many Parisians, it is a perfect place to rest before exploring more of Paris.

Private Car Service in Paris with Driver

If You Go:
Historic Paris Site

Literary Paris: Private Book Lovers’ Tour

About the author:
Anne Harrison lives with her husband, two children and numerous pets on the Central Coast, NSW. Her jobs include wife, mother, doctor, farmer and local witch doctor – covering anything from delivering alpacas to treating kids who have fallen head first into the washing machine. Her fiction has been published in Australian literary magazines, and has been placed in regional literary competitions. Her non-fiction has been published in medical and travel journals. Her ambition is to be 80 and happy. Her writings are available at anneharrison.com.au and  anneharrison.hubpages.com

Photo credits:
Notre Dame gargoyle by Jawed Karim / CC BY-SA
Notre-Dame buttresses by Eutouring / CC BY-SA
All other photos by Anne Harrison:
The colours of a hidden grocer
The courtyard of the Hôtel-Hospitel Dieu
Statue of Charlemagne, Île de la Cité
The towers of the Conciergerien
The imposing Palais du Justice
Le Square du Vert-Galant

So, There’s This Place In Paris …

by Jett & Kathryn Britnell  

“That was the greatest and finest moment of my life!” proclaimed a smallish man in a white raincoat loudly as he exited the domed church at the Hotel des Invalides in Paris. Moments before, this man stood trembling with excitement and removed his cap out of respect as he gazed for a very long time at an ornate marble tomb. It was June 23rd, 1940; just three days after the French capital had become German-occupied territory. The following day during his official sightseeing city tour, Adolf Hitler made a second visit to the Église du Dôme with his sycophant generals to again pay homage to his military idol, Napoléon Bonaparte. In his first and only visit, Hitler made Napoleon’s tomb among the sites to see in La Ville Lumière.

Beneath the golden vault of the Eglise du Dome Church lie the remains of the slight statured Corsican who became France’s greatest soldier. Within his massive crypt, Napoléon’s mystique looms large in death as it did during his lifetime. Hitler was so moved by his visit that as a tribute to the French emperor, he decreed that Napoléon’s son’s coffin be moved from Vienna to lie beside his father.

Architect Louis Visconti designed Napoléon’s tomb in 1842, but construction of this grand monument was not completed until 1861. The fifteen-foot-tall deep red sarcophagus is carved from aventurine quartzite, and not red porphyry as is so often stated, and rests upon a green granite pedestal. Inside the large sarcophagus, Bonaparte’s remains are entombed by six progressively larger concentric coffins all nested inside the other and built from different materials, including mahogany, two others of lead, ebony, and oak and encircled by 12 marble victory statues mounted up against the pillars of the crypt. On the mosaic floor, a crown of laurels motif surrounds the sarcophagus, and on the mosaic floor are inscriptions referencing the great victories of the Empire.

Napoléon himself once stated, “Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever.” Today, the biggest draw of the expansive Hotel des Invalides military complex is what lies beneath the dome – the Tomb of Napoléon. Completely over the top, and something you must absolutely see with your own eyes. Napoléon’s ego would swell with pride if he knew his grave had become one of the biggest tourist attractions in Paris.

Skip-the-Line: Les Invalides Dome with Tomb of Napoleon Private Guided Tour

If You Go:

♦ The Paris Pass
♦ Napoleon Foundation website

About the authors:
Jett & Kathryn Britnell, are two internationally published travel writers, photographers, scuba divers, shark advocates, lecturers, book reviewers, marine conservationists and devil may care adventurers. Email: info@thenomadictribes.com

Photographs:
Photos are by Jett & Kathryn Britnell.

by Rosrin Wuithiran

When one thinks of Paris, the Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, and the Louvre come to mind. Of course, these are gorgeous, amazing locales that tourists should make the effort to visit. Within these popular locales and in other places are quirky and notable things to see and appreciate. Luckily, you don’t have to travel to obscure areas of the city to find them.

St. Denis Statue

If you have a limited amount of time in Paris and must skip some attractions, don’t pass up on Notre Dame. You’ll have an opportunity to visit a peculiar statue along with a certain hotel (see below). On the left of Notre Dame’s entrance, a row statues of saints stand above you. One is headless and holding his head in his arms. This is St. Denis, the Patron Saint of the possessed, frenzy, and rabies (along with being the Patron Saint of Paris). He was martyred in 250 A.D. and after his execution, was claimed to have carried his severed head for six miles preaching all the way.

The Hotel Dieu

When we went to Notre Dame, I was delighted to find the Hotel Dieu next door. Why? This was one of the first hospitals built in Europe, in 622 AD. I assumed not many travelers knew it was a hospital and passed by thinking it was a hotel. (It says, “Hotel Dieu” at the entrance and is decorated with international flags.) The present building was not the one from 622 AD, as that original one was burned down in the 1700s. The one we see today was built in 1822. Why is it still called a hotel? In French, it translates to Hostel of God. The first European hospitals during the Middle Ages were managed by the clergy. Their purpose initially was not to treat the sick but to serve as lodging to travelers.

The folks who may have known it was a hospital may have perceived it as an ordinary hospital from the outside. So what makes the hospital so special besides its age? For a public hospital, it is absolutely gorgeous inside. Imagine being a patient and looking into the interior to marvel its architecture to cheer yourself up. Luckily, you do not have to be sick or fake an injury to enter the hospital. Just walk inside as a tourist and explain to the front lobby receptionist you want to go into the gardens behind her. (I pointed to my camera and then to the gardens, and she understood.) The gardens are more recent as they were created in the 1970s. Looking at its intricate design, I thought, am I really inside a hospital? Hanging on the walls surrounding the gardens are sketches and illustrations depicting historical events at the hospital, such as Napoleon III’s visit. As the epitome of modern and history meeting together, we found a statue of an Avatar creature at the far end of the gardens. We presumed it was a gift to the hospital, and that they decided to let it reside in natural surroundings (as representative of the film’s supported theme).

The National Army Museum/Napoleon’s Tomb: Kissing Couples and Child Armor

This military museum houses historical artifacts of armour, artillery, and various weapons through French history. Napoleon’s Tomb is situated at one end where you have to leave the museum building to walk to the building’s tomb. We were certainly not military experts nor were we that interested in the museum (as we had planned on just going to Napoleon’s Tomb at the end of the tour), but a couple of amusing gems popped up here. We saw hundreds of knit armor and noticed some really small ones that would fit a child. Did children have to participate in the wars as well? Child labor laws did only appear recently in time! After passing by several cannons on our way to the tomb, we found a cannon with figures of two pairs of kissing couples [TOP PHOTO]. We could not find any history panels to explain its origin. Did the cannon makers have a sense of humor to make love and not war?

Musee de Rodin: A Room for the Mistress

The Rodin Museum houses the famed sculptor’s best works; he requested the government to establish a museum for his artwork. But what you might have known is that Rodin’s mistress, sculptor Camille Claudel, also has a collection here. Rodin and Claudel had a fiery on-and-off relationship; she once accused him of stealing her sculpting ideas. After Rodin left her to return to Rose Beuret, his longtime companion and mother of his son, Claudel spiraled into mental illness, living in a mental institution the last years of her life. Rodin, perhaps having a soft heart and appreciating her talents, requested Claudel’s works to be showcased in his museum.

The Hermaphrodite of the Louvre

Hundreds of passers-by probably have not noticed the resting Hermaphrodite statue situated near an exit at the Louvre. Why? If you had not known about the statue, you could have glanced at its curved backside and side cleavage, thought it was lovely, and walked out of the Greek statues exhibit without realizing the surprise. The statue’s maleness is facing the wall in a corner. In our guided tour, we were rushed out so quickly that everyone just walked on by. Except myself of course, who made the effort to walk around the statue for the amusement.

Private Tour: Les Invalides, Napoleon, and Musée Rodin Walking Tour

If You Go:

September is ideal, the weather is cooler, but you can still catch some sunnier days. Beware the walking distances; what looks close on a map is in reality several miles apart.

If you do a guided tour of the Louvre, be aware that they may just hit the highlights in a given number of hours. For us, it was only two hours. It has been said it takes a total of three days to see everything! While seeing the major works is delightful, you may have to go on your own pace without a tour for the other works. Or find a negotiable tour where you follow the guide but then go off on your own after the end of the guided tour. Also, utilize your time wisely; the Louvre is closed on Mondays as of autumn of 2011. The Hermaphrodite statue is at the end of the Greek room near the exit staircase (the Venus de Milo is at the opposite end of the room). Check out www.louvre.fr.

The Military Museum is next door to the Rodin Museum. If you exit from Napoleon’s Tomb, go left on the street, Boulevard Des Invalides, and then turn right on Rue de Varenne to get to the entrance around the block. See www.invalides.org and www.musee-rodin.fr.

 

About the author:
Rosrin Wuithiran is a freelance writer from Texas. She has traveled to Thailand, London, Macau, Paris, and many U.S.cities. She has written pieces about San Jose and Phoenix for other travel magazines. Her writing portfolio is at www.roswriting.webs.com.
Photographs:

All photos are by Rosrin Wuithiran.