Date: 08-09 Dec, 2007
Location: Loire Valley/Paris, France
Places Visited: Cheverny, Chaumont, Chenonceaux, Chambord, Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower
Beauty manifest its various forms. From the untainted, lush green lawns whizzing by as we covered more than 500kms in one day to the magnificent and awe-inspiring evidence of human creativity and skill. And of course, there was beauty of the two-legged kind as well! ;)
As one walked down the lofty corridors and hallways of the castles, one could vividly imagine the lives that the nobles would have lived in all their glory and, yet, isolation. The walls were adorned with relics that date back centuries but still havent lost the ability of providing the aesthetic pleasure that they were originally created for.
After having seen Paris and London and comparing them to Manhattan, I begin to realise how much of a difference history makes to the feel of the city. As I was literally being toyed around by the wind on the Eiffel Tower, the city sprawled in front of me, its buildings and architecture standing testimony to the wealth of culture and tradition it has accumulated over time - an absolutely breath-taking view.
However, the highlight of the trip had to be the Cathedral of Notre Dame. I am convinced now that despite all accusations of being materialistic and greedy, man has always reserved his (or her, to be politically correct!) creative genius for devotion to God. A magnificent structure paying homage to the Creator in all His glory. I was lucky enough to be there for the Mass on Sunday. A small observation - having been to a few chapels/cathedrals now, I feel that no other religion has been glorified as much as Christianity - starting right from the elaborate paraphernalia worn by priests to the rich controversies surrounding it.
On that note, would describe the trip to France as 48 hours of packed, hectic fun with a great friend!
P.S. A special thanks to the weather gods who were timing their "wrath" to perfection for us - always rained when we were indoors or in the car!
Link to some photographs from the trip: http://picasaweb.google.com/keshavbhojania/France
5 comments:
Glad you enjoyed Paris so much - now you might want to watch "Paris, Je t'aime" if you haven't already seen it.. boy were you lucky with the weather gods! an inclement paris is a depressing paris!! but love it nevertheless. i still vouch for barcelona though (and you aren't forgiven yet.)
Nice entry to start blogging with...hope to read more from you (and to write more often in my blog too) :)
Is that you in the photograph! have you grown thin or what!
Exquisite writing : lucid and graphic. I could easily imagine the scene being potrayed. This marks the commencement of a great writer. May we see more works flow out of the creative and astute genius which will continue to delight and educate us in the years to come.
You write so well! I had no idea...Your writing is the right mix of description, emotion and information which makes the reader want to continue reading. Way to go!
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