Basilica of Sacré Coeur de Montmartre in Paris

8 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France Reading Time:  7 minutes

© OliveiraTP/cc-by-sa-4.0

© OliveiraTP/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Basilica of Sacré Coeur de Montmartre (Sacred Heart of Montmartre), commonly known as Sacré-Cœur Basilica and often simply Sacré-Cœur (French: Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre), is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica in Paris dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It was formally approved as a national historic monument by the National Commission of Patrimony and Architecture on December 8, 2022.   read more…

Grand Synagogue of Paris

10 October 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France Reading Time:  8 minutes

© Luiza Fediuc/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Luiza Fediuc/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Grand Synagogue of Paris (French: Grande Synagogue de Paris), generally known as Synagogue de la Victoire (English: Synagogue of Victory) or Grande Synagogue de la Victoire (English: Grand Synagogue of Victory), is situated at 44, Rue de la Victoire, in the 9th arrondissement. It also serves as the official seat of the chief rabbi of Paris.   read more…

Château de Vincennes

19 September 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks, Paris / Île-de-France Reading Time:  8 minutes

© Edal Anton Lefterov/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Edal Anton Lefterov/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Château de Vincennes is a former fortress and royal residence next to the town of Vincennes, on the eastern edge of Paris, alongside the Bois de Vincennes. It was largely built between 1361 and 1369, and was a preferred residence, after the Palais de la Cité, of French Kings in the 14th to 16th century. It is particularly known for its “donjon” or keep, a fortified central tower, the tallest in Europe, built in the 14th century, and for the chapel, Sainte-Chapelle de Vincennes, begun in 1379 but not completed until 1552, which is an exceptional example of Flamboyant Gothic architecture. Because of its fortifications, the château was often used as a royal sanctuary in times of trouble, and later as a prison and military headquarters. The chapel was listed as an historic monument in 1853, and the keep was listed in 1913. Most of the building is now open to the public.   read more…

Paris, Banks of the Seine

6 August 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  11 minutes

Pont Michel © flickr.com - Joe deSousa/cc-by-2.0

Pont Michel © flickr.com – Joe deSousa/cc-by-2.0

The term Paris, Banks of the Seine refers to a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was entered in the World Heritage List in 1991 under the following names French: Paris, rives de la Seine, or English: Paris, Banks of the Seine and of course simply the water boundaries of the river. Unesco means the particularly historic section of the Seine within Paris between the Pont de Sully and the Pont d’Iéna. In addition to the Seine islands Île de la Cité and Île Saint-Louis and the fortified banks of the Seine, the Quais de Paris, adjacent building ensembles, squares, parks and visual axes are also part of the world heritage.   read more…

Cire Trudon

3 August 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France Reading Time:  9 minutes

Plaques Cire Trudon in Paris © Mu/cc-by-sa-3.0

Plaques Cire Trudon in Paris © Mu/cc-by-sa-3.0

Cire Trudon is a French candlemaker. Founded in 1643, it was the provider of the royal court of Louis XIV, as well as most of the great churches of France. Cire Trudon was the biggest wax-producing factory in the French Kingdom during the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1762, in his encyclopaedia The art of the wax producer, engineer Duhamel du Monceau, praises the skills of the Trudons and gives the manufacture as an example. Such a level of quality led to King Louis XIV elevating Charles Trudon to the French nobility as Count Trudon des Ormes.   read more…

Bouquinistes de Paris

1 August 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  9 minutes

© flickr.com - Ninara/cc-by-2.0

© flickr.com – Ninara/cc-by-2.0

The Bouquinistes of Paris, France, are booksellers of used and antiquarian books who ply their trade along large sections of the banks of the Seine: on the right bank from the Pont Marie to the Quai du Louvre/Quai François Mitterrand, and on the left bank from the Quai de la Tournelle to Quai Voltaire. The Seine is thus described as ‘the only river in the world that runs between two bookshelves’.   read more…

Sciences Po in Paris

19 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France, Universities, Colleges, Academies Reading Time:  5 minutes

Hôtel Brochet de Saint-Prest on rue des Saints-Pères © Celette/cc-by-sa-4.0

Hôtel Brochet de Saint-Prest on rue des Saints-Pères © Celette/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Paris Institute of Political Studies (French: Institut d’études politiques de Paris), also known as Sciences Po or Sciences Po Paris, is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of grande école and grand établissement. The institute has decentralized campuses in Dijon, Le Havre, Menton, Nancy, Poitiers and Reims, each with their own academic program focused on a geopolitical part of the world. Sciences Po historically specialized in political science and history, then it progressively started to expand to other social sciences such as economics, law and sociology.   read more…

Potager du roi in Versailles

16 July 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks, Paris / Île-de-France, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  7 minutes

Grand Bassin © Djampa/cc-by-sa-4.0

Grand Bassin © Djampa/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Potager du roi (Kitchen Garden of the King), near the Palace of Versailles, produced fresh vegetables and fruits for the table of the court of Louis XIV. It was created between 1678 and 1683 by Jean-Baptiste de La Quintinie, the director of the royal fruit and vegetable gardens. Today it is run by the École nationale supérieure du paysage, the grande école for landscape architects. It is officially recognized as a Remarkable Garden of France. Together with the Palace of Versailles and its park, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979.   read more…

Quartier du Val-de-Grâce in Paris

27 June 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Paris / Île-de-France, Universities, Colleges, Academies Reading Time:  5 minutes

Church of the Val-de-Grâce - View from Rue Saint-Jacques © Poulpy/cc-by-sa-3.0

Church of the Val-de-Grâce – View from Rue Saint-Jacques © Poulpy/cc-by-sa-3.0

The quartier du Val-de-Grâce is the 19th administrative district or ‘quartier’ of Paris, located in the 5th arrondissement of the city. Its borders are boulevard de Port-Royal to the south, boulevard Saint-Michel to the west, rue Soufflot, rue des Fossés-Saint-Jacques and rue de l’Estrapade to the north and rue Mouffetard and rue Pascal to the east. It is named for the Val-de-Grâce military hospital and former abbey on boulevard de Port-Royal.   read more…

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