Art & architecture - Paris e-guide: The Travel Guide with its Own Website - page 104

Art & Architecture

9 D1

Opéra Garnier lavish venue
PLACe de lOpéra, 9ème • 08 92 89 90 90
www.opera-de-paris.fr Open 10-5 daily (except matinées)
Architect Charles Garnier's national opera house is a
glorious monument to Second Empire opulence. The
façade is magnificently decorated with friezes and
sculptures, while the interior is no less impressively
embellished. A museum traces opera history via paint-
ings, photographs and set models. Adm

5 A4

Gare du Nord monumental railway station
Opened in 1864 to cope with the rapidly increasing
traffic on the railways, architect Jacques Ignace
Hittorff's station is a grandiose example of 19th-
century iron-and-glass vaulting, often overlooked by
rail travellers rushing from A to B. The vast interior is
fronted by an imposing, Roman-inspired stone façade
lined with statues that personify the north European
towns served by the station.

Seine-side Attractions
Few people know that a scaled-down Statue of
Liberty (Map 13 B3) stands guard on an island in
the Seine in the west of Paris. Donated in 1885 by
the American community in Paris, it also acts as a
reminder that the New York original was a gift from
the French. Towards the city centre, on the river's
right bank by the Place d'Alma, the golden Liberty
Flame (Map 8 F4) is a return gift from the city of New
York. Its proximity to the tunnel where Princess Diana
was killed has made it her unofficial memorial.
Between these two stands Gustave Eiffel's world-
famous tower, which has long survived its status as
a temporary exhibit for the 1889 Exposition
Universelle. The Tour Eiffel 's (see p224) recently
added white lights sparkle on every nocturnal hour
until 2am, and cause almost as much controversy
today as the tower did when it was first erected.

Opposite the sculpture-filled Jardin des Tuileries
(see p165), the colonnaded Assemblée Nationale
(see p224) is the French parliament, which can be
visited on a guided tour. Further east lies the domed
home to the Académie Française (Map 16 E1),
protector of the French language. Beyond here, the
Seine is divided by the Ile de la Cité (Map 16 G2),
the largest of Paris's two central islands and home
to the city's iconic Gothic cathedral, Notre Dame
(see p223) . On the island's other side, the turreted
Conciergerie (see p224) was a 14th-century palace
and, more famously, the prison of Marie Antoinette
and family. Visitors here can learn about the French
Revolution and view the reconstructed royal cell.
Of the 37 Seine bridges, the most spectacular is
the Art Nouveau Pont Alexandre III (Map 9 A4),
lined with gilded lamps and cherubs. The Pont des
Arts (Map 10 F5) is popular for romantic rendezvous.