heritage day

today was one of the “journees du patrimoine” which takes place throughout europe. it could be translated as “heritage day”. here is a description of the day from england:

“[it] celebrates [the country’s] fantastic architecture and culture by offering free access to properties that are usually closed to the public or normally charge for admission. every year ... in september, buildings of every age, style and function throw open their doors, ranging from castles to factories, town halls to tithe barns, parish churches to buddhist temples. it is a once-a-year chance to discover hidden architectural treasures and enjoy a wide range of tours, events and activities which bring to life local history and culture.”

we took velib bikes over to the city hall of paris, the “hotel de ville”, to visit. it was another harrowing bike ride for jj. i thought certain roads were to be closed, but they weren’t. anyway, we survived, but in the future we will only pick up the bikes when we are ON the closed roads. the hotel de ville, normally closed to the public, was re-built in the late 1800’s and so was decorated by the artists of that time. don’t know exactly what style they fall under, but the paintings are beautiful and dramatic – sort of pre-raphaelite like style. we walked through the rooms and halls on a guided path and came to a big ballroom which was filled with displays hosted by the maintenance workers of the hotel de ville (who also maintained other period buildings). there were clock makers with display clocks and their innards, flower decorators with exhibits of their work (really beautiful arrangements), historic plumbing specialists, antique hardware (like doorknobs) specialists and locksmiths. there were even the people who maintain the wood floors with their buffing and polishing machines and cleaning people with their mops and buckets displayed! Print this post