touristy forever (Marilyn from Tuesday)

dear folks -

on the way to notre dame this morning, i saw that the line to sainte-chapelle was very short. so i got to see the treasure of paris' most exquisite church. built in the 1200's for his own worship by louis ix, the upper chapel is apparently nothing but stained glass windows. and jewel encrusted medallions. and royal crests. it is lovely, even overflowing with tourists.

what does one do with old bits of junk with which one cannot bear to part? such as broken bits of 11th century gargoyles, capitals and entablature? at sainte-chapelle they are deposited in niches outside the church. it is enchanting junk and a sight to behold. (in fact i'll send you all a photo when i get things downloaded.)

every time i visit a big city, i am reminded of all the labor it took to construct the massive buildings. notre dame was begun in the 10th century and took 170 years to build. ongoing maintenance and major renovations have kept an army of craftsmen busy in the intervening centuries.

cathedrals and grand churches are built to inspire and impress. also to teach. until recently painting, statuary and windows were the ways most folks "read"and remembered bible stories. i think of how lucky we all are to read and to be able to read almost anything at all we want. including the bible.

it is sometimes tempting to imagine the cathedral without all the tourists, but for almost a thousand years notre dame has been the premier tourist attraction of the city. the stone entrance and floor have been worn away step by step by millions of pilgrims, beggars, tourists, the curious and the weary. complete with tourists, notre dame is glorious.

all this said, my favorite church in paris is still st. germain de pres. it is a romanesque structure. a huge building has a hugely heavy roof. sainte-chapelle is small which allows for such beautiful stained glass windows. the flying buttresses of notre dame press against the exterior walls to provide support for the massive weight of the roof.

st. germain de pres was built before the realization of flying buttresses, so the weight of the roof is born entirely by walls and huge internal columns. the columns, as many at both sainte-chapelle and notre dame, are painted in rich color and an incredible variety of patterns. the ceilings of churches and cathedrals typically are painted midnight blue with scatterings of gold leaf stars. i am always a contented person when i return to the painted columns and painted ceiling at st. germain de pres.

love,

m