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Back to Europe Day 1
| The next day, we boarded the bus with our other touring pals and stopped at Notre Dame first thing in the morning. It was a gorgeous day and it wasn't crowded at that hour in the morning (except for the other tourists!!). We stopped in the front of the church for our local guide to explain some of the intricate sculpture that is on the front of the church. Here's a picture of the Last Judgement - The detail they put into this is amazing. |
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Once inside, the enormity of the church is apparent. There wasn't alot of artificial lighting, and the various side chappels were filled with artwork. For a church made out of stone, it was very open and light - a testament to the flying buttresses that were used. This is the stained glass in one of the round windows. The picture doesn't really do the size justice. |
The famous flying butresses are
evidenced here from the east side of the church. They are used to support the heavy roof
while allowing natural light to illuminate the inside of the church. |
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And now a touristy photo of Mom and I in front of Notre
Dame. We're not jet lagged or anything... noooo. :) Actually it was a nice morning. It wasn't until later that afternoon that our batteries ran out. |
| And one last shot before we move on - the famed gargoyles (okay, so they aren't the ones from the Disney movie) - Check out the water spouts - fancy gutters a la Paris style. The light green statue is of one of the apostles. All 12 are represented at some point on the roof of the church. Again, the detail is amazing, especially considering your common French church goer wasn't going to be any where close enough to see this work. |
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