Happy 120th Birthday, Tour Eiffel!

Since I've become sadly aware that my days in Paris are numbered, I've had to make a list of "must make time for" these things before I leave. On the list for yesterday was the exhibition at the magnifique Hotel de Ville (main Paris City Hall) in honor of Gustave Eiffel: "Le Magicien de Fer".


The exhibit contains paintings, photos, drawings, and models of Eiffel's work - work which included hundreds of metal structures around the world. Cast iron railway bridges were his favorite structures and his innovative company even produced portable bridges sold in kits.

Eiffel (along with Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc) designed the infrastructure of the Statue of Liberty, which consists of four gigantic steel supports. They also supervised its assembly.


The Tour Eiffel was built for the 1889 Universal Exposition and was meant to be dismantled after 20 years. However, Gustave had other plans. He was determined to find a practical application for the Tour, and he spent the last 30 years of his life working on projects in meteorology, radiotelegraphy, and aerodynamics to ensure that his Tour would remain standing. (And we're glad he did!)

Homage to a master - Henri Cartier-Bresson

Yesterday, we visited the Maison Européenne de la Photographie over in the Marais. I specifically wanted to visit the maison because there was an exhibit of Henri Cartier-Bresson underway and I think he was one of the true masters of photography of our time. It really was an amazing exhibit.

...these images reflect the career of a man who wanted to "put the head, the eye and the heart in the same line of sight".

Unquestionably he achieved this in his photographs.

From 2009_06_06

The Belly of the Beast?

Everytime I fly in or out of Paris' Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport - terminal 1 - I always get the feeling I'm in the belly of the beast. First stage is the trip through the intestines - the long, whitish, moving sidewalk ride from the terminal out to the gates - as seen below:


Then, when you arrive back home you reverse the course, go through the intestines once again and into the blood vessels - the long, clear tubes that transport you from the terminal to the baggage claim area and finally out onto the street...


Crazy imagery but that's the way it comes across to me...