Paris Set Me Free
Industrial Revolution
And here we are in the outskirts of Paris, as seen from the RER D (for Dangerous & Dodgy), a hinterland of abandoned factories and processing plants, inhabited by shady itinerant types and graffiti gringos...
Here you can see an old coal processing plant with one of the conveyor belts high up between the installations presenting a particularly dehumanised silhouette against the skyline.
No, I'm kidding, it's the Louvre. Look, you can see the last remaining vestiges of it on the right, just opposite the Pont des Arts. Funny isn't it how classical French architectural elegance has become a complete industrial eyesore, and nature has been relegated to an image on a poster.
On a related topic, I almost considered actually going into the Louvre last week, which would have been the first time in about 15 years or more. Although the streets are my playground, I'm becoming aware of some serious gaps in my knowledge of the city, and I think a trip or two into the hallowed realms of the glass pyramid and beyond are called for soon.
I'm particularly interested in the remains of the old Louvre fortress, probably more than fancy chairs and antique clocks and wall-hangings, as I explained recently on this blog. I'd even enjoy getting inside that under-renovation south wing more than looking for armless wonders and mildly amused Japanese-encrusted icons. I'll keep you posted.
(A Paris iPhone street photograph by Sab Will for the 'Paris and I' photo blog @ paris-and-i.parissetmefree.com )
Industrial Revolution
And here we are in the outskirts of Paris, as seen from the RER D (for Dangerous & Dodgy), a hinterland of abandoned factories and processing plants, inhabited by shady itinerant types and graffiti gringos...
Here you can see an old coal processing plant with one of the conveyor belts high up between the installations presenting a particularly dehumanised silhouette against the skyline.
No, I'm kidding, it's the Louvre. Look, you can see the last remaining vestiges of it on the right, just opposite the Pont des Arts. Funny isn't it how classical French architectural elegance has become a complete industrial eyesore, and nature has been relegated to an image on a poster.
On a related topic, I almost considered actually going into the Louvre last week, which would have been the first time in about 15 years or more. Although the streets are my playground, I'm becoming aware of some serious gaps in my knowledge of the city, and I think a trip or two into the hallowed realms of the glass pyramid and beyond are called for soon.
I'm particularly interested in the remains of the old Louvre fortress, probably more than fancy chairs and antique clocks and wall-hangings, as I explained recently on this blog. I'd even enjoy getting inside that under-renovation south wing more than looking for armless wonders and mildly amused Japanese-encrusted icons. I'll keep you posted.
(A Paris iPhone street photograph by Sab Will for the 'Paris and I' photo blog @ paris-and-i.parissetmefree.com )