November 5, 1917
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We were called at 7 o’clock, bath, shave and breakfast, etc, then by the aid of a guide book set off to do the city until 3.30. Starting from the Rue de l’Opera, a street of splendid shops, we proceeded down Rue St.Roch to the Church of St. Roch, a large plain church and the Place St. Roch, the scene of a scrap of Napoleon and the Royalists 1795.
We then passed a Statue of Jeanne d’Arc in the Rue de Rivoli, Rue des Tuileries, into the Jardin des Tuileries about 72 acres 1665 divided into two equal parts by an avenue. Looking west one sees the Obelisk of Luxor, a finer example than the one in London and the Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile at the extremity of the Champs des Elysees. The Gardens contain numerous statues and fountains. We then passed through the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel by the Statue of Lafayette and saw facing the Arc the monument to Bambetta 1888.
We then encircled the Louvre, large buildings once the residence of the kings, now a museum but closed. They are noble buildings adorned with carvings and statues. Retracing our steps we crossed the Rue de Rivoli and passed through the Jardin du Palais-Royale where we saw Sir Douglas Haig having a constitutional. We gave him the salute. We then visited the Church of Notre-Dame des Victoires, a pilgrim’s resort.
The Place de Victories contains the equestrian statue of Louis XIV. Passing along the Rue Coquilliere we reached the Church of St.Eustache, a very old and beautiful church 1532 to 1642 in Gothic and Renaissance styles. In the interior the chapels are decorated with beautiful paintings dating from Louis XIII and the stained glass windows are extremely beautiful. Many famous men are buried here. Opposite the Church is the Halles Centrales, the largest market in Paris, built in 1851. We strolled through these purchasing some fruit on our way.
Then by way of Rue Berger, passing the Bourse du Commerce, we turned to the left down the Rue du Louvre and entered the church of St. Germain-l’Auxerrois opposite the Colonnade of the Palais du Louvre. The Colonnade is very imposing 550 ft. long with 52 columns, the flower beds being laid out in the French style with several statues.The Church of St. Germain-l’Auxerrois was built in XIII century. The beautiful porch dates from 1425, adorned with frescoes on a gold ground, now very dilapidated.
The Bell Tower of the 12th Century contains the bell which gave the signal for the Massacre of St. Bartholomew. Various chapels, statues and woodwork very pretty and stained glass windows of the 15th Century very fine. Inquiring our way here from a Cure, in 5 minutes we had a small crowd around us, only dispelled by an Englishman joining in the conversation. He had lived 19 years in Paris and was a typical John Bull.
Crossing the Pont des Arts and turning to the right we passed a statue of Voltaire, then to the left down the Rue Bonaparte and reached the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. We could not enter the building, but in the forecourt we saw the celebrated portal of the Chateau d’Anet which Henri II built for Diane de Poitiers. It forms the entrance to the old Chapel. Erected in the centre of the court is the portico of the chateau de Gaillon, the facade of which is one of the finest specimens of French Architecture of the 19th Century.
Noticing a restaurant opposite we decided to risk it so went and had lunch. It turned out to be a regular Bohemian place, this being the Latin quarter and altho’ we ordered what we thought to be veal and received liver, it was so beautifully prepared that this meal was one of the best and certainly the cheapest we had in Paris. I found myself capable of more French than I thought possible and so far we managed very well indeed.
After lunch we wandered into some shops in the same street and purchased various postcards and prints of water colours which we had posted from the shop. It was now approaching the time when we had to meet my friends, so we took a taxi to the Montana, had a wash and brush up and then another taxi to the Rue de Medicin. Here we met my girl friends. Under their guidance we visited the Jardin du Luxembourg of 63 acres, comprising beautifully laid out terraces, typically French also an English garden with numerous statues of illustrious women of France, altogether a very beautiful and peaceful spot.
Returning we saw the Pantheon in the distance and then visited the old City on an island in the Seine. Being late we had a cursory glance only and on our way to the Palais de Justice we saw the Horloge in the wall of a building on the street corner, the oldest public clock in France constructed 1370. We then saw the Church of Notre Dame, it being closed we could not view the inside. Walking along the bank of the Seine we saw the quaint custom followed by booksellers in Paris, the stone parapet being covered for a considerable distance with boxes or stalls filled with literature of every kind, the lid being locked down on closing.
Here we saw the bridge Pont Neuf commenced in 1578 under Henry III. Crossing the Seine by the Pont du Carrousel we entered the Jardins des Tuileries and learnt that at certain times of the year when standing at the Statue de Gambetta the sun can be seen setting in the west in the distance through the Arc de Triornphe de l’Etoile a distance of nearly 2 miles.
Walking through the Tuileries which extend for 72 acres designed in 1665, we reached the Place de la Concorde near where we took tram to Passy. After dinner the two girls and myself went to the Comedie Francaise by taxi. This is one of the three National theatres and is still conducted on rules laid down by Napoleon. The people were quietly dressed as a law forbids evening dress during war time, the audience struck me as being very orderly and undemonstrative.