No, I Didn't Go There Because of the Cartoon
I went To Notre Dame twice. Once was as part of my extended walking tour on the Sunday. At this point they were performing mass, which made for a most uncomfortable experience. They don't close the church to tourists when the ceremony is being performed, and the tourists were wandering around, talking, taking flash pictures (which you're not supposed to), climbing on the pillars to see areas that were out of view, and so on. I felt so uncomfortable being there that I rushed through and didn't really appreciate it properly, so I came back on the morning I left had another look. The second time was a little better, and I got to appreciate the place a bit more. It certainly is as beautiful as its reputation suggests: not overwhelmingly grand like some other cathedrals I've been too, but intricate, very well designed (the inside has very dramatic proportions that give it a really strongly vertical feel) with particularly impressive stained glass. I also very much liked its very extravagant flying buttresses at the back.




Posted by Stephen Rowley @ 9:19 PM