Europe 2011: Part 9, Opera Garnier

The next step of my Europe trip took me to the historic Opera Garnier in Paris. The architecture is absolutely stunning and this post, like many others exists largely to share photos with you. I was lucky enough to be able to get a tour of the Opera, but unfortunately, all shows were booked and I was not able to actually have time to see anything played there.

This is the main staircase area, it's really large the open space and the height of the ceiling. Everything really feels massive. Open up the photosynth below to navigate around the room.

I guess that counts as a smile....

An opera box... very nicely furnished

Grand hallway along the end of the building facing the square

Even the doors were velvet!

The photosynths below are of the smaller side rooms off the grand hallway I showed earlier:

Europe 2011: Part 8, La Tour Eiffel

Next on my trip, I continued walking from the National Assembly all the way to the Eiffel Tower (on foot)... please enjoy the pictures from when I got there! The journey continues in my next post on Europe!

Close up panoramic shot

Very nearby, panoramic photo synth image (click to activate and pan around using silver light)

Very nearby, panoramic photo synth image (click to activate and pan around using silver light)

Close up normal photograph

They periodically turn on strobe lights

Here's a video of the strobe lights!

Taken from exactly underneath the tower, panoramic photo synth image (click to activate and pan around using silver light)

Europe 2011: Part 7, From the Élysée Palace to the National Assembly

Élysée Palace

This time, we return to the Europe series! I'm not nearly done, there are a bunch of these posts waiting to be written and published in my drafts! (Once I finish with France, there is a whole week or so of England to tell you all about!)

Please enjoy my photo journey as I walked on foot from the Élysée Palace (aka, French Presidential residence) to the National Assembly by way of the church of La Madeleine.

Being that the palace is important, the state news service was actually in the region when I walked by doing some sort of a report!

The journalist was actually reading off an iPad, definitely pretty cool!

Church of La Madeleine

This Obelisk is from Egypt and sits on top of a pedestal describing what went into bringing it to France

Additionally, it happens to be at the center of a large circle (view facing away from monument)

Here is another view with the monument behind me

Panoramic closeup of the monument

Just down the street in the other direction from the Obelisk is the National Assembly... we will get there shortly

Panorama of Obelisk in the Place de la Concorde

Close up of the writing, describing the dedication by HM King Louis-Philippe

Pictures showing the transportation of the obelisk

Additional pictures of obelisk transport

In the other direction there is a lovely park (notice the obelisk in the background)

This garden used to be the site of a palace, but it burned down and all that remains is this park. Sadly I didn't have time to walk around much and enjoy it, but I did take a few quick shots!

Jardin des Tuileries

Jardin des Tuileries

The gate for Jardin des Tuileries

This is the hill above the gate for Jardin des Tuileries

Panorama of the Jardin des Tuileries

And now, the National Assembly

(and at night)

These last three are all panoramic shots including the National Assembly building and some portion of the landscape near the bridge that crosses from Place de La Concorde to the National Assembly: