Day 5: Saturday, April 26, Paris

The French flag flying underneath the Arc.

Today started with a dash to the Arc d’Triomphe to avoid the crowds. We walked right in and up the top, where a great view greeted us. It certainly isn’t the highest point on the horizon, but it is right in the middle of the action. Six roads form spokes from the Arc. The roundabout is really interesting – there are no lane markers, and traffic goes everywhere. The trick seemed to be getting to the center quickly, then forking out just as quickly at your exit. Different cars came to a standstill several times as they each played chicken with the other, but traffic just adjusted to go around them. The roundabout is about six lanes wide (though no lane markers), so they don’t clog traffic very much. Under the arch is the French eternal flame – I’m not sure if it is for war deaths or specifically for unknown soldiers.

One of the huge figures from the side of the Arc.

It was then off to Napoleon’s tomb and the military museum. This was an interesting place with an even more interesting background. It was built as a veteran’s hospital by Louis XIV, who also built an ornate chapel into it. The chapel really is beautiful. When Napoleon I began the Legion of Honor award, he had the initial ceremony here. The award was for military and civilians, and all were called alphabetically regardless of their rank, social background, etc. His legal code was also much more socially blind than previous legal systems. Some twenty years after Napoleon I died, his body was exhumed and brought back to France to fanfare and ceremony. They dug out a pit in the chapel and put Napoleon in a colossal sarcophagus in this shrine. Around this lower level are reliefs in the neo-classical style depicting some of Napoleon’s accomplishments (Napoleonic code, building projects, military victories, etc.). It is very imposing and certainly seems to fit Napoleon’s persona. Napoleon’s brother, two of his top marshals, and two more recent marshals are also buried in corner alcoves in the chapel.

Architectural contrasts on the Champs d'Elysees. About the only thing I could afford on this street was McDonald's.

The effect is that Napoleon, perhaps the embodiment of military dictatorship prior to Hitler and who died in exile, has a tomb to rival anyone else in the world. This was brought about by the first king of the reinstalled monarchy, even though Napoleon rose to power in the confused aftermath of the French Revolution and was a Corsican nobody. He arguably did more to further an egalitarian state than the Revolution actually did (which rapidly turned into a bloody system of revenge without justice, guilt by association, and was used by successive waves of Revolution leaders to execute their competitors and predecessors – even Robespierre died at the guillotine). Last but not least, Napoleon – who had no titles at birth – is entombed in the ornate chapel of Louis XIV, the Sun King, the epitome of royal excess and stratified society. While I think they were more similar men than might at first meet the eye, they represent opposite ends of the spectrum.

Rodin's "Hand of God," probably my favorite out of what we saw. The museum did a good job positioning mirrors so you could see things from all angles; note the reflection of the back in the mirror.

Next came the Rodin museum, which was a garden and house filled with Rodin sculptures. I hadn’t realized that because of his technique, there are several copies of many of his statues.

We also went through the WWI and WWII exhibits. They had panels at the entrance to each room with English descriptions that talked you through the war chronologically, but otherwise we just gawked at guns and uniforms because everything else was in French. I did learn a good bit about WWI, partially because the museum spent a lot more time on the pre-1917 portion of the war than most American museums. (Random note: it said that the Germans wanted to negotiate armistice terms with the Americans, but Wilson would only negotiate with a democratic government and therefore the Germans had to negotiate with the French and British, leading to the terrible Treaty of Versailles. I’d like to know more about the background there.) The WWII exhibit was interesting for different reasons. I learned that... the French had everything under control and we just supplied manpower! Apparently de Gaulle was the hero of WWII despite being snubbed by the Americans and Brits, being excluded from Yalta, etc. The French people heroically resisted and had the Germans continually baffled and reeling due to the Resistance. The panels went so far as to identify French Free units that fought at major battles – it would be talking about a portion of the history, describe a battle as a turning point, and then have something like “(which the 5^th Regiment of the French Free Forces under ___ held the right flank).” I don’t intend to demean the contributions of the Resistance at all, but I found the overall tone of the museum borderline humorous. It’s also sort of a good thing that I can’t read many museum descriptions, because I’m pretty bad about spending hours reading everything in the museum. Having it in French gives me a clean conscience.

This tourist grabbed two French boys half her age for a picture.

We went to a restaurant recommended by Rick Steve’s guidebook. It was on a side street full of cafes and little shops. As we coming in we met an Aggie ’03 who was leaving. The food was good, the weather was nice (we ate outside like good Parisians), and the people were interesting. While we were there we spotted three Rick Steve books coming/leaving the restaurant. Spotting Rick Steve books is an unofficial game now.

A few ways to spot an American: bare legs (everything is covered by at least dark hose), a sweater vest, a tight ponytail, sandals, a ball cap without a flat brim, or a fanny pack.

That night William and I headed back to the Arc d’Triomphe. The view was enjoyable, and its location made it a great place to enjoy Paris at night.