Monday, June 05, 2006

Le Grande Arche de La Défense


This is The Grande Arche de la Fraternité located in La Défense, the thouroughly modern business district across the North Branch of the Seine. One of the most endearing things about Paris is that the city government has zoned everything in such away that there is rarely a big ol' modern building next to a quaint little historic cottage. In ways, this arch, also known as La Grande Arche is a monument to that very idea, Paris's victory over ignorance, and her marching forth into the next generation. The arch is HUGE, and almost perfectly cubical (108m, by 110m, by 112m). I'm sure to put up a bunch more pictures of it because it just reeks of interesting information that you can get nowhere else but right here, unless you want to pay the 7.5 €s to get inside and on top of the arch. The most incredible thing about the Arch to me is that it stands as the intersection of the Axe Historique, and what I call the Axe de Tours, which connects the Grande Arche, The Eiffel Tower, and the Tower Montparnasse. I'll write all about these things tomorrow, but its getting late, and I really just want to go to bed.

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