Showing posts with label #Chateau L'Isle Marie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Chateau L'Isle Marie. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Paris


View of Paris from
Sacré-Cœur
After leaving Iceland, we went to France as I wanted Hailey to see the beautiful Chateau de L'Isle-Marie in Normandy, but first a stop in one of my favorite’s cities in the world: Paris.

Of course, I wanted Hailey to see where I lived when I attended La Sorbonne and also to see the beautiful University, and all the touristic places that the city offers. 

We walked along the Seine. Obviously, we visited the Eifel Tower, the Champs Elysees, the Arch of Triumph, Sacré-Cœur, Montmartre, and Notre Dame, which breaks my heart to write about that beautiful church with so much history in it, and now some parts of it do not exist any longer due to the fire of a few days ago.

Anyway, only a week is not enough to see everything, so we saw the touristic places and spend a lot of time eating.

We did not take any of the free tours because I know all the places and its history, so, I was her guide. 

Sometimes I forget that most people don’t walk as much as I do. Hailey was dead tired by the time we finish, well, we finish every day because she was tired, I could have kept on going.

La Sorbonne

In 1253, Robert de Sorbon at the request of Louis IX opened a college for 16 needy students who wanted to study theology. The university comes to be known as La Sorbonne, and nowadays, it is still one of the most prestigious universities not just in Paris but in the world. The excellent reputation since the beginning transformed from humble beginnings into a prestigious and elitist university dedicated to culture, science, and art.

La Sorbonne taught many of the great philosophers and masters of theology and history. One of the most famous alumni is Marie Curie, physicist and chemist and the first woman professor at the university. 

The baroque architectural style of the building is magnificent, as is the Auberge de Jeunes, where I used to live. 

The Eifel Tower

The government wanted an impressive monument at the entrance of the World Fair from May 6 to October 31, 1889, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. 

Gustave Eiffel designed and built the tower which measures 324 meters = 1063 feet.
You can climb 1710 steps, or you can take an elevator to the top. The views from the top are magnificent, and you can see all of Paris at your feet.

Montmartre

Sacré-Coeur
Montmartre is the second largest hill in Paris, with the largest hill being in Belleville. It is situated in the 18th arrondissement, and it is better known for the white-domed Basilica of Sacré-Cœur and the Moulin Rouge.

The Basilica of Sacré-Coeur was built in the Roman-Byzantine style between 1876 and 1910 to commemorate the defeat of France in 1871 during the Franco-German War and as a tribute to the 58,000 lives lost.

You can take the funicular to the top, climb the stairs, or
you can walk through the back streets while seeing the picturesque bohemian neighborhood. And that is what we did. Once you reach the church, you will have a magnificent view of Paris. On the way down we walked the 222 steps through the Louise Michel public garden.

From there a visit to the famous and pictures cobblestone square of the Place du Tertre, filled with artist stalls painting and selling their beautiful colorful paintings. This square was the main square of a medieval village before being part of Paris.

And to the Moulin Rouge, the birthplace of the can-can. The Moulin Rouge is also famous for the paintings of Toulouse-Lautrec who was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist, and illustrator whose paintings of the provocative and sometimes decadent dance is among the best-known painters of the Post-Impressionist period as Cézanne, Van Gogh, and Gauguin.

You need a whole day to walk through Montmartre as there is much to see.

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Chateau L'isle Marie, Roman Conquest



The Chateau

 Julius Caesar conquered the area, that until that moment has been part of Gaul, in 56 BC.

They Gauls were many different Celts tribes that inhabited this area, however, during the Iron Age, their different cultures started to mingle and become one tribe. The Greeks and Romans called all these nations Celts or Gauls.

Anyway, this Celtic area became the Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis Secunda. Julius Cesar established his capital at Rotomagus, which today is the city of Rouen. The Romans founded many cities and built many roads. Actually, the road that we still use today going to Portbail has been built by the Romans.  Even that now it looks just like any other paved road.

Julius Caesar wanted to invade Romania because of its riches in precious metals. However, the Romans were afraid that Germany was going to invade the Gauls, as they already had crossed Switzerland toward France, crossing Romans territories. And if the Germans were able to conquer the Gauls, they would have a better advantage to also conquer Rome, and this was unacceptable.

Julius Caesar saw this as an opportunity to impress the Senate, so he embarked toward Gaul territory, and after he defeated the Germans and the Gauls submitted to Rome, he returned to Rome victorious.

Under the Roman rules, its inhabitants became Christianized in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Saint Mellon became the first bishop of Rouen in 260.

The Romans left in the 4th century when the Franks, a group of Germanic tribes started invading the region and subsequently conquered the area in the 5th century.

In 486 the area became part of the Frankish Merovingian kingdom of Neustria under King Clovis, until the 9th century when the Vikings arrived.

They called this area Neustria, meaning that Neustria was the new (French neuf; German neu) area colonized by the Franks since their settlement in northern Gaul. Neustria was the western kingdom while Austrasia was the eastern kingdom. And the castle was situated in Neustria.

There are no ruins left from the roman’s times, so no pictures from that era.

And it is from the word "Franks" that France derives its name.


All the dining room chairs have their coat of arm on them

Look at that gorgeous face
Twilight
. 

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Chateau de L'Isle Marie, La Mancha, Normandy, France




Chateau de L'Isle Marie, my home for the next month.

The history of this place is the reason I am volunteering here.

Actually, after the house sit in Puget-Théniers, I wanted to go to a vegetarian/yoga place to see if I can lose some of the weight I gained there. However, when I saw the post for the chateau and its history, I have to come here, and I am so glad I did. The place is magnificent. The chateau and the areas surrounding are breathtaking.

            Just in case you don’t know the nobility rankings.

The Chateau
            King, Queen
Prince, Princess
Duke, Duchess
Marquess, Marchioness
Earl, Countess
Viscount, Viscountess
Baron, Baroness
Lord, Lady
Knight

Earls D'Aigneaux 


The castle has been in the Earls D’Aigmeaux Family for the last 800 years. However, the history of this area and this spot started long before.


This area has been inhabited since the paleolithic times, and it has been invaded by many tribes and countries all through the centuries.
From the Romans to the Vikings, to the Germans in WWII. In the next weeks, I will be posting about all the invasions and occupations.




Entry hall

Side view of the grounds

Next post: The Roman Times.