The Louvre

I have never considered myself a great lover of fine art, nor have I ever remotely claimed to understand it, but I was very excited to visit the Louvre in Paris. Robb knows much, much more about art than I do, and has a greater appreciation, so it was nice to "learn" from him (and from the tour guide!) This was one of those places that we definitely wanted a tour guide, and it was worth paying for. She was great, and we really learned a lot.

This smaller version of the Arc de Triomphe (called the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel) was built to celebrate Napoleon's victories in 1805. It is in near perfect symmetry with the Arc de Triomphe (only 2 mm off) at the other end of the Champs-Elysees. In case you are wondering, I have my guide book out, and I am double checking my spellings!

The Louvre was first constructed in 1190 by King Philippe, as a palace and fortress. It was replaced in 1515 by Francois I, and each king afterward added on and enlarged it. Any way you look at it...it is so much older than anything we have here in America!

This is one of the bases of the medieval moat, dating back to 1190, when the Louvre was a fortress.

Sorry...this is out of order! But, it does kind of show the modernization of the Louvre as a world-famous art museum.

This helmet was found in the 1980's, during an excavation project by the Louvre, and from the style and gold metal, is believed that it could have belonged to royalty, possibly King Phillipe himself.

Other pieces found in excavation, dating back to the 12th century. Funny...dominoes has been around for awhile...it didn't originate with the Huff family after all! :)

This statue is called the Winged Victory, and was found in Greece, dating back to the late 3rd, early 2nd century B.C. The head has never been found. It is in incredibly impressive statue.

And, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci! Yes, we were allowed to take pictures! I'm assuming the plexi-glass protecting wall has something that protects it from flash photography, because it was allowed. What an incredibly beautiful painting--and it really does feel like her eyes are following you...a tad creepy! "Check" off of my life's "to-do" list! :)

Robb and I, posing with the Mona Lisa. (The little black things in our ears are headsets so that we could hear our tour guide better. The Louvre is very crowded and busy!)

Napoleon III had a set of apartments in one part of the Louvre. Again, it was very impressive and interesting. Of course, the piano caught our eye!

I love the chandeliers!

This is in the courtyard of the Louvre, looking up and out of the glass pyramid (built in 1989 by an American architect.) The pyramid allows natural light into the underground parts of the Louvre.

We went back at night, and it was even more beautiful all lit up.