Plus de Cannes

Cannes

I don't have much historical information on Cannes since I went there for my vacation weekend, but I can tell you that it is absolutely beautiful. I'm determined to go back one day, because two days just wasn't enough. The area that I stayed in was a quaint beach town, with plenty of restaurants, gelato shops, and shopping to do. Ten minutes in the direction of the yacht yard, and you'll cross Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Prada, Miu Miu, and a handful of other designer stores that are just slightly out of my price range. The window displays proudly showed off their prices, which caused some of our jaws to drop. Welcome to Cannes!

Some culture shock I got to experience there? Topless beaches. Oh, my. From 13 year-old girls to women in their eighties, the French didn't hold back. The four other girls I went with were just as taken aback, and felt very uncomfortable at first; especially when a very kind, but very naked, 70 year-old women approached us topless and asked us to watch her things as she went for a swim. But she had the right idea- the water was the perfect temperature for cooling off from the heat. Both Saturday and Sunday were in the high 70s, and half of our time was definitely spent in the water to cool down. We took turns jumping off the small dock along the beach, too, much to the amusement of some French vacationers.

There was a bit of a downfall to the trip when my friends' wallet was stolen, but overall, I don't regret any part of the trip. It's a beautiful city with so much to do, and I truly hope it wasn't my first and last time there.

Opéra de Paris

Last Thursday (I know, I'm a little behind on these posts), our Art & Architecture class went to the Opéra de Paris, also known as the Opéra National de Paris. After the original Opera house burned down, Napoleon III and Haussman worked together to find someone who would help bring about the Reconstruction of Paris.

Haussman organized a competition, accepting applications for a design of the new Opera. A relatively unknown architect, Charles Garnier, managed to win the competition and began working on the architecture of what would become known as the Palais Garnier. His design focused on Corinthian columns, mosaics, marble, and lavish decor. When asked what style his design was, he responded with "The design of Napoleon III." In 1875, the Opera opened its first performance to the public; ironically, Garnier had to pay for his ticket in order to attend.

The Opera house not only has phenomenally ornate architecture on the inside and out, but underneath. There are many levels below the stage, and once was even a subterranean lake. During construction, the lake had to be pumped out because of the swampy foundation it created; the flood of 1910 effected the Opera house as well, with a damaging amount of water finding its way back to the underground lake.

Today, operas, ballets, concerts and recitals are all performed on a regular basis at the theater, which seats 2,200 people.