September 2-4, 2018 - Paris

Since the London Temple was closed from September 2 through October 2 for cleaning, we had some time to do a little traveling.  Our first trip was to Paris with Elder Burkinshaw's brother Mark, sister-in-law Wendy, sister Robyn and Robyn's friend from her ward, Sharon Coombs.

Robyn, Mark and Elder Burkinshaw at St Pancras International train station where we met after Robyn arrived at Heathrow airport and we took the Eurostar train under the English Channel through the "Chunnel" (Channel Tunnel) to Paris. 

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw, Robyn, Sharon Coombs and Mark at the Paris Marriott executive lounge having a snack after a long day getting to Paris.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of the entrance to the square where the Louvre Museum is located.  Mark, Wendy, Robyn and Sharon went on a tour of the Louvre, a ride down the Seine River, the Eiffel Tower and the Notre Dame Cathedral but since Elder and Sister Burkinshaw had already done the "tour" in 2005, they just walked around Paris to the same sites. 

Sister Burkinshaw next to the Pyramide (which serves as the entrance to the Louvre) and the Louvre.  The Louvre is the worlds largest art museum with nearly a million square feet of floor space and over 38,000 pieces of art.  You could spend several days at the museum and not begin to see it all and can easily become lost within. It hosts 8+ million visitors annually (most were there that day ;-).  The Louvre began as a 12th century castle and after it was no longer strategic for defense, became a palace.  In 1682, Louis XIV moved his residence to Versailles Palace and left the Louvre to exhibit his extensive art collection.  Thus it evolved into a museum and Paris' most famous historic monument. 

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw with Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" painted about 1505.

The Mona Lisa has been described as "the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world". The Mona Lisa is also one of the most valuable paintings in the world worth about $800 million in 2017.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of the Arc de Tiomphe du Carrousel, one of several famous gates in Paris.  This one is located adjacent to the Louvre Museum.

From the Louvre, Elder and Sister Burkinshaw strolled about 2 miles down the Seine River (a very peaceful and serene walk) to the Eiffel Tower.  As we were walking, we noticed what appeared to be an Egyptian Obelisk in the distance.

In 2014 when we visited Egypt, we visited the Luxor Temple where we observed that one of its two obelisks was missing.  We were told that the missing obelisk was in Paris.

The Luxor obelisk is over 3,000 years old and was originally situated outside of Luxor Temple, where its twin remains to this day. It first arrived in Paris on 21 December 1833, having been shipped from Luxor via Alexandria and Cherbourg, and three years later, on 25 October 1836, was moved to the centre of Place de la Concorde by King Louis-Phillipe. It was given to France by Muhammad Ali Pasha, Ruler of Ottoman Egypt.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower is a wrought iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris.  It is named after Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower in 1887-89 as the entrance to the 1889 World's Fair.  It was initially criticized by France's leading artists but has become a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world.  It is the most-visited paid monument in the world with over 7 million visitors annually.  When our 4-year-old granddaughter Rosie saw this photo, she said "Grandma and Grandpa are in Paris!"  She had become familiar with the Eiffel Tower watching Peppa Pig on holiday in France!

Sister Burkinshaw in front of Notre Dame Cathedral.  Notre-Dame is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité of Paris. The cathedral is widely considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture.  It was begun in 1160 and largely completed by 1260.  In the 1790s, Notre-Dame suffered desecration during the French Revolution when much of its religious imagery was damaged or destroyed. Soon after the publication of Victor Hugo's novel "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" in 1831, popular interest revived and a major restoration project began in 1845 and continued for twenty-five years. In 1963, centuries of soot and grime were cleaned from the Cathedral facade, returning it to its original color. Another cleaning campaign was carried in 1991-2000. 

Inside the Notre Dame Cathedral facing the altar.  It was wonderfully cool place to rest inside compared to the very hot (85°F) and humid day outside.

Looking towards the back of the cathedral.  Notice the organ pipes on the second level which appear very similar to those in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City.

Panoramic photo of the 14th century painted wood carvings of the life of Jesus on Choir Screen inside Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris.

Wendy, Mark, Elder Burkinshaw, Robyn and Sharon Coombs at a sidewalk restaurant (George V) in Paris with the Arc de Triomphe Champs-Élysées (at the center of Place Charles de Gaulle) in the background.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw, Robyn and Mark with the Arc de Triomphe Champs-Élysées.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Paris Temple which was dedicated in 2017.  The Temple is located in Versailles, which is about 30 minutes west of downtown Paris.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw with the Christus statue in the courtyard of the Paris Temple.

A panoramic shot of the courtyard of the Paris Temple, left to right is the Christus statue, the visitors center (which is attached to the Temple), the Paris Temple and the patron housing building.  The gardens are very pretty and well cared-for.

Inside the Visitors Center, there is a scale model of the temple with cut-away walls so you can see how the temple appears inside.  The basement level has the baptismal font, the ground level the Brides Room and the upper level the two-stage endowment rooms.

The ground level shows the entrance with the recommend desk and the upper level shows the relatively simple but beautiful Celestial Room

The grand staircase with the sealing room located on the upper level of the Temple.

The Paris Temple model from the front inside the visitors center.

We saw many interesting historic sites in Paris, but the quiet, beautiful, stately Paris Temple was the highlight of our trip.


Elder and Sister Burkinshaw