Discovery of the symbols of Paris with Emily

Emily - Alexandre III bridge

9:03 AM - With Emily, from Ohio (USA), our sports route crossed the seventh and eighth districts of Paris, known in particular for the big works and monuments we can find there. It is here that we shall meet the constructions which stayed after the 19th and 20th centuries World Fairs: the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Chaillot, the Palace of Iena, the Palace of Tokyo, "Petit" and "Grand Palais" and of course, the Alexandre III Bridge.

Had you noticed that on the Alexandre III Bridge are the symbols of France and Paris?

Alexandre III bridge - France and Paris Symbols

On the basis of most of the candelabras surrounding the bridge, you will find various representations of the symbols of France and Paris:

• On the left photo above, you can read "RF", which means French Republic. All the public buildings in France show these letters RF. A little farther, for example, on the left bank, at the east of the bridge, you will find these letters on the blazons of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
• In the middle, the Gallic cockerel ("Coq Gaulois") which is the national symbol of France, even if it is not as formalized as the bald eagle, national bird of the United States..
• Finally, on the right photo, you will find the blazon of Paris, the ship of the powerful Gallic corporation of the Nautes. The motto of Paris is bound to this blazon: "Fluctuat nec mergitur", Latin expression which means "It floats but does not sink". You can see this blazon on most of the public buildings of Paris. Moreover, we find it in big on the bridge again:

Alexandre III bridge - West side

We thus left the area of the Champ de Mars to go around the Invalides :

Emily - "Hôtel des Invalides" - South side

Emily - "Hôtel des Invalides" - North side

Meanwhile, we were able to admire, since the street, the Rodin museum and its beautiful garden:

Emily - Rodin museum : the garden, the museum and the The Burghers of Calais statue

To go on the right bank, we crossed the footbridge Léopold-Sédar-Senghor, with, by leaving the bridge, a beautiful point of view on the "Musée d'Orsay":

Emily - Orsay museum

By going back up the Champs-Elysées, we made a small detour to find again our symbols, the Gallic Cock and the letters RF:

Elysée palace - "Grille du Coq" (Railing of the Gallic cockerel)

If there is a place where we have to see these symbols, it is the Elysée Palace ("Palais de l'Elysée"), the residence of the President of the French Republic (equivalent to the White House for the USA), here on the Railing of the Cock which is in the South of the Palace garden.

By crossing the "Petit Palais", very Parisian monument, it is, this time, the Ship that we found again:

Emily - "Petit Palais" - Blazon of the Nautes

By entering the "Petit Palais", by raising the head towards the ceiling, we find once more the blazon, where we can even read it the motto " Fluctuat nec mergitur ":

Ceiling of the entrance of the "Petit Palais"

By leaving the "Petit Palais", here is again the Alexandre III Bridge and in the background the "Hôtel des Invalides" (in fact, the bridge was created to connect the Champs-Elysées to the "Invalides"):

Emily - Alexandre III bridge (right bank side) and left bank, in the background, the Invalides

By the way, do you know what represents this other symbol, a double-headed eagle, that we can also see at the bottom of the Alexandre III bridge lampposts? ; )

Merci Emily !

The route of the tour:

In Paris, under the pink morning light with Amy

Amy - Pont du Carrousel (Bridge of the Carrousel)

7:03 AM - Amy, from Florida, chose to make an early morning Paris Running Tour in this beautiful day of March 9th. The light was magnificent, giving a beautiful pink aspect to the landscape. At this hour, on Sunday morning, nobody in streets, very few cars, Paris for us alone and some other morning runners.

Look at the first picture above, from the "Pont du Carousel", look at the pink gradation which goes with the sunrise and shines on the river Seine and the buildings of the Louvre.

Admire the sight from the "Pont de la Concorde", on the east side:

Amy - Pont de la Concorde - In the background, from left to right : the Tuileries, the Sainte-Chapelle,
Notre-Dame, the Institute of France and the "Musée d'Orsay"

then, on the west side :

Amy - Pont de la Concorde - In the background, a big iron tower ;), the new banks
and the "Pont Alexandre III"

On Sunday morning, we can even stop in the middle of the road in front of the Champs-Elysées to take a photo without being afraid of cars:

Amy - "Place de la Concorde" - The Champs-Elysées, in the background, the "Arc de Triomphe"
and far, the "Grande Arche" of "la Défense"

While going back to the east, we stop at the entrance of the garden of the Tuileries, to make a small salute to the "Statue of the Fame" which sounds the triumph of the sun in Paris!

Amy - Garden of the Tuileries with in the background, from left to right, the copy of the Statue of the Fame, the "Grand Palais", the Obelisk of Louxor in the center of the "place de la Concorde"

A perfect weather, a beautiful light, ideal to run in Paris!

Merci Amy !

The route of the tour: