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Published: July 15th 2015
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Reims
Notre Dame de Reims Monday 13 July 2015
From our hotel on the outskirts of Reims it was a fairly quick drive into the city for a day of exploring à pied. We wanted to see the famous Cathedral with its stained glass windows but had no real idea what else we might find. Today's temperature was predicted to be a pleasant 23 degrees, so we were glad to find a large carpark situated under shady trees. Returning to a hot car is nobody's favourite end to a great day.
Without a city map we sniffed the breeze to see what direction we should walk in to find the Cathedral and the Office du Tourisme where a map would reveal all. It wasn't the breeze that helped, we just followed people who seemed to know where they were going. Where they were going was the shops, but this gave us a chance to admire the gracious old buildings while we kept an eye open for signs of the Cathedral, or at least signs to the Cathedral. Having passed the large Opera House and Palace of Justice we glanced around a corner and there it was, one tower visible at the end of the
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Chagall windows. street. "Find the Cathedral, find the Tourist Office" worked again, and very soon we were well-informed tourists with a city map.
Notre Dame Cathedral of Reims is a wonderful huge historic building. It has witnessed the coronations of many kings of France, including that of Charles Vll, made possible by the efforts of Joan of Arc and others. For us, the history of this place over many centuries is fascinating, and was explained by very helpful static displays around the interior. The impact of the stunningly beautiful stained glass windows is hard to explain. Windows by Chagall and more recently Imi Knoebel saturate the viewer with colour and light. Simply amazing. The famous Rose Windows at the west end are under refurbishment and only part of one was visible during our visit. The portion we did see was so vivid with blues and reds, that we hope we can return one day and see the completed restoration. Outside, the facade is magnificent, particularly the portion that has been cleaned.
A little shopping beckoned, as we spotted another very large building, a little like Kirkcaldie and Stains in Wellington, just bigger. This was Galleries Lafayette, filled with worldly goods
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Imi Knoebel windows. of the finest quality. Having whetted our appetites for luxury, it was a natural progression to stop at a champagne shop and do a little looking. This is the famous Champagne region of France, so we needed to have this overview of a large range of product before tomorrow's planned Champagne Route drive.
On we went, stopping to admire more of the large graceful buildings lining Royal Square and surrounding wide boulevards. There is a great deal of cleaning and restoration going on in the city Centre, which will make such a difference when complete.
Heading back to the shady carpark we stopped to enjoy a musical interlude provided by a large and varied fun fair. Children and parents were enjoying the roundabouts with their colourful vehicles flying up and down, and a long Sharks' Alley would be a lively part of the scene as the end of the day approached. Perhaps this is set up ready for tomorrow's national holiday, Bastille Day. We should get an early night in preparation for the fun.
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