At Louvre I wasn't particularly eager to see so many things, except this Nike. I had been fascinated by the image since I saw it in the art textbook when I was in elementary school. The real sculpture was exactly I imagined. It was located in the center of large landings just under the skylight. It was divine. It looked like as if the goddess had flown down from the sky on the ship. I cannot believe that mankind could create such a purely beautiful thing. If I ever had a spiritual moment in my life, I think this is it. When I feel like I am battling against something this goddess image bestows me strength.
I spent a whole hour to see, feel and photograph the masterpiece from every perspectives.
But whatever I was inspired especially by the statue I'm sure I might look like just the same with other tourist who happily rushed for the Nike, the Venus and the Mona Lisa. Of course I was one of them too. I think every male and female, young or old, gets happy when they see beautiful women, and it is very nice to join the pleasure.
Good morning, and Merry Christmas to you all! This is Paris in November so almost nothing here is related to Christmas day, but I'd just like to say hi to dear readers with one of my favorite moments in Paris. This was a really shiny good morning, and wish you all have wonderful Christmas morning!
In 2006 I first went to Paris. Since then I think of the city as the most beautiful city of all. Of course I don't know other charming cities all around world and I love some cities more than Paris, still, the City of Light has overwhelming and magnetic power to make people feel that they are at the center of something called beauty. It's like the citizens in Paris has a special 6th sense to feel what is beautiful, like we can sense what it is like to taste, see, hear, touch, and smell. It's probably a natural gift those who living with L'air de Paris can get.
I'm kind of not good at shooting religious architectures. The reasons are like I'm not sure where to pick up and focus on my photo as these churches and temples are usually so large and have so many architectural and/or religious features to look at. Plus, if I sense an aura of divinity I think I might not be able to catch it and record on photo. Also I feel awkward to take camera to the place where people pray. So I seldom shoot them.
But one day in Copenhagen I happend to enter into a beautiful church at the center of the city. It was awesome. There I saw white and neat space surrounded with cozy and warm atmosphere. They made some christmas decoration around the isle and altar as simple as possible. Ray of light came from the high window and skylight. There were just peace and quiet.
The calm satisfaction made me take some photo without any pressure or uneasiness. Then I hoped I would be able to come back to visit there again in some future.
On sunny Christmas day in Copenhagen I took a long walk across the city all day in chilly wind. Surely by the evening time I was so tired of walking and searched for warm place to rest. Then I was in front of Copenhagen Admiral hotel, which looked nice and was really marvelous. It was an uniquely and beautifully renovated historical warehouse with charm so unforgettable. Characterized by its large wooden pillars and beams, the lobby had mixed sense of dynamics, stability and coziness. On the comfortable arm chair I took a good rest in warm room as much as I wished and admired the classic christmas tree decoration in the quietness.
Copenhagen in December was chilly and snowy (sometimes with rain). It was not ideal for most people to spend their vacation. Actually several local people I met asked why I chose the city on that cold season. I might be a minority but to me the meanings of vacation is not just sunlight, warm sea and laid-back holidays (of course I know those are very wonderful). Vacations give me superb and new experience in my life and I enjoy them most in my travel. So when I happened to discover this lovely public ice skate link in the middle of the city of Copenhagen with lots of people having fun in the falling snow, I felt so happy to see it and thanked the opportunity.
On Christmas 2005 I visited Copenhagen for the first time and it opened my eyes to whole new experience; since then I really got to love travels. I chose Denmark just because I had strong interest in Scandinavian design and architectures. I only booked flights and hotel and took off with a guidebook, and it was enough. To me travel means freedom. I know the importance of itinerary to use as much time as possible, but I think once you get to the destination you can count on tourist information or hotel concierge anytime.
So I got to Copenhagen and walked around as I liked. Christmas was almost
there and every cafe, restaurant, streets and store showcase around the corner was decorated beautifully. I had lots of fun time spending walking down these streets whose name I didn't get at all (as they were not written in English but it was okay) and sitting in cozy cafes. The whole travel was like celebration of free time. That was one of the most amazing christmas ever.
