Monday, May 21, 2007
Alma Metro Station
I took this photo at the Alma metro station (Line 9) - FYI Alma is a place in Crimea where, apparently, France and England fought together against Russia in 1854. If you walk up these stairs you'll see right away a "monument" called La Flame de la liberté (liberty flame), a replica of the flame that the Statue of Liberty holds in her hand. This monument is now used by all Lady Diana worshipers, for this is also where Diana died (precisely in the Tunnel de l'Alma). I already showed this flame here at the very beginning of this blog.
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Yes, there seem to be a lot of people who think the Flame statue actually is there for Princess Di, mistakenly believing that the French were as obsessed with her as some Brits were. This rather annoys the French authorities, who carefully remove Diana tributes laid at the base of the statue on a regular basis, but they keep getting replaced!
ReplyDeleteOh, boy, two Metro signs in the same picture, oh goody!!! :D
ReplyDeleteI absolutely adore these signs. Somebody apparently brought a couple back to the States a while back and tried to put them up for sale on e-Bay for a lot of money, but I guess, no takers or maybe not this time. I just can't picture these things used as decorations in someone's living room, but who knows, we've seen strangest things happen...
Thanks for this "every day" shot, sure to make more than one expat homesick when they'll log later today or tomorrow!
By the way, SAB, why are the authorities so annoyed with the flowers? It doesn't seem to be that big of a deal to me. They're just flowers!
ReplyDeleteI like the symmetrical composition and that sky! It made me think of some of the symmetrical shots in Fritz Lang's "Die Nibelungen: Siegfried" for some reason. Maybe it was the "Metro" signs which could be abbreviations of "Metropolis," or the monumental gateway effect...
ReplyDeleteAlma. Not sure I could have placed it in Crimea... we know so little!
ReplyDeleteLouis la Vache recommended a nice book: The Paris Metro: A Ticket to French History by Susan L. Plotkin.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm one of the naive tourist who thought that the flame was an emblem for Diana, esp. with all the flowers surrounding it.
ReplyDeleteLooking at the thumbnail from the portal, I thought it was a photo of two crosses. Could be the same I guess...I pray to the Metro God every time I enter "metro-hell".
ReplyDeleteTomate, I think the authorities are more annoyed with the letters and photos taped to the gold statue than they are with the flowers.
What a beautiful framing!
ReplyDeleteI remember this area and the flame, but I knew it was not originally a monument in honor of Diana. I passed by the tunnel in the very spot she died.
Oh and last week I saw this french movie "Fauteuils d'orchestre" which is set in the area of Avenue Montaigne, so the flame - and the flowers - appeared in it many times!
This photograph, depicts so much more than a 'metro exit'. It is the definitive first view of Paris that millions of vistors get on first arriving in the city. In the same fashion, one catches a first glimpse of New York as one emerges from the darkened caverns of Penn Station
ReplyDeleteCrimée… Crimée…
ReplyDelete"Crimée… châtiment", de Pierre Dac et Francis Blanche, pour les amateurs de grands classiques radiophoniques thuriféraires du Grand Babu.
What a coincidence!!!
ReplyDeleteOne of my best friends is in Paris now for a job and he called me an hour ago to tell me that he was having a coffee in the shop right next to the entrance of Alma station.
It is one of my favorite spots for a coffee or a last drink in Paris.
Eric, M.Benaut is at L'Alliance Francaise taking his lesson but he loves this photo so much that it's his screen saver today. Thank you for the history lesson about 1854 - fascinating. Diana - the people's princess.
ReplyDeleteLovely view, coming up into the open with such a gorgeous sky. I do hope you took a photo of the flame? I know you've done it before but i do miss Diana and would love to see a new shot.
ReplyDeleteEric, I'm glad to see that there's a bit of blue sky in Paris again. The weather in Richmond is frequently "no go" for city photography right now!! aaarghh!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, the police are getting very touchy about photography around transport installations. That is totally un-British, but it's starting to happen here. How is it in Paris these days?
I was fooled too. I thought it was two crosses.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I'm 'guessing' what the attitude of the French authorities could be, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if they felt rather cheesed off at one of their proud national symbols being usurped by something as uncultured as an anglosaxon icon of all things, even if they weren't particularly anti-Diana or anything like that. I tend to get a bit carried away in my thoughts and my postings sometimes, but the fact remains : flowers and Diana tributes don't generally make it through the night and I'm sure the cleaners have a remit to get rid of everything.
ReplyDeleteVery lovely photo. For lynn and Mon I'll post about the wedding later on my blog. Soooooo tired.
ReplyDelete"Fauteuils d'Orchestre" is a wonderful film. Eric, next time you're in that district, how about a shot of the café/restaurant that was its centrepiece?
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to the area for a while. I did see the flame and the tributes to Diana on one visit. Many eulogies and prayers written on the wall, sidewalk, in numerous languages, near the flame. Though graffiti, it was very touching. Didn't seem tacky because of the sincerity of emotion.
ReplyDeleteThis is a nice photo: I feel the excitement of entering Paris from the airport, or emerging from the Metro near the Seine, the Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, St. Germain, or any of your favorite spots.
Ah, OK, I understand. Well, something tells me they better get used to it. (Even the Royal family in England had to get used to Diana's popularity.)
ReplyDeleteMaybe they could build her a little memorial nearby where people actually could come deposit flowers and stuff because people are just gonna keep doing it anyway, so might as well accommodate it, no? Granted, she was not DeGaulle or Franklin D. Roosevelt, but after all, she did die around there and she was a worldwide celebrity, those are undisputable facts.
Regarding the flame at Place de l'Alma, it was there years before Diana's unfortunate death.
ReplyDeleteThe flame, which is indeed a replica of the one from the Statue of Liberty, was given to the city of Paris in 1987 by the International Herald Tribune, on the occasion of the newspaper's centennial in Paris (where the American newspaper is still based).
So yes, the flame at Place de l'Alma is a symbol of French-American friendship, much like the original statue of liberty.
Perhaps that is why the city is not too pleased by the mourners flocking there. I confess that I was a bit taken aback not by flowers, but by peaople having etched Diana and Dodi's names and messages to them, into the statue of the flame (which was later restored).
And for the record, Paris has created a "square" in honor princess Di. But it is nowhere near that tunnel.
For more on the subject of the flame, go here:
http://www.iht.com/articles/1998/03/20/edgwen.t.php
The very first time I came to Paris, La Flame de la Liberte was the first monument I saw. We popped up out of this Metro station looking for les bateaux mouches, and there it was! Beautiful! I even sent a postcard of it to myself to commemorate my first Parisian monument (I am the first to admit that I am a sentimental geek).
ReplyDeleteEric, I was away yesterday and didn't get to post, but was very thrilled to hear that there is something new in store for PDP!!! Can't wait to see - thanks for all your hard work!!!!
That's a great idea tomate. Even if there is a square or something in honor of Lady Di somewhere else, it would be benificial to put one near the torch because people will continue to leave tributes where she died.
ReplyDeleteExpat, that is a great idea. I'd love to see that cafe/restaurant here at PDP too!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment and the link to the Herald Tribune article, Anon. After reading the article (the lady saying "write to Chirac" especially amused me), I get the feeling that ParisSetMeFree was right about the underlying reason why the some of the locals and the authorities find the graffitis, letters, etc., disturbing.
ReplyDeleteYes, the Flame was there before the accident (and I agree with you, by the way, people should not be defacing that Flame!) but let's face it, you're NEVER gonna stop the flow of people going to what they view almost like another Ground Zero. Maybe they just ought to move that Flame some place else and erect a little something for Diana there, instead, even if only a plaque on the ground with a sign saying where to go deposit flowers instead?
By the way, if I'm not mistaken, this location is in the 16th or 8th arrondissement, no? Dina may have been a people's Princess but these areas are definitely not "people's" friendly if memory serves.
Hopefully, the new President will not try to have the authorities take a Karcher to these flowers and pictures.
Hey, soosha, long time! How was the wedding? Are you done with Harry Potter already?
ReplyDelete"I pray to the Metro God every time I enter "metro-hell".
ReplyDeleteMichael, dear, you are starting to turn into a True Parisian. ;)
I miss Paris the most when I see those Metro signs. Thanks for the great photo and story :)
ReplyDelete