This cathedral has suffered through many battles and wars, most notably the Great War of 1914-18. The town of Soissons was 80% destroyed during that war, and the cathedral was heavily damaged. The town was rebuilt; the cathedral was restored.
The interior of the cathedral stands in stark contrast to the exterior. The Michelin guidebook uses phrases like absolument symétrique in praising la beauté intérieure de l'édifice, calling it une merveille de grâce...
When seeing these beautuiful photos, the words that came to my mind were, extremely elegant, especialy the transept, on extreme left on photo #1, and on photo #4.
ReplyDeleteSoissons is not the only one not completed cathedral.
Some cathedrals missing one front tower, Auxerre, Meaux, Strasbourg ..
DeleteHere is a link to some of the most beautiful cathedrals in France.
Deletehttps://theluxurytravelexpert.com/2015/01/19/top-10-most-beautiful-cathedrals-of-france/
I looked at that beautiful cathedrals site. There is only one out the 10 cathedrals that I've never seen: Strasbourg. I've never been to Alsace.
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DeleteThe eleventh one would be Saint-Sernin in Toulouse and then, Le Mans, Bayeux ....without forgetting Sées that we’ve seen together. France is chockfull of churches, abbeys and cathedrals worth seeing. And what about chateaux?
ReplyDeleteWell, thanks to you, I have seen all of them.
The Strasbourg cathedral is built in a kind of stone that is somewhat brownish in color (the same as the chateau du Haut-Koenisbourg) that makes it special.
I've seen the cathedrals in Toulouse, Bayeux, and Le Mans. And I've seen TV shows about Strasbourg and its cathedral.
Deletehttps://youtu.be/4zTelcgxbaA
DeleteAujourd’hui, c’est l’anniversaire de ta maman et de Jeanine qui aurait 97 ans. J’ai une pensée pour elles.
ReplyDeleteJ'ai pensé à Maman ce matin, bien sûr, et à Jeanine aussi. Maman aurait 92 ans si elle était toujours parmi nous.
DeleteI love those ceilings
ReplyDeleteMe too.
DeleteHow is the refrigerator saga going, Ken? 7 years is frustratingly short. Maybe it has turned out to just be an (expensive) electronic part? Maybe better, at least, than a whole new fridge? But, as you pointed out, when the fridge needs to be replaced, everything has to be in a rush.
ReplyDeleteI've never been to, or spent much time looking at, the cathedral in Soissons. Thanks for this :)
And... even though they don't have stained glass, I also include several Romanesque cathedrals in my thoughts of "the most beautiful cathedrals in France" :)
As for the refrigerator, the repairman came by just before lunchtime today. He said the motor has conked out. I'm not sure what the motor does or is. He said he would be back with a devis (a sort of binding estimate) for the repair job early in the afternoon. It's about 5 pm now and we haven't seen hide nor hair of him. I'll have to go back to his store tomorrow morning and see what I can find out. I think we'll just have to order a new refrigerator.
DeleteWell, it's a new refrigerator. I called the store late this afternoon, and I learned that the cost of repairing the old fridge would be 650 euros. A new one costs 780 euros. The old one cost 629 euros, 6½ years ago. I guess 100 euros a year for a fridge is not all that expensive.
DeleteI hope the new refrigerator gives you more than 6 1/2 years. Did the repairman charge you for his call?
ReplyDeleteNo, he didn't charge us anything. I have to go over to the store again this morning and pay for the new fridge. I just hope they really will deliver it on Tuesday. The store isn't open on Sunday or Monday.
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