In the centre of Paris you have sites such as Notre Dame, the Seine and the Pantheon. If I were to compare these sites with a Renoir or a Monet then my first impression of the Cite de le Musique has the artistic merits of a pop-art postcard.
A nice postcard though.
There is a nice fountain in the middle of a wide brick courtyard. A large concert hall behind it with an extensive awning supported a lattice of steel pylons.
I leave my uncle with a cup of coffee and a newspaper and I walk along a path with a covering of corrugated iron that has been shaped into a wavy pattern.
I pass a small children's playground which uses the same wavy shape for hills and tunnels to play on.
It's all very 'modern art' which I can quickly become tired with.
I cross a canal and watch some boats pass. I walk through some more park areas.
I am thinking I have seen enough when I notice the Cite Des Sciences building and the impressive Geode in front of it.
La Geode is about 3/4 of a metal sphere with a flat bottom 36m in diameter. It has a highly reflective chrome like surface which nicely mirrors the surrounding buildings, walkways, waterways, sky, trees and even a nearby raised black submarine, depending upon your angle of approach.
The surface isn't completely spherical as it is made up of many triangular surfaces about 50 cm per side. This produces wavering irregularities in the reflections.
I have to say, I have never seen anything like it elsewhere in the world.
I return to my uncle quite satisfied with my exploration and a higher opinion of the surrounds. A Miro perhaps?
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