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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2012 21:56:07 GMT
People are supposed to learn this in school, but there is not one place called the Bastille in France -- there is also the Bastille fort in Grenoble. The people of Grenoble are regularly annoyed when reference is made to the Bastille in Paris as being the one and only Bastille. They are extremely proud of their Bastille, and at least it still exists, unlike the one in Paris, so I decided that I should finally see it. Like many people, I had been to Grenoble at least half a dozen times without ever visiting the Bastille. It just seems complicated to go up there, whereas in fact it is not complicated at all. On top of that, I could see it from my hotel room. To the left was just basically the Isère river, but to the right, the Bastille was indeed up there on top of the mountain. There has been a cable car to go up there since the 1930's. However, in 1976 a new system was inaugurated. It is not for the weak of heart. It all seems normal at first. The fare is a bit strange: 7.05€ for the round trip. You ride in a plexiglas bubble. There was something to prevent the door from closing completely. I suppose it is because in the summer heat, you would completely cook in the bubble, so they decided that they had to let a bit of air inside. (It is hot anyway.) It is not reassuring with no seat belt. What if the door pops open?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2012 22:05:07 GMT
Actually, the little crack in the door allowed me to get some pictures without having to shoot them through the aging plastic. (Yes, I had to lean forward to the gap to push my camera lens through and once again imagine the door springing open.)
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Post by htmb on Jul 28, 2012 22:19:52 GMT
Beautiful photographs!
Glad you didn't fall out.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 29, 2012 1:41:01 GMT
Yes, I knew there had been several bastilles and that it was a generic term. However, I don't think I could possibly get into that thing and go up there, unless heavily sedated. I have nightmares about that sort of thing.
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Post by mich64 on Jul 29, 2012 3:15:44 GMT
How many people travel up and down in each plexi glass bubble? I have been up many mountains on many different sized cable cars and different sized funiculars, but I do not know if I could do this... Grenoble is much larger than I expected, like a super sized Chamonix.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2012 5:05:57 GMT
Six people are supposed to be able to fit into each pod, sitting back to back.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2012 5:41:56 GMT
There are all sort of things up at the Bastille -- an art museum, the Alpine troops museum, restaurants, but also mostly adventure activities and hiking trails.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2012 5:51:25 GMT
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Post by mossie on Jul 29, 2012 7:06:27 GMT
You fooled me again! In common with practically all Britons, I thought there was only one Bastille ;D
An excellent photo essay, thanks for introducing us to another part of France.
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Post by tod2 on Jul 29, 2012 7:34:58 GMT
I really enjoyed that ride Kerouac - Like Mossie, I too thought of only one Bastille. I would never have imaged Grenoble to be such a large city. Thanks for the lovely pics and stunning views!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2012 8:13:23 GMT
Others may disagree, but frankly, I don't think that Grenoble is a very pretty city. Its geographic location is exceptional, but its architecture has suffered a lot, one reason being the 1968 Winter Olympics. The 1960's, in France just like in many other countries, were the decade of "let's tear this old stuff down and replace it with something modern." Grenoble wanted to show that it was a modern city in 1968, so it disposed of the remains of it medieval ramparts and lots of other historical edifices. It still remains defensive about the changes that were wrought, because I noticed that when the ugly expressway running along the river was mentioned somewhere, it was accompanied with the additional information "the construction of which was approved by a referendum." Naturally, it has great sports equipment, albeit a bit 1960-ish, and it has lots of public housing that was converted from the Olympic village and other things. For example, these flats used to be the Olympic press centre. It is one of the principal university cities of France, specialised in the scientific domain and has more the 65,000 students, for those of you who thought that Grenoble was a small town. The university campus in Saint Martin d'Hères even has its own train station. Anyway, even if the city is not beautiful, it still has quite a bit of charm, and the students also make it one of the principal cycling towns of France.
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Post by htmb on Jul 29, 2012 12:48:06 GMT
The city is very different from what I pictured in my mind. I love the second shot in "reply number 1." What a beautiful view of the city!
By the position of your feet in the first group of photos, it looks like you are standing in the doorway. Did you stand like that to take most of your photos and did the car sway as you rode up and down? I'm feeling a bit dizzy thinking about it!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2012 14:35:32 GMT
There was a notice: "Do not sway the cars!" Cable cars always sway a little anyway when they pass the support pillars on the way up or down. I was sitting when I took that picture. There were six little seats set around the central axis, and the plexiglas just wrapped around you with just a small bit of solid floor.
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Post by lola on Jul 29, 2012 15:00:46 GMT
Wonderful, Kerouac. Thank you. Has anyone seen more of France than you?
I kind of like the public housing flats.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2012 14:36:27 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2012 4:18:11 GMT
It's a bird ......... it's a plane ............. it's Kerouac!
You flew over that city to make this astounding thread. Thank you so much. I enjoyed it thoroughly, but know I'd be too timid to ever get into that deathtrap contraption.
Does bastille have the same root as bastion?
Are you still there & can we look forward to more fabulous pics of the place?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2012 5:38:08 GMT
Actually, I was in Grenoble for less than 24 hours. My historical dictionary says that bastille is derived from bastide, a term of military architecture designating a fortification. Bastide is derived from old provençal (bastida), which came from Latin and is the same root as the verb bâtir (to build). Bastion arrived in France about 500 years later from the Italian bastione. It also came from medieval Latin bastia. Since it also refers to a fortification, you would think that the two words would be more closely linked, but apparently they developed completely separately in the two countries.
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Post by bjd on Jul 31, 2012 8:22:10 GMT
Thanks for these pictures, Kerouac. We spent a week in Grenoble about 10 years ago -- we walked up to the Bastille on a hot day and were surprised to see joggers running up at noon! It was late June and really hot.
The main problem with Grenoble is its geographical location -- it sits in a "bowl" surrounded by mountains so it has great views but little wind to cool it when the weather is hot. And I agree that it's not a pretty place -- partly due to the colour of the building stone.
There is a particular atmosphere in Grenoble -- lots of students and very sports-minded, so you see loads of people dressed in sports clothes all year round. Apparently the Parc Mistral in the city is full of slacklines. And in winter you are able to ski just half an hour out of town.
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Post by lagatta on Aug 1, 2012 21:24:04 GMT
Florence is also in a bowl: though the hills around it are much less steep, it is also farther south, so it is a real "cuve" in hot weather. Bjd is right about the impact of "vernacular" building stone - I can see the difference even with Lyon, or Turin - didn't notice it when I passed through there, as I was so taken with the views.
bjd - sporting clothing all year round - Yes, seems more like Vancouver than any French city!
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Post by bjd on Aug 2, 2012 6:08:52 GMT
Yes, Lagatta -- they're all wearing Quechua!
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Post by nycgirl on Aug 3, 2012 13:01:43 GMT
Wow, you are brave to take a ride in that pod. And you managed to get some great shots through that little crack. Risking life and limb really paid off. I think Grenoble seems like a reasonably nice-looking city, but perhaps it looked more quaint before the 1960s. It is a shame when a city bulldozes its historical buildings in favor of novelty. Glad you spotted a Jerome Mesanger figure (last photo in #6). I'm always pleased to his work.
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