This motto and coat of arms was first used in the 1300s and since then Paris has been under attack many many times. Here is a short list:
1400s - The Bubonic Plague kills one third of the population
The Hundred Years war
1500s -The Wars of Religion (Protestant vs Catholic)
1600s - Invasions by the English and the Burgundians
1700s - Revolutionaries turn Paris into a bloodbath
1800s - Prussians invade
1900s - Germans invade
2000s - IS terrorists
Paris has long been considered the city of culture, learning, art and architecture, a beacon of civilization in the Western World, the City of Light, and, of course, country of "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité". France has one of the longest, strongest democracies and economies in Europe. It is a country I have come to love over the years, as you all know, and though I am presently in the States, my heart is in France.
I have been asked if I still want to live there. Of course!! Did people stop living in NYC or OKC or Boston or London or Madrid? Those cities have all had their share of terrorist attacks in the past few years. It is still my belief that most people want to live in peace with each other and as long as there is that hope and desire then the world is a better place.
I thank you for reading my blog. May I also recommend Rick Steves' facebook page and his commentary on the recent attacks in Paris. He says it all so well.
And now for some of my most favorite photos of Paris:
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| The Sacré Coeur |
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| Le Tour Eiffel |
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| A statue in St Sulpice |
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| Notre Dame |
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| Monet's waterlily panel in the Orangerie |
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| The glass dome of the Galeries Lafayettes department store |
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| Place de la Concorde |
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| A view of the river Seine |
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| An old postcard I found in Paris |
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