A Visit to Notre Dame de Paris

As I put my first step inside the world famous cathedral of Notre Dame, I wondered if I would have thought to visit this church, like many other tourists, had Victor Hugo not written his famous novel called ‘Notre Dame de Paris’. After all, there are lots of Cathedrals within the city of Paris, and I do not know many of them. Anyway, the church of Notre Dame has its own air of magnificence which attracts the visitors from all over the world.

I had long been undecided whether I should pay my respects to the said church but I was not disappointed by my visit itself. One of my friend happened to visit this church and for him the interior of the church was nothing but a complete disappointment. He then took the pain of practically discouraging all of acquaintances to pay for a visit, a sort of viral de-marketing one can say. However, in my case, the results of interior were quite on the contrary.  Amazed with the architecture of the church, I was also overwhelmed by the feeling of calmness and tranquility. 

I am well aware of the fact that pictures and videos do not substitute a real visit, but I am confident that following pictures and videos will help you an idea of the interior and when you will be actually visiting this place, your eyes will be ready to delve into further details. 

Moveable Bridge Near Stade-de-France, St. Denis; Some Pictures Of Opening & Closing of the Bridge!

Yesterday, I happened to visit Leroy-Merlin Saint Denis, to make some purchases for the renovation of my apartment. After having a visit in the shop, of Leroy-Merlin, I had some time for my next engagement. So, I decided to roam around the well developed ‘quartier’, to have a look on the world famous Stade-de-France and to know more about the area and the businesses. And, in this course I came across a moveable bridge.
This moveable bridge is built on a canal, which is not very far from Leroy-Merlin or the Stade-de-France. It might take 5-10 minutes walk from the Stade-de-France.

Though it had not been the first time I visited this canal, but it was the first time I saw the whole process. I saw the opening and closing of the bridge which did not last more than 10 minutes probably or so. Actually, I was busy in taking pictures, that I forgot about the time factor.

Here are the pictures of the bridge, and it will help you understand how it really happens!!

The engine of the bridge; it controls the movement of the bridge!

This is another pictures of the mechanism, controlling the movement of the bridge to let the ships and boats pass under it!!

Unfortunately, I had been a bit late and could not make the picture of the ship when it was passing from the place of the bridge. However in this photo you can see that the ship has passed, happily. You might be wondering, from where did I make this picture. Well, I had been standing on another bridge, which is higher and not removeable!!!

 The moveable bridge is back on its original place! Soon, it will be open for traffic!

 Here you see the barriers are opening up !! The people have already started to walk :)

Well in this picture - you can see that people have started to walk on the bridge. A car is also going on. And, after making this picture, I also started to move away :)

If you are interested to learn more about the moveable bridges, then you can visit the title of moveable bridges at wikipidia.

Europe Agrees To Give A400M Project One More Chance.

At last, after much dithering, leading European governments have agreed to inject a life-saving dose of billions of euros into the veins of the A400M project, thus enabling it to deliver long range military aircraft, and France will get its first plane in 2013.

This project was launched in 2003 and has a long history of delays and cost overrun. There were rumours that EADS, a large Pan-European aerospace corporation, would have to scrap the entire project, and European governments would instead be looking for alternatives. However, the governments have made a prudent decision, though delayed, to cover the shortfall in the fund and continue the project.

According to the new understanding, seven launch customers - UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey - have agreed to reduce the total number of aircraft, and they will accept 170 instead of the initially planned number of 180. It is supposed to replace ageing C130 Hercules and C160 Transall planes.

The Airbus A400M is a long-range and intermediate sized aircraft, designed as a tactical airlifter with strategic capabilities. It is designed for cargo and troop transport, medical evacuation, aerial refueling and electronic surveillance. It can also be used on short and soft landing strips.

The new deal among European governments to finance the aircraft is nothing less than a blessing for the manufacturer, Airbus, and its parent company EADS. The project has been prey to at least a 5 billion euro cost overrun, and delivery of planes is already running four years later than the initial release date. In the latest agreement, reached in November, European governments agreed to a price increase per plane of 11m euros, and 1.5bn euros of credits against future exports. EADS will cover the rest of the shortfall itself.

This project will help to keep 1,000 aerospace engineers in work and will increase the effectiveness of European military might. Also, this agreement will help save the European aerospace industry from lagging behind that of the US. It would have made Europe dependent on the US for this technology if European leaders had decided otherwise. Design and features of the A400M make it highly likely that other countries will express interest in purchasing this aircraft, and the latest agreement will be seen as a milestone in the history of European aerospace industry.

Crusader Against Corruption Pursues French Presidency in 2012 !

Eva Joly, 66, best known in France for her personal crusade against corruption, has expressed her willingness to contend for the French Presidency in the 2012 elections. She has earned her name as a judge on the Paris bench because of her fearless approach in uncovering financial frauds and wrongdoings, and now she is determined to free France from corruption, while fighting in the political arena. Her party, the French Green Party ( Europe Ecologie ), seems to approve her nomination for the next presidential elections.

Joly is a self-made woman who gradually climbed the ladder of success. She was born on 5th December 1943 in Norway, and moved to Paris at the age of 18. Her legal education she obtained at night school, working as a secretary during the day. Specializing in financial affairs, she joined the High Court of Paris as an investigating judge in 1990.

It did not take too long for Joly to make her mark with her ruthless fight against corruption. In the early 1990s, her prosecution of the infamous businessman and government minister, Bernard Tapie, won her wide recognition in the power circles of Paris. Later she unmasked a series of money laundering and corruption cases, which made her name feared among corrupt politicians and officials.

Joly received death threats when she was working on a case involving corruption within the French Petroleum giant, ELF. Although harshly criticised for levelling unfair accusations at innocent people, nothing deterred her from doing her job, and she emerged as an honest and incorruptible judge. Her fearless fight against corruption earned her the nickname "Eva the Diva."

In 2002 Joly resigned from the bench and returned to Norway, where she was appointed as a government advisor on international corruption. Working at international level took her across the globe, during which time she was barely remembered in France, and the corrupt elements of society relaxed.

Joly returned to France in 2008 with even greater conviction. Now she had the determination to play a decisive role by entering into politics, and she announced,
"I am going into politics because I recognise the limitations of voluntary action … I have a strong desire to improve relations between the developed and developing world. I want to change power structures within society. I am desperate to see a more just and more united society."

Eva Joly joined Europe Ecologie, a grouping of France's various Green Movements, and the following year she was elected to represent the Paris area at the European Parliament. Since her election she has continuously criticised the French government over many different issues, and when the scandal of 'alleged financial donations' surfaced, involving Liliane Bettencourt, the L'oreal heiress, she demanded the resignation of Labour Minister Eric Woerth. She also strongly accuses the government of "State Racism" over its anti-immigration policies.

Nikolas Sarkozy, current president of the French Republic, seems willing to contend for the presidency for a second time, despite his bad performance in the opinion polls. In addition to Sarkozy there are various other potential candidates, which include incumbent Managing Director of IMF, Dominique Strass-Kahn. In opinion polls Martine Aubry, François Hollande and Ségolène Royal are also gaining.

So how will Joly, a mere two year old toddler in the political arena, perform in such a close race for the Elysees Palace? Only time will tell!


For a complete list of blogs and articles please click here