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| View from Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie Photo credit goes to my darling girl |
Wandering through Parc de la Villette in Paris, I spotted a giant gazing ball off in the distance. Against the overcast sky, it looked like a bubble with its edges barely delineated against the clouds.
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| Mirror ball |
We had found La Géode, an enormous, mirrored, geodesic sphere, similar to EPCOT's iconic Spaceship Earth but with a highly reflective surface. At 36 meters (118 feet) in diameter, it is covered with 6,433 stainless steel triangles and is the equivalent of a 12-story building.
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| A selfie in one of the equilateral triangles with 1.2 meter (3.6 foot) sides. |
Paris is famous for its Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Louvre and other historical buildings. I found this very modern structure quite refreshing and this park to be where I felt surrounded by locals instead of tourists.
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| Can you spot the people at the bottom center of this photo? See the red architectural folly off to the right? I call it "Stairs to Nowhere." |
Completed in 1985, La Géode is an 400-seat Omnimax theatre showing IMAX films, 3D films, satellite concert events, and broadcasts of the New York City Metropolitan Opera. It is connected to Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie which is the largest science museum in Europe. Inside the museum is Cité des Enfants, a children's museum perfect for kiddos who have had enough of looking at art and churches and want some hands-on activities.
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| La Géode |
IF YOU GO:
- The nearest Paris Metro stations to La Géode are Corentin Cariou on Line 7 and Porte de Pantin on Line 5.
- From Tuesday to Sunday, movies are shown every hour from 10:30AM to 8:30PM. Mondays are flextime.
- See the La Géode website for admission prices and to purchase tickets.
- The Café de La Géode offers salads, sandwiches, quiches and desserts. Peruse the menu.
- Make sure to wander around Parc de la Villette or visit the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie and the Cité des Enfants.
This post is part of "Travel Photo Thursday" on Budget Travelers Sandbox and "Oh the Places I've Been" on The Tablescaper. Check them out for more around-the-world travel inspiration.
what an amazing thing! thank you! I love the way it reflects the surrounds.
ReplyDeletehave a wonderful week.
Very nice lead photo. :)
ReplyDeleteVery beautiful architecture :)
ReplyDeleteIts gorgeous and I love the reflections
ReplyDeleteHad no idea! A lovely thing that is!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I had never heard of this...I bet your kids had a lot of fun exploring the area. Magical.
ReplyDeleteYour sky reflection photo is beautiful and I am astounded by this ball. Have not heard of it or seen a photo of it before (and how rare is that).
ReplyDeleteThis was a fun find, I'm sure. Can't believe I missed it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, Michelle.
At first I thought is was the Chicago bean but no, it is a very unique interesting art object in a far away land from me.
ReplyDeleteVery cool! I didn't imagine it was that big from the first picture. It does look like a bubble from a distance. I haven't heard of this and it's too bad. It's such a great contrast against the other famous monuments. Looks like Paris was a blast for the entire family. Hope Texas is just as fun.
ReplyDeleteSo gorgeous. I've never heard of this! I've been dying to take the family to Paris, and now I want to add la Geode to my list:)
ReplyDeleteHi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteI like how this amazing ball looks different from various angles. It looks so transparent in some of the photos and look so solid in some. It’s good to know that it’s more than an architectural installation but a functional structure. Thanks for sharing something unique about Paris.
I had never heard of this either, and I certainly would have made a detour to see it when I was in Paris had I known. Your pictures are just gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteWow that is cool, surprised I have never seen photos of this before!
ReplyDeleteThis is so cool! You're right, we all think of Eiffel Tower, Louvre, etc. but this is certainly one to add to the list.
ReplyDeleteGreat to have you at "Oh, the PLACES I've been!" Hope to see you this Friday!
- The Tablescaper
That's pretty cool!
ReplyDelete