Last night we watched, devastated and heartbroken, as fire ravaged Notre Dame de Paris.
For us, it’s not only our frequent place of work, a majestic sight that so many of you have visited with us, it’s also a symbol of what we love about Paris: the thinkers, the creators, the dreamers who have passed through these streets and contributed to making it the beautiful city that it is.
While we went to sleep with heavy hearts last night, we see the situation in fresh light today. What seemed an impossible task – saving the stone structure, the towers, the rose windows, the relics – has been made possible thanks to the brilliant, brave, and tireless work of 500 firefighters.
The stone structure with its flying buttresses still stand. The iconic facade with its mighty high towers are largely undamaged. The interior vaulted ceiling is (mostly) still standing. The famous rose windows (some of oldest and largest in world) appear to be intact.
Paris is resilient and so is Notre Dame. Notre Dame has survived World Wars. A Revolution. Centuries of ups and downs. The famous motto of Paris seems appropriate today: “She is tossed by the waves, but does not sink.”
Notre Dame will be rebuilt. It will take time, but we will witness the Cathedral brought back to it’s former glory to delight future generations of visitors.
What does this mean for visitors to Paris? While we will not have the pleasure of leading you on a guided tour inside Notre Dame anytime soon, our passion for the city hasn’t been extinguished. We hope to continue to introduce you to the beauty, and resilience, of the City of Light.
For anyone looking to contribute or support the reconstruction, donations are being collected here and here.
Below are a few images of the fire fight, the aftermath, and two of our favorite personal snaps of Notre Dame de Paris.
