Rubin Trek 2017

We spent most of the month in Paris itself and felt we had to venture out somewhere within Ile-de-France ( also known as the région parisienne and within our 5-zone metro pass), so we took the train for an hour ride to Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte.  I can't say it any better than Wikipedia:   Constructed from 1658 to 1661 for Nicolas Fouquet, Marquis de Belle Ile, Viscount of Melun and Vaux, the superintendent of finances of Louis XIV, the château was an influential work of architecture in mid-17th-century Europe. At Vaux-le-Vicomte, the architect Louis Le Vau, the landscape architect Andre le Notre and the painter-decorator Charles Le Brun worked together on a large-scale project for the first time. Their collaboration marked the beginning of the "Louis XIV style" combining architecture, interior design and landscape design. The garden's pronounced visual axis is an example of this style (more about this later in the blog).    Coming up the main pat...

At the suggestion of Miles' colleague at Ecole des Mines, Samuel Forest, a music enthusiast, we visited three different music venues that Samuel said had been recently built and/or renovated with superb acoustics.  Unfortunately, we didn't have time to attend any performances to check out the sound, but he assured us, it was worth a visit simply to see the architecture. First stop was to La Seine Musicale, a music and performing arts center located on Ile Seguin, an island on the Seine river in the western suburbs of Paris. The island, home of the former Renault Car Factory, is now a center dedicated to music (concerts and events). It opened in April 2017 and we found the structure fascinating.  Much of the site's daytime energy needs are supplied by a large mobile curved solar panel.  Auditorium with mobile solar panels  (you can see the track in the lower right corner)  Another industrial building near the island  (see the Eiffel Tower ...