Chapter 25 in Paris

They came to Notre-Dame de Paris, which is familiar from textbooks, which is a masterpiece of early Gothic architecture. The plane of Notre Dame is a "Latin cross" with very short cross arms, and the whole is stretched upwards.After entering the door, the central hall and the left and right side corridors form a semicircle.The facade is beautiful, with towering towers on the upper floor, three pointed arches on the lower floor, and rose windows inlaid with stained glass on the middle floor.On the horizontal wall of the middle floor, there are statues of 28 kings in French history.A row of decorative pointed arches connects the left, middle and right parts.The middle hall where they are standing is 12.5 meters wide, but more than 30 meters high. The upper part of the hall is also intertwined with pointed arches, giving the whole space a vertical visual experience.

Sicheng "read" the building carefully, and he said to Huiyin: "This kind of building needs to be experienced with the soul. The vertical structure expresses the desire for lofty goals. The narrow and tall architectural space expresses God. The superiority of human beings and the smallness and insignificance of human beings. "Look at the light, how important it is here. There are many windows on the top floor and the area is large, so the upper part of the church is brightly lit, while the lower part is mysteriously dim. Religious thoughts about the darkness of the world and the glory of God covering the kingdom of heaven are here. It was directly reflected."

Huiyin said in a low voice: "Someone compares a Gothic church to a praying girl. The girl kneels on the ground with her arms stretched to the sky. What is she praying to God for?" Sicheng responded softly: "I think she is telling God how short life is and how much human beings yearn for infinity and eternity." They stand before Michelangelo's "Struggling Slave" in the Renaissance. Whein said: "The Venus of Milo lost both arms, but it gives people a sense of harmony, freedom, and stretch, making people feel confident and stable. The 'Struggling Slave' looks muscular, Tall and Kong Wu, but showing strong distortions and struggles, is a completely tragic expression."

Sicheng nodded in agreement and said, "Rodin's favorite statue is called 'Smile'. The statue has no head, no other parts, only the moving legs surrounded by short animal skins. Expressing smiles with muscles is more expressive than eyes and mouths. Using abstract shapes to convey feelings and emotions like this is already very close to the meaning of architecture and music.” Huiyin said with a smile: "You are really inseparable from your profession, and everything you say can be related to architecture." Sicheng smiled mischievously: "To be honest, all you see in Europe these days are body sculptures, and I have learned more about the structure of the human body here than I have learned in several years of art classes at the University of Pennsylvania. "

Huiyin laughed loudly: "These are all grandfathers and grandmothers who have been around for hundreds or thousands of years!" When they walked out of the exhibition hall, Sicheng turned around and bowed slightly to the statue: "Grandpa, grandma, goodbye!" Leaving France for Italy. They cuddled up on the train and bid farewell to Paris in silence.The Seine River shimmers through the city, the open-air cafes beside the Linyin Road open up bright umbrellas, the newsboys run and sell the newspapers of the day, and the girls' hair and silk scarves are fluttering in the breeze... Paris In the air, there is a unique composition, is the enchanting flowers and fine wine?Or that free spirit and romantic vibe?

It was dusk when they came out of Rome Station.The ancient city of Rome under the setting sun is as dignified as an oil painting.