Tag Archives: Victor Hugo

Travel Photos: French Connections

As I thumb through my photos of France, I realize that there are some places we visited that are closely connected to other places in the same country. Here are some French Connections:

The artist Delacroix, known particularly for paintings that glorified the French Revolution, lived in several different apartments in Paris. But his museum is in the place where he lived and painted just a couple of blocks from the apartment we stayed in. I put off going there, until our very last day in Paris, but was very glad that I visited.

Courtyard of Delacroix house
The courtyard of Delacroix house takes you back to the mid 1800’s

Continue reading Travel Photos: French Connections

Travel Lust Started with Jules Verne

Bronte Country
Bronte Country

Destination: The World

Books:

  • Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne
  • Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
  • The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
  • A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
  • The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas
  • Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

A GUEST POST by Shannon McKenna Schmidt, co-author of Novel Destinations. Continue reading Travel Lust Started with Jules Verne

Victor Hugo and Paris


Book: The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo

Destination: Paris, France

It is hard for me to believe that I have never been to Paris. And yet, every time we start planning a trip to Europe, Greece exerts its magnet pull and I go there instead of the usual places that Americans head for in Europe.

But we ARE going.  Next year, the agenda is Paris and environs and Switzerland (mostly Bernese Oberland). The Switzerland part is because Mr. Traveler’s ancestors ALL came from the area of Bern. The Paris part is because, well, it’s Paris.

2884509295_63a21c249f Notre Dame

Traveler’s Bro. recommended reading Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre-Dame–not to be confused with the Disney movie of the same name.

If the size of the book (I have the 1833 version) deters you, skip directly to Book 3. There Hugo teaches a class in writing description, along with a class in the history of Paris and a few lessons in art and architecture as well.  He tells us how it looked in the early 19th century, and recreates earlier versions of the city. Because cities never sit still. They are always under construction to meet the latest fashion.

As usual, Traveler’s Bro. was right.  Although a few things may have changed between 1833 and 2010—armed with The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, today’s traveler will be able to see beneath the present day to historic Paris.

Please give me suggestions for books that will enhance my trip to Paris. What about Monet? A book from modern Paris? Hemmingway?  Suggestions, please.

Photo of Notre Dame by night by Brian Duffy, from Flickr, Licensed by Creative Commons.

The link to the title of Hunchback of Notre Dame leads to Amazon. Because I am an affiliate, anything you buy through that link, although it costs you no more, gives me a few pennies to support A Traveler’s Library. THANK YOU!