He who would travel happily must travel light..
In Front of Cathedral Basilica Saint Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe NM, 131 Cathedral Place. It was built between 1869-1887 in a Romanesque Revival style. The parish was founded in 1714 but the completed Basilica was dedicated in 1887. The original church here was destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt in 1680. The large Rose window in front and the nave windows that depict the 12 disciples were imported from Clermont-Ferrand France. When this Cathedral Basilica building was completed the parish building was taken down and removed. This statue is of Saint Francis of Assisi who is the patron Saint of Santa Fe NM
Èglise Saint Julien le Pauvre is one of the oldest churches in Paris. It is on the south side of Square René Viviane. This is a great example of medieval Romanesque architecture. It is really close to the Museum Cluny which is a museum of medieval life in a medieval building. 😄 This church was restored around 1890 and given over to the Melkite Catholic community. Hilaire Belloc wrote, (in his 1900 book called Paris), about St. JULIEN le PAUVRE; that it..."is curiously desolate. It should, if age and tradition could lend reverence to anything, be among the most revered of the city shrines; but the people of Paris, careful as they are of old customs, are capricious in their choice of idols, and the little church is so much abandoned that foreign lovers of Paris pass it a thousand times without remembering it...yet here, in 580 (that is, in the monastery attached to the church), Gregory of Tours lodged when he visited the town, and here, throughout the middle ages - from the Charter of Philip the conqueror to 1534 - the Rector of the University was elected...
"The gladdest moments, me thinks, is a departure into unknown lands."
This is the oldest church in Albuquerque New Mexico. It has continuously served Albuquerque since 1706. It was originally founded as a parish church by the Franciscan order. In 1817, the clergy of Durango Mexico served here. Then, in 1868, the Jesuit order started to serve here. Then in 1966, the clergy of Santa Fe NM started to serve here and still do.
Royal Chapel at Vincennes Castle, also called Saint-chapelle like the one on L'île de la Cité. It is mostly empty now besides a gravesite. It was first commissioned to be built by King Charles X. He intended to store some relics pertaining to the passion of Christ in this chapel. It is worth entrance fee because the fee is very small and the view of the stained glass windows is really beautiful. You can even climb the narrow staircase to get an even more wonderful view of the stained glass windows from the second level balcony.
Upon entering the Royal Chapel, it is immediately evident that only a bare minimum of furnishings and decorative elements have remained inside. Much of the interior was destroyed during the French revolution, including most of the stained glass windows. The bapistry, where many royal family children were baptized, now is located at the Louvre Museum.
This is what we discovered in that small room. It is a very elaborate tomb. 2 persons were interred here. Louis Antoine, Duke of Enghien was actually executed at the moat of Château de Vincennes because Napoleon Bonaparte believed the accusation that he was involved in a conspiracy to restore the monarchy. Also interred here is Bernaudin Gigault. He was the Marquis de Bellefonds and Marshal of France. He also had important responsibilities in the household of King Louis XIV.
Albuquerque has a few Buddhist centers. Here are a couple of photos at one of them. The location of this Thai Buddhist center (Wat Buddhasothorn) is at Copper Street and Madison Street (145 Madison). Monks are very friendly and accommodating to visitors, both Buddhist and non Buddhist. Several ceremonies are held here throughout the year, such as Kathina Ceremony and Sangkran Festival. .
This is the altar in the Church of Our Saviour. This masterpiece was created by Nicodemus Tessin. It depicts a scene from the Garden of Gethsemane with an angel holding a golden chalice above. Can this be the HOLY GRAIL I am searching for? I hope not because I already arrived here, found it, and left it behind. It absolutely is not so I continue my search.
This is Loretto Chapel at 207 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe New Mexico. Construction began in 1873. The six sisters of Loretto, who were sent to Santa Fe to start up a school for girls had commissioned the construction. There is a "miraculous staircase" in the chapel. It has two complete 360 degree turns from the top to the bottom. It has no center pole as spiral staircases usually do for support. The staircase is made of wood and has survived all these years, since around 1880 when it was created. The architecture of the church was greatly influenced by the architecture of the Saint Chappelle in Paris ( you can read about Saint Chappelle on my website page titled "Paris".) There is a legend that speaks of the difficulty the local carpenters had trying to figure out how to make a staircase in the very limited space they had in the chapel. They were unable to solve the problem so the Sisters of Loretto prayed for a solution for 9 consecutive days. Then, all of a sudden, an unknown man appeared from some unknown place. This stranger offered to build the staircase although he had very simple tools. He worked alone and used wood pegs and glue rather than nails. After the work was completed, the stranger disappeared without taking any payment. Since the sisters had prayed to Saint Joseph (the patron saint of [who else] carpenters), they believed that the stranger was Saint Joseph himself or someone sent by Saint Joseph.
THIS IS THE SULTAN MOSQUE IN SINGAPORE. IT IS AT THE SOUTHERN AREA OF LITTLE INDIA ON THE NORTH SIDE OF KAMPONG GLAM AND ARAB STREET. MESJID SULTAN WAS ORIGINALLY THE ROYAL MOSQUE FOR SULTAN OF JOHOR AND HIS FAMILY. SULTAN HUSSEIN SHAH HELD THE KAMPONG GLAM AREA IN AGREEMENT WITH BRITASH EAST INDIA COMPANY. SIR STAMFORD RAFFELS CONTRIBUTED 3000 SPANISH DOLLARS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE ORIGINAL BUILDING. IN 1928, THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS RENOVATION BEGAN. THE ARCHITECTURE IS IN AN INDO-SARACENIC STYLE,