The Viewing Deck Collections; Dan Brown's "Davinci Code" Tour

sightseeing the intriguing places in Paris, London and Edinburgh mentioned in the Novel

"Every faith in the world is based on fabrication. That is the definition of faith — acceptance of that which we imagine to be true, that which we cannot prove. Every religion describes God through metaphor, allegory, and exaggeration… Those who truly understand their faiths understand the stories are metaphorical” - Chapter 82, pp. 369-370

I made this post due to curiousness and fascination on Dan Brown's famous novels, on how he played my imagination while reading his book and incorporating my backpacking passion to wander them around. The adventure started in Paris, France last October 2013 where I headed to Louvre Museum first going to the Gallery, the mysterious portrait of Monalisa, exiting through the Inverted Pyramid area, then to Saint Sulpice Church. On July 2014 continued to pursuit the places in Longdon, England  by visiting Sir Isaac Newton's Sarcophagus in Westminster Abbey. Finalizing the itinerary by going to Edinburgh, Scotland last December 2014 in Rosslyn Chapel where I visited the intriguing carvings, the Apprentice Pillar and the Crypt downstairs.

The Da Vinci Code is a 2006 American mystery-thriller film directed by Ron Howard and adapted from Dan Brown's 2003 best-selling novel of the same name that stars Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou. The film, like the book, was considered controversial. It was met with especially harsh criticism by the Roman Catholic Church for the accusation that it is behind a two-thousand-year-old coverup concerning what the Holy Grail really is and the concept that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene were married and that the union produced a daughter. Many members urged the laity to boycott the film. Two organizations, the Priory of Sion and Opus Dei figure prominently in the story. In the book, Dan Brown insists that the Priory of Sion and "...all descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents and secret rituals in this novel are accurate".

The Viewing Deck Collections; Dan Brown's "Davinci Code" Tour

City of Lights Night Shots; Paris City Specials

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Paris city tour last part; other tourist spots   

Paris has many nicknames, like "The City of Love", but its most famous is "La Ville-Lumière" (The City of Light), a name it owes first to its fame as a center of education and ideas during the Age of Enlightenment. The sobriquet's "light" took on a more literal sense when Paris became one of the first European cities to adopt gas street lighting. In 1828, Paris began lighting the Champs-Elysées with gas lamps. It was the first city in Europe to do so, and so earned the nickname "La Ville-Lumière" or The City of Light.

Intentionally walked at night to see how the lights illuminated on major tourist spots. Started around 1900H from Notredame de Paris going back to Concorde metro station. Tripod is allowed to use and no fees collected as everything pictured outside.

Musee de Louvre at night

Paris City Tour last part; other Tourist Spots

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Paris city tour 4th part; 850yrs of Notre-Dame de Paris  

I decided to just navigate myself by means of walking guided by free city map due to its proximity and ease of travel. From Louvre Museum, I went to Museum de Orsay, St. Chapelle, Saint Sulpice, Palais de Luxembourg then Pantheon.

La Sainte-Chapelle (The Holy Chapel) is a royal medieval Gothic chapel, located near the Palais de la Cité, on the Île de la Cité in the heart of Paris, France. The most famous features of the chapel, among the finest of their type in the world, are the great stained glass windows, for whose benefit the stone wall surface is reduced to little more than a delicate framework. Fifteen huge mid-13th-century windows fill the nave and apse, while a large rose window with Flamboyant tracery dominates the western wall.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sainte-Chapelle

the famous stained glass of Saint Chapelle Church

Paris City Tour 4th part; 850yrs of Notre-Dame de Paris

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Paris city tour 3rd part; Chasing the famous arts of Louvre Museum 

The Notre Dame Cathedral Paris or Notre Dame de Paris ('Our Lady of Paris') is a Gothic cathedral of the Catholic archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the "cathedra", or official chair, of the Archbishop of Paris, Andre Cardinal Vingt-Trois. Notre Dame Cathedral is widely considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture in the world and was built in 1163. The name Notre Dame means "Our Lady" in French, and is frequently used in the names of Catholic church buildings in Francophone countries. The Notre Dame Cathedral was one of the first Gothic cathedrals, and its construction spanned the Gothic period. Its sculptures and stained glass show the heavy influence of naturalism, unlike that of earlier Romanesque architecture.
http://www.notredamecathedralparis.com/

The cathedral is open every day of the year from 0800H to 1845H. Access to the cathedral is open and free of charge every day of the year, during the opening hours. This church can be reached through Saint-Michel - Notre-Dame Station on RER lines B, C and Metro lines 4 and 11. The entrance for the visit of the tower is located OUTSIDE of the cathedral, on the left-hand side of the facade, Rue du Cloître Notre-Dame. 387 steps (there is no elevator) to the top of Notre-Dame tower. It’s best to be in good shape! Admission fee on tower costs 4 Euro and is included in Paris Museum Pass.

850 years of Notre-Dame de Paris

Paris City Tour 3rd part; Chasing the Famous Artworks of Louvre Museum

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Paris city tour 2nd part; spiral staircase going above Arch de Triomphe 

The former palace of the Kings of France, the Louvre Museum presents vast and rich collections; ancient civilizations, Islamic Arts and Western Art from the Middle Ages until 1848. Musee de Louvre Art Collections Section include antiquities in Near Eastern Antiquities, Egyptian, Greek, Etruscan and Roman.

Louvre Museum opens everyday from 0900H until 1800H except Tuesdays and some French public holidays. Late night openings on Wednesday and Friday until 2145H. Rooms close 30 minutes prior to Museum closing. Admission price is 12 Euro and included in Paris Museum Pass if availed. 

Famous artworks include Leonardo Davinci's Monalisa, Alexandros of Antioch's Venus De Milo and Antonio Canova's Psyche and Cupid.
 

famous artworks in Musee de Louvre (Monalisa)

Paris City Tour 2nd part; Spiral Staircase going above Arch de Triomphe

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Paris city tour 1st part; lattice stairs of Eiffel Tower 

The viewing deck at the top can only be reached by climbing up its 40 stairs. But before you get to the stairs, you have to get to the monument itself (which isn’t as simple as you’d think). There is an underground tunnel on the Avenue de la Grande Armee side of the circle. You can access this tunnel from the Wagram exit of the Metro. One of the best days of the year to visit the Arc is July 14th, Bastille Day. The Bastille Day parade follows the length of the Champs Elysees and a huge flag billows from the Arch’s crown creating a colorful photo op.
 
Arc de Triomphe opening hours is from 1000H to 2230H and close on French public holidays. Admissions fee costs 8 Euro and is included in Paris Museum Pass. The Arc de Triomphe is located near Charles-de-Gaulle-Etoile station RER line A and metro lines 1,2 and 6.

The Arc de Triomphe Paris, the most monumental of all triumphal arches, was built between 1806 and 1836. Even though there were many modifications from the original plans, reflecting political changes and power struggles, the Arch still retains the essence of the original concept which was a powerful, unified ensemble. The Arc de Triomphe stands at the centre of the Place Charles de Gaulle, also known as the "Place de l'Étoile". It’s located at the western end of the Champs-Élysées. 
http://www.arcdetriompheparis.com/

Arch de Triomphe

Paris City Tour 1st part; Lattice Stairs of Eiffel Tower

Central Europe 1st part; 4-days traveling solo in France
October 10 to October 14, 2013

Versailles 2nd part; other tourist spots 

The Eiffel Tower was built by Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, which was to celebrate the 100th year anniversary of the French Revolution. Its construction in 2 years, 2 months and 5 days was a veritable technical and architectural achievement. "Utopia achieved", a symbol of technological prowess, at the end of the 19th Century it was a demonstration of French engineering personified by Gustave Eiffel, and a defining moment of the industrial era.

http://www.tour-eiffel.fr/en/everything-about-the-tower/the-eiffel-tower-at-a-glance.html

The Eiffel Tower is open every single day of the year from 0900H to 2300H with admission fee of 14.5 Euro to the top and 5 Euro if using the stairs only. This can reach through Champ de Mars metro station.

9 steps to the ticket booth at the base, 328 steps to the first level, 340 steps to the second level 18 steps to the lift platform on the second level and 15 steps to the upper observation platform.

* Eiffel Tower is 1,063 feet (324 meters) tall, including the antenna at the top. Without the antenna, it is 984 feet (300 m).
* French have a nickname for the tower: La Dame de Fer, "the Iron Lady."
* Eiffel Tower has 108 stories, with 1,710 steps. However, visitors can only climb stairs to the first platform. There are two elevators.

world's famous signature landmark, Eiffel tower of Paris