Have you ever been to the French opera house, l’Opéra Garnier or le Palais Garnier as it is also called?

You don’t need to go and listen to an opera or go and see the famous ballet de l’Opéra to visit this fabulous building as you can go in as a visitor for 11 euros. You can book your tickets on line ( en ligne) and if you arrive early you won’t be fighting crowds and will enjoy a fantastic visit. Do get an audio guide for 5 euros as it is worth listening to all the explanations.

L’Opéra Garnier was built under Napoleon 3rd by the architect Charles Garnier who combined different styles of architecture ( baroque, palladio and Renaissance),  as well as different coloured marbles ( des marbres) which blend in together (s’accordent)  beautifully and give the whole building a sense of harmony (un sentiment d’ harmonie).

The great staircase (le grand escalier) is monumental ( monumental) and magnificent ( magnifique).

The grand foyer ( le grand foyer) is stunning ( éblouissant) , the gold, the paintings, the chandeliers sparkle ( étincellent ) and glitter ( scintillent).

In 1964, the ceiling of the auditorium needed restoring and André Malraux could not have been more inspired when he asked Chagall to repaint it, the frescoes ( les fresques)  are remarkable (remarquables). The chandelier (le lustre) in bronze and crystal (de bronze et de cristal) which weighs 7 tons is breathtaking (époustouflant ou à vous couper le souffle).

Everywhere you turn and look you discover a masterpiece (une merveille).

This visit is a must! C’est une visite incontournable!

Another must this week will be our café scientifique on Tuesday evening, please join us.

We are still enrolling for our French intensive course and French intensive cooking course, just drop us a note.