Five EPIC French interiors I saw this week

This week, without even planning it, I found myself inside five incredible buildings. Here's how you can find them too.

By sheer coincidence, I’ve been inside some seriously jaw-dropping buildings this week. And I had no intention of doing it. I didn’t even realize I had done it until I was looking for a headline to sum up this week.

Stumbling into breathtaking buildings like these ones is one of the true joys of Paris. I’m constantly flabbergasted by what I find, unbelievable interiors are seemingly around every corner.

Here are the five places I visited and how you can visit them too.

1. The Theatre du Chatelet

Did you hear the podcast I put out this week with Australian soprano Siobhan Stagg? She helped to demystify the opera a little for a regular guy like me. Intrigued, I went to see her show, Orlando, on Wednesday night. The Chatelet Theatre, which dates back to the 1860s, truly delivered (and so did the opera).

2. The Louvre - specifically the Galerie d'Apollon

I was in the Louvre yesterday for an exhibition, and I stumbled into the Apollon Galerie. I felt like I’d died and gone to heaven. I must have seen this room before - it houses the French crown jewels and it precedes the theatre mentioned above by 200 years.

But for some reason, it felt new to me. Perhaps because we had our 8 month old baby with us, and I could feel the significance of this room, or perhaps it was the insignificance of us. Who knows, but don’t miss this room if you visit the Louvre.

3. Notre Dame

I went back to see the inside of the Notre Dame on Tuesday, this time specifically for the stained glass windows. This was for Monday’s upcoming podcast episode which will be all about Gothic Churches and their delightful windows. Did I mention I have a new phone with an exceptional camera zoom? Look:

4. Sainte Chapelle

You guessed it. We also went to Saint Chapelle which is surely the world’s best stained glass paradise. The podcast episode, featuring Bertrand from My Private Paris, tackles the Gothic church revival that we’re seeing in France right now.

5. Chartres Cathedral

And lastly, if you’re going to see a gothic church with some serious stained glass, you can’t miss the Chartres cathedral. It’s in the process of a full restoration and it’s astonishing to see, essentially, what happened quite secretly in Notre Dame right in front of your eyes at Chartres. I can’t wait to share this episode with you.

And I also can’t wait to share the pics and videos. You’ll need sunglasses with all the stained glass I’m about to send your way!

A bonus from earlier this month

A little note on another incredible Paris building: Here’s an update on my recent video at the US ambassador’s residence. I just looked: It has 130,000 views!! The most popular long-form video we’ve ever done. Thank you!

It made me think: How could we top it? The British ambassador’s residence? The Town Hall with the Mayor? Or the Elysée palace with the president? If you’ve got an in, let me know!

That’s it for now. If you’re a Patreon member, click here for the newest members-only column for The Earful Tower, where Lina talks about another new exhibition inside another classic Paris setting.

Or, if you’re a Substack paying member, the column will unlock automatically below. (Just a quick reminder: Substack and Patreon memberships are the same, but Patrons get access to the full back catalogue, while Substack members only have access to the newer content.)

Thanks for reading

Oliver

“Scoop du jour” members-only column: New exhibition in Paris