Métro Boulot Dodo...

I have been to London twice in the past week, and each time I have travelled on the tube. This reminded me of February when I went on a school trip to Paris, and me and my friend Emily got lost in one of the métro stations. It was a hot day, we had no idea where we were going, our phones had no signal and we were carrying very heavy suitcases. This is perhaps not the most positive way of starting a post about the métro, but this memory made me think more about the métro itself.

The métro is a huge part of Parisian culture. Pretty much everyone uses it, and it is the second busiest metro in Europe, and one of the densest in the world. However, I think one of the main reasons why it is so famous is the architecture.

First, there's the entrances.

This one (left) is, I think, the most famous. When the métro was first announced in 1899, a competition was held to design the architecture for the entrances to the métro. Eventually, this style was chosen. It was designed by Hector Guimard, an art-nouveau architect. Guimard also designed another similar entrance, although this had a glass awning (right). However, only two of these still survive, which I think is a shame.

These are the other famous métro entrances, although they are more like signposts. They appeared in the 1920's, and became more popular during the 1930's. I think the one on the left is particularly famous.

There are many different styles of the actual stations of the métro, but what I found most interesting were the themed stations. Instead of writing about the different styles, I thought I'd write about my favourite of these special stations.

Arts et Métiers (line 11)- This station was renovated in 1994. It was designed by François Schuiten, a Belgian comic book artist, to look like the interior of a submarine. He was inspired by Jules Verne, a science-fiction novelist.

I just think that this station is amazing. I am seriously considering going to Paris again just to see it. Is that sad?

Cluny- La Sorbonne (line 10)- This station was redecorated when it was opened in 1988 after being closed for 50 years. It is situated in the Latin Quarter, and the decoration celebrates the writers of this area of Paris.

Concorde (line 12)- The wall of this station is completely covered in tiles with letters on- making up the text "Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen" (in French "Déclaration des droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen"). This was designed by Françoise Schein. Concorde is not the most obviously decorated métro station, but I think it's amazing how much work must have gone into designing the tiles so they all fit together.

Louvre-Rivoli (line 1)- This was the first station decorated in a theme. The decoration includes replicas of ancient art from the Louvre- a museum which can be accessed directly from the métro station.

And finally, Pont-Neuf (line 7)- This station is close to the "Monnaie de Paris", and so the platforms have been decorated with large coins "falling" from the ceiling.

 There are a lot more specially decorated stations, although these are definitely my favourite (especially Arts et Métiers). Please feel free to comment with your favourite!

Thanks for reading!

Caitlin

P.S. In case anyone was wondering, me and Emily found our way in the end, and had a very enjoyable four days in Paris! Oh, and also, the title of this post is a saying in France literally translating as "métro, work, sleep", the English equivalent probably being "work, work, work", basically saying that your life revolves around work.