After a quick jaunt through the Place Vauquelin (named for a famed French naval officer known for his bravery in The Seven Years' War) right next to City Hall, we made our way around the block to the nearest metro stop.
I was very much looking forward to riding the métro, having loved the metro culture in Paris. It was very similar, and I had great fun figuring out how to get to where I needed to be.
Which was Stop Pie-IX on Ligne Verte going towards Honoré-Beaugrand, aka The 1976 Olympic Stadium!
I walked out the door and turned around to see the tower. The curves, cables, and simplistic shapes were beautiful and awe-inspiring. I wanted to ride up to the top of the tower and look out on the city and the rest of the Olympic Park below but to do that I had to walk (from #5) all the way around to the opposite corner of the map (#2).
It was a nice day though, a bit overcast and not quite as cold, so I didn't mind the walk. Dotting the sidewalk every one hundred feet or so were these information boards providing a timeline of the tower construction. Good exercise and informational!
The Biodome was under construction but the curves and shapes lent themselves really well to the overall design. I loved seeing the skylight ceiling through the windows.
And then I came upon the newest addition to the grounds: Place Nadia Comaneci, unveiled in 2017 honoring the youngest all-around gymnastic champion, who scored the first perfect ten in Olympic history at age 14. The age restriction has since been raised to 16.
I had finally made it around to the other side and after many pictures of the monumental tower and surrounding curved buildings, I made my way inside.
(photos by e.hunt, r.hunt, and collected from stm.info.fr)
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