A restored Notre Dame Cathedral, severely damaged in April 2019 fire, will reopen to individual visitors daily from 7:45 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. beginning on Dec. 16. Continuing previous practice and in accordance with French law, entry will be free to all comers.
Notre Dame is now accepting bookings for pilgrimage groups effective in March and will do do for cultural groups starting in June.
Olivier Josse, secretary general for the cathedral, announced opening details to press in attendance here at the Rendez-vous en France Travel Market, the country's largest international trade show.
Noting that the cathedral has traditionally welcomed 10 million to 11 million visitors per year, he projected about 15 million per year for the restored building, amounting to about 40,000 per day. Such numbers "won't be that easy" to manage, he said.
He added there will be an upper limit of 25 visitors per group, and audio phones will be compulsory. Groups won't be allowed during services or on Saturday afternoons and Sundays. For individuals, queues will be electronic.
Ceremonial opening activities will begin Dec. 7, and the first public access to the cathedral, in the afternoons of Dec. 10 to 15, is meant for all individuals involved in the restoration project.
Josse said the cathedral has been "beautifully restored inside." However, restoration on the exterior will continue into 2028.
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Meanwhile, in the rest of the world
It has been said that in a typical national election year international departures decrease by about 7% in the months immediately preceding and following the actual vote. As of now, there is very little solid evidence as to how things will play out this year.
But one thing is clear, and that is that we seem to be spending an inordinate amount of time on domestic polling and introspection regarding the health of our American society.
That's why I thought it might be a good time to look outward a bit to see how things are going abroad, where everything is hunky-dory -- or is it? Here are a few news stories I want to share with you and with my clients:
• China has reined in TikTok, a major source of travel videos by self-certified "influencers." The mega-app's owners instructed moderators to filter out videos by "ugly" people, and those videos that were filmed in homes that had "old and disreputable" decorations. There is just so much pressure on travel influencers these days. When will they unionize?
• Amsterdam is conceding that the 240 brothel windows in its famed red-light district are starting to create a poor impression. But mayor Femke Halsema has a solution, a uniquely Dutch solution. Instead of shutting down the trade, the mayor is proposing spreading the brothels out by setting up a single high-rise building in the south of the city where 100 of the brothels would be relocated. That should certainly help improve the city's image.
• Denmark does not have Amsterdam's problem. Instead, they have a new king, Frederik X. His mom abdicated for reasons of health, the first monarch in Denmark to do so in close to 900 years. Frederick bears watching. He is married to an Australian woman and is fond of riding his bicycle through Copenhagen's streets stopping to chat with locals from time to time. It is said that his two big issues are climate change and gender equality. He may turn out to be the coolest king in Europe.
• Then there is Japan, where cruises are selling out -- it is, by any measure, one of the world's "hottest destinations." But as tourists walk the streets of Japan's cities, it is interesting to note, based on recent research, that one-third of the people one passes under the age of 50 have never been on a date. When asked why, the most common answer is, "It is a waste of time and money." Reacting to this research, Japan's prime minister has said that Japan is now "on the brink of being unable to maintain the functions of society."
• Of course, to see how things are really going, I must, from time to time, look up in the attic at Canada. It turns out that there is a current hot issue. The police have warned Quebec residents about posting any security camera photos of thieves stealing packages from their front porches. A police spokesman warned that "in Canada, we have a presumption of innocence, and posting such a photo could be a violation of private life."
• And then there's this: A snowstorm in Athens earlier this year caused massive power outages, stranding thousands of drivers. Amazing, right? In all of recorded history, what Greek scholar ever wrote about snowstorms disrupting Athenian life? But even more impactful is the fact that this is the third straight year the city has been slowed by a snowstorm.
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