The cathedral stands on the island like a captain on a ship. It is solid and muscular without being heavy, and the flying buttresses push the apse forward as though rowing the whole cathedral down the river. Most beautiful of all is the graceful spire, adapted from the smaller original by Viollet-le-Duc in his work of restoration. There is a lightness and modesty to this spire that never cease to captivate me, and to study it from the café across the river, as I do on every visit, is to know what Paris means.
Printed page: LeFigaro.pdf
Full text in English: Notre_Dame_de_Paris_Le_Figaro.pdf