Visit me at the bottom and get a view of how things were. Visit me on the top and get a view of how things are. In the middle you find me connecting the two views. I am the Cathedral Saint Pierre.
I am a mixed blood Romanesque with some Gothic flavour and a neoclassical façade. My size is impressive but I am old and stripped from most of my beauty due to the influence of some guy named John Calvin, who left me his chair and who was the reason my catholic body was transformed into that of a protestant. Calvinism was born under my roof. Yet now this modified Protestant Cathedral is again looking out over a mostly catholic city. I don’t mind though. Often I feel more toeristian than Christian.
Use me for some exercise as it are my impressive towers who will keep you busy.
157 breathtaking steps upwards into the North Tower and then you should hope that you have some breath left as I will push the last bits out of your lungs with a breathtaking view of the city. I also offer you a view on the Geneva lake and that big arrogant fountain that tries to compete with me as the highest and most powerful symbol of the city. Jet d’eau is young and flexible however I am ripe and solid. The visitors often watch that thing from within my tower. It is my height that shows them the city and everything in it. I am the king of old town and the producer of panoramic views. If you reach the top of my towers then I will show you Geneva in all its beauty. If you come at the right times I will even play some music for you.
If you are more down to earth then you can dig into the past as beneath me there are the fallen ruins of my predecessors. It is me however who is still standing. Right on top of ancient churches, right on top of the hill in the centre of the old town. I dominate the landscape and its panoramic and Christian view.
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