The Grande
Mosquée de Paris (the Great Mosque) was built in 1926. It was to be considered
as a tribute by France to the maybe 100.000 Muslims from the then still existing
French colonial empire who died when fighting on the allied side during WWI.
It is also
said that during WWII, the mosque served as a refuge for several hundred Jews,
who were temporarily sheltered here and got fake Muslim birth certificates.
I had
decided to at last visit, but was a bit early, so I took first a tour around
the building and then waited, accompanied by some pigeons. You can visit the
mosque all days (closed between noon and 2 pm) except Fridays.
You can
walk around freely and easily, as well in the beautiful garden as in the
different rooms…
… of course
with some exceptions for non-muslims …
But,
everybody is welcome for a meal or a tea in the very nice restaurant.
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