US President-elect Donald Trump will travel to Paris this weekend to attend the grand reopening of the renowned Notre Dame Cathedral. The 13th-century cathedral, celebrated as a masterpiece of French Gothic architecture, was devastated by a fire on April 15, 2019.
The old building’s full restoration took five years.
“It is an honour to announce that I will be travelling to Paris, France, on Saturday to attend the re-opening of the magnificent and historic Notre Dame Cathedral, which has been fully restored after a devastating fire five years ago,” Donald Trump said in a post on the social networking site Truth Social.
“The restoration of Notre Dame to her full splendour, and perhaps more so, has been made possible by the extraordinary work of (French) President Emmanuel Macron. Everyone will have a really memorable day! Trump stated.
French President Emmanuel Macron conducted an inspection of the restoration of the medieval cathedral on Friday, saying workers had done the “impossible” by healing a “national wound.”
He had set the ambitious goal of rebuilding Notre Dame within five years and to make it “even more beautiful” than before, a target that French authorities say has been met.
After the reopening ceremonies on December 7 and 8, a week of activities will be held until December 15, featuring two performances of Jean-Sébastien Bach’s Magnificat on December 17 and 18.
