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| Pere Lacahaise |
...sunny day. We were able to go out in dresses, and it seemed so did a lot of the women in Paris. :) It's definitely a good day to be outdoors.
Our first stop was Pere Lachaise. Here was another test to our navigation skills. Despite what the map says, there's really no easy way to go around the place. It's easier to get disoriented and lost looking for specific names. But you can keep trying. Pere Lachaise was fascinating. There's a kind of beauty in the personalized stone statues lovingly carved in remembrance of the dead. At the same time, there's a desolation in those that you know haven't been visited in decades, which you can tell by the layer of dust and the intricate cobwebs blocking the gates. .There were also those that made us laugh at their ridiculousness and those that made us feel sad, as though those left behind were never able to recover from the loss. In any case, the day was too beautiful to waste pondering about the lives of the souls who have moved on so we decided to leave before the morning turned into midday.
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| Moulin Rouge |
Heading back to the metro, we chanced upon a pharmacy and so decided to look for the anti-blistering cream that my learner advised me to get for the walk.. The pharmacist was a very sweet old man who did his best to help me. It took a bit of time, but after going through several cabinets, he finally found it. And he even thanked me for waiting. Old people can be so charming! :) At the entrance to the metro station was a fruit stand with a beautiful array of fruits and vegetables. How can we resist? So with shopping bag in one hand, we went to the metro that would take us back to our apartment.
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| Montmatre |
After lunch, we headed to the meeting place for our walking tour of Montmarte. The place was near Moulin Rogue, which incidentally was the tour's first stop. Our guide, Lily, is a local who led us around the streets of the area, including the red light district. She also pointed out places where painters like Picasso and Van Gogh used to live and hang out. And wouldn't you know it, Van Gogh's favorite broucherie was a block away from our apartment. We heard stories behind the public drinking fountains, a popular but tragic French singer named Dalida and the story of St. Denis' head. The tour ended at the foot of Sacre Coeur, which is one great basilica. And the view was not too shabby either. We stayed to pray for a bit, but it was kind of distracting because of the volume of tourists and the guards constantly shushing them and reminding them not to take pictures.
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| Sacre Coeur |
Afterwards, we headed to the more touristy area near the back of the basilica where artists are lined up offering to paint the tourists. We went around the square looking at different paintings and souvenirs and when we've had enough, we took the Montmartebus and happily, the bus stop was only a few buildings away from our apartment and an end to another busy day. :D
...sunny day. We were able to go out in dresses, and it seemed so did a lot of the women in Paris. :) It's definitely a good day to be outdoors. 
Our first stop was Pere Lachaise. Here was another test to our navigation skills. Despite what the map says, there's really no easy way to go around the place. It's easier to get disoriented and lost looking for specific names. But you can keep trying. Pere Lachaise was fascinating. There's a kind of beauty in the personalized stone statues lovingly carved in remembrance of the dead. At the same time, there's a desolation in those that you know haven't been visited in decades, which you can tell by the layer of dust and the intricate cobwebs blocking the gates. .There were also those that made us laugh at their ridiculousness and those that made us feel sad, as though those left behind were never able to recover from the loss. In any case, the day was too beautiful to waste pondering about the lives of the souls who have moved on so we decided to leave before the morning turned into midday.
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