Paris Day 5: The Sweeps

I read Keith Richards' autobiography last year.  After about 100 tales of snorting, shooting up and smoking, I decided to skip all passages related to drugs.  They got too monotonous.  In that spirit, I will spare you the details of our breakfast this morning.  You know it already.

The Best View in Paris

The temperature plunged overnight and the next morning was caked in a classic European drizzle.  But did this stop Amy and I from hiking?  Of course not!  We put on our rain gear and made our way to Sacre Coeur.

To get there, we passed through some of the most beautiful neighborhoods in Paris.  There are no huge houses, and it wasn't glamorous like the Champs Elysee.  It was just very eclectic, full of people on a Sunday morning, with markets and little restaurants and some blocked off streets.  Every once in awhile an unexpected landmark would pop up, like the Palais Garnier, or Paris Opera House (pictured left). 

Otherwise, the North Paris neighborhoods reminded me of Boston or San Francisco.  There were blocks of ethnic shops - Italian and Thai were some.  But these are where real people lived and moved and talked to one another, not just a place where people visited. 

Sacre Coeur itself is on a steep hill that looks like San Francisco neighborhoods.  You can take the Montmontrobus up the hill, but of course Amy and I would have none of that.  We instead climbed the huge stairway to the top.  Supposedly the hill is 150 meters up, which is about halfway up the Eiffel Tower, so it was about like our climb the previous day.  I'm not sure.  It was definitely a hike.  But when we got to the top, the view was indeed worth the effort.  It was a Panoramic shot of all of Paris.  Unfortunately, my pictures of it were a little hazy from the rain, but you get the drift.

I liked the inside of the cathedral itself a lot.  It's way, way newer than Notre Dame - in fact, it's little more than a hundred years old.  But the stained glass is really modern and the almost Frank Llloyd Wright-ish.  Rather than saints, the windows depict bible sayings in French and symbols of everyday life.  Kind of like the neighborhood around it, this felt like a church built for people rather than posterity. 

Organ Recital at Notre Dame 

After all les chiens (dogs) we had seen in Paris, it was refreshing to finally see un chat!  As we made our way to Notre Dame, we saw a cat climb out a second story window, then crawl along the narrow ledges on the Paris buildings. 

After a lunch of vegetable soup and Perrier (standard meal in our book) we went to Notre Dame for their weekly Organ recital.  After all Amy and I both love our organs (uhhhh, yeah, probably need to reword that).   Today was September 11th, and the French marked the event by stationing soldiers with automatic weapons on the Notre Dame courtyard, which made everyone a little nervous. 

The organ is the largest in France, and dates back to the 13th century.  The program, which lasted for an hour and is free, started with some Bach.  At first the music was very soft, a little strange from such a huge beast.  Then slowly it gathered steam until notes were thundering through the cavernous cathedral, bouncing off all the walls and echoing in all the crevices.  It was amazing how much music was projected in such a large space with no amplifiers.  It surrounded and enveloped you and got into every cell in your body. 

They played four pieces, the last two were fairly modern and I thought they were very interesting and effective.  It's tough to write music for ancient instruments, so the people that do it have an almost fanatical love for the instrument.  I could understand that. 

And so, we ended our trip with a classic French picnic in the hotel courtyard.  (Resturants mostly are closed on Sunday, so it was a good time to do it).  We had a baguette from Moulin de la Vierge, cheese and wine and pears from the grocery store.  But we started with dessert.  Amy had a raspberry tartine with a velvety custard and the freshest raspberries in creation on top - she called it the best dessert she has ever had.  I had a strawberry millfeiulle, which is flaky croissant-style buttery pastry layers filled with custard and strawberries in the middle.  Oooooo.   So good.  And good for you too, I'm sure. 


Research Project Results

Before going to Paris, I had questions about their everyday life.  I made sure to carefully research these questions, since I believe every vacation should have an educational component of some kind.  Here are my findings. 

Cheetos:  France doesn't have 'em.  They have Lays and Fritos.  But in a land where cheese is an actual course of a meal, the theory and practice of Cheetos seems superfluous.

Squirrels:  You can't get them in a restaurant.  Birds are pretty plentiful - duck, guinea fowl, goose, etc.  And of course there's rabbit.  But no squirrel.   This was a disappointment, since Amy hates squirrels and I was hoping to increase my "macho factor" by eating one in front of her.  No such luck.  And there aren't any running around in the parks either, which I thought was weird.

Sacre Bleu!  I was hoping to stop in the middle of the street, slap my forehead and say "Sacre Bleu!" and see how Parissiennes say.  I dunno why.  I decided not to do it because (1) I'm chicken (2) I didn't feel like swearing!

Conclusion

And what better compliment for a trip than "I didn't feel like swearing!"  Paris was dreamy, the food was heavenly, the architecture and surroundings thought-provoking and lovely.  Most of all, though, the company was perfect.  Amy is the best traveling companion I've ever had.  She remains calm in adversity, gives me strength when climbing huge hills and stair cases. makes swift decisions when necessary, yet watches all the lovely sights with dreamy eyes and a childlike wonder. 

Amy is an elegance magnet.  I can't wait to see where we end up next.