Day 52 - Sacré Couer

21st February 2013

I woke up briefly when Nich did and then was far too comfy to get up. I had thought half heartedly that I was going to get up and make the most of the day. I decided that I was on holiday and that meant I was legally obliged to lie in, so I did. It was snuggly.

I eventually got up and headed out, not very sure where I was planning to go. Nich lives in Père Lachaise, so I popped into the cemetery for a little wander round. It's too beautiful.

I decided that I didn't want to commit to my full wander today so I headed out after a short meander. Beautiful place though, I could spend hours there.

 

After my short wander, I decided to head to the Sacré Couer. It's a lovely place to sit and be, and it was a beautiful day for just such an endeavour. I headed over and walked up incredibly s l o w l y. I had walked up to the top when I was in Paris in November and barely noticed the views at the top because I was just dying from death. So this time I was determined that I was going to amble and amble I did. I passed the harp player you see at the top for today's picture and he was playing so beautifully I could have fallen asleep right there. In a good way.

At the almost top I stopped for a sit down and a good old look at the world. As I did, the man you can see through the gap, wearing the hat, came and sat down next to me and we started chatting. His name was Marc ("With a C, not a K!) and he was a designer who had studied as an architect and decided that it wasn't for him. He then worked in lots of places all over the world, but had to come back to Paris. He told me that liked the colour of my eyes and thought it would look good to decorate a market. Well that's just what I thought. After telling me that working with children is an honourable job, that if I just moved to Paris I would find love instantly and to go and see all sorts of sights in Montmartre, I thanked him for his illuminating chatter and headed off up to see the church. I had to get a picture of him! Thank you for the chat Marc!

After a wander round the church I headed off to find some food. I had a little look at some other restaurants, but decided I was going to go into the place I'd been in November. I was sat down and promptly served my wine and steak haché and beautiful wonderful bread. I yummed it up and then hoovered down a crème brûlée, the one dessert that will sway me away from chocolate. I was incredibly content there...I sat having a read and leisurely ate my lunch. Made me feel like I would definitely be a Lady What Lunches if I were rich enough. 

Lunch finished, I headed down through Montmartre, stopping to take my only picture of the real Tour Eiffel. 

 

Here we have the most underwhelming (I'm making it a word) sight in Paris. I first saw the Moulin Rouge (the real life one) nearly 7 years ago after falling in love with the film. I was as let down then as I am now. I know that glittery paint isn't the most practical, but still. Sigh. I've yet to go to the show, but I've heard it's worth the price. Maybe one day. 

 

 

Not quite sure what to do with myself now, and feeling kinda chilly, I just got on the metro and decided on a place once on board. Turns out it was Notre Dame. It was really quite windy and cold by the time I arrived, so the vague idea that I might head up to the top disappeared instantly. There was a sort of..platform set up in front, I think maybe for some shows or similar. I huddled myself into a corner and people watched for awhile. 

   

I saw all sorts of people doing similar things to those in the photo below. They were highly amusing, and I could have watched them all day. Even better, just after I left here I saw a small group of tourists, all in their 50s or 60s, doing Gangnam Style. Brilliant.

Shortly after I left Notre Dame I decided to head home. It was too cold to hang about any longer and Nich was wending her weary way their too. We had some more delicious dinner and even more delicious wine and tried once again to watch the Runaway Bride. This time, we succeeded.

Stephie
xxx