A slow start after all the walking yesterday. Today we mastered the metro, the RER train system and busses. We started at The Paris Catacombs - a weird maze of tunnels deep beneath Paris. We had been warned about the queues so paid extra for priority entrance - well worth the cost as the queue went around the block.
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| Catacomb tunnels |
Access is via a narrow spiral staircase of 130 steps going to 20 metres below the surface. The tunnels were originally quarries for gypsum, limestone & quartz. There are believed to be 250 kms of tunnels & quarries but we only covered 1.5 kms. In the late 18th century the city decided to use the tunnels as an ossuary & moved bones from overfull cemeteries into the tunnels. The bones were stacked very neatly in patterns on either side of the tunnels. Although somewhat macabre, the catacombs are extremely fascinating.
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| Catacombs |
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| Catacombs |
After climbing the stairs out it was great to get some fresh air & head for the magnificent Luxembourg Gardens. A little like our Botanic Gardens but with heaps of areas set aside for activities - petanque, tennis, model sail boats, an art show, museum & horse riding. A full orchestra entertained from a Rotunda. There were huge children's play grounds & sand pits and thousands of chairs to just sit & watch the world go by. Judging from the number of people around it is clearly very popular.
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| Petanque at Luxembourg Gardens |
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| Luxembourg Gardens |
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| Luxembourg Gardens |
Next stop a quick look at the Eiffel Tower but too crowded with tourists & pushy guys selling toy Towers, pens, etc to hang around.
Woke next morning to another hot & humid day. Strolled past Sacre Coeur then jumped on the Metro to Ile de la Cite to see the flower markets - unfortunately most were closed.
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| Sacre Coeur |
So we headed round the corner to Notre Dame (missed this last time in Paris). Another stunning building that took around 700 years to build. The tourists were everywhere but the building is worth it.
Next stop The Louvre. Another stunning piece of architecture - mixing the old original buildings with modern glass structures in the court yard & a massive area of shops beneath the courtyard. Briefly stopped to say hi to Mona Lisa & Venus de Milo together with a few other tourists. The building itself is reason enough to go but the art is also amazing. Would take days to see it all.
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| Pillars beneath The Louvre |
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| The Louvre |
Wandered back to our apartment via Centre Pompidou - the weird building with all it's lifts & plumbing on the outside??
After another hectic day we freshened up then headed to Moulin Rouge - a uniquely Parisien experience. Our seats were right at the stage - their boa's swept across Anne's head!! Apart from the beautiful leggy women leaving little to the imagination as they danced & girated across the stage in flamboyant costumes, we also had a girl swimming with 2 huge anaconda's, a couple doing amazing things with a giant hoola hoop, a strong man lifting his girl effortlessly over his head & a ventriloquist. A great night.
