How far can you walk in one day in Paris?

Day 2 in Paris:

A garbage truck woke me up at 7:15. I tried to go back to sleep but with no avail, so at 7:30 I went ahead and got up to start my day. We had two meals a day paid for while staying at the MIJE, so I went downstairs for le petit dejeunir. I had yogurt, half a baguette, orange juice and coffee. There was a group of middle school italian children who were fun to watch while I ate. Our group had planned to meet at 9 to map out what we wanted to do, so since I had some time to kill after breakfast, I went to a cafe and got some more coffee. It gave me a chance to people watch and practice my french with the waiter.

I went back to meet people at 9 and they went ahead and ate breakfast. The Holocost Museum was really close to where we were staying so we tried to go to it. When we got there it was closed, but then it dawned on us that it was Saturday, so they all had the day off. Instead, we decided to head to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur. It was way too far to walk from where we were, so we hopped on the Metro at Saint Paul (conviently around the corner from our hostel) and headed to Montmartre. Lara was our metro guide and got us there with no problem. I'm not exactly sure which time we were in the metro that day, but at one point we did get flashed by a homeless man (mom you were right!). Some man was holding his hand up and Morgan thought he was going for a high five. I'm pretty sure she made his day. The rest of us noticed that his junk was hanging out and tried to avoid him, but Erica D. did get groped a little. Other than a transvestite peeing later that day, nothing too tramatizing happend while in Paris.

In Montmartre, the metro let us off right near this really cool cemetary. I didn't take a picture or write the name down, but it was quite expansive and really cool. We only walked through one section, but there were tons of mosulems. One of the coolest things we saw was a face of a man and his eyes followed you as you walked by. The other one I really liked was a statue of a beautiful woman and the tomb was marble. I just have to say that would be a great way to be immortalized.

Once we left the cemetary, we just started walking in the general direction of Le Sacre Coeur. It just so happened that our route took us right by the Moulin Rouge! It's actually kind of amazing how many sex shops you can fit into one section of a city, but it seemed like every other store was one. The brave souls in our group went into one, and lets just say, there are some things that you just can't unsee.

Le Sacre Coeur is the highest point in Paris, so in order to get there, we had to walk a good mile straight uphill. By the time we got to the top, we were all dying (but our calf muscles looked great). On the way up, we passed a square with all sorts of artists. Some did charactictures, other has painting of Paris. I didn't get one when we were there, but I might have to get one of the city-scapes when I go back. When you finally do get to Sacre Coeur, it is entirely worth the walk. The cathedrial is stunning and the view is breath taking. The whole city just lays out before you. We took some pictures outside and then walked through, although you're not allowed to take pictures inside because people are praying. I did see some people do it, but a giant church is one place that I will absolutely follow the rules. Pretty much all of the windows were stained glass and had depictions of different saints. The writing on them was both in French and Latin. Above the altar was a painting of Christ, with lots of smaller depictions around him. You were able to light a candle and make a prayer if you wanted as well, and you could just sit and pray. There was a special mission and area for the intercession of prayers to Mother Teresa and a memorial taking about her life and her mission for God. If you are ever in Paris, Sacre Coeur is a must see.

When we left, we headed straight down from the top of the hill. People were sun bathing and picnicing in the grass along the way. At the very bottom of the hill was the steps and the carousel and Amelie sends Nico on the goose chase with the arrows. It was really cool to see the movies come to life. Morgan and Jess got stopped by these guys who made these twisted bracelets, but were basically husting them. They tell you its free of charge but then try to get money out of you afterwards. Jess ended up not having to pay because she spoke french with the guy the whole time, but Morgan got conned into a couple of euros even when she told him to take it off. C'est domage.

By this time, we were all starving and decided to find "the best sandwich" place. On the way there, we passed by Vincent Van Gogh's apartment. It was by complete accident, but as we were walking by, I happend to notice a man taking a picture of a random apartment. On closer look I saw the plaque for the house. It was a cool find! We also passed by the cafe that was used in Amelie! We were so hungry that we never made it to the place we were looking for, so we stopped at Pauls for baguette sandwiches. Mine was turkey, cheese, tomatos, dijon and lettuce. It was filling and got our energy back up.

After lunch, we got back on the metro and headed back into town. The Musee d'Orsay was our next stop to see the impressionist painters. The d'Orsay used to be a train station, but was converted into a museum and now houses some very impressive privtely donated collections of the impressionist painters and sculpters. There was a special exhibition on Degas et le nu. Degas and nudity pretty much. It was his paintings featuring the human form and sketches from his process of creating these masterpieces, as well as his bronze sculptures. On the 5th floor of the museum, there is a balcony with a view of Paris. We could see the Sacre Coeur from there and it was amazing how far we had come in one morning.

Some of the famous painters and pieces we saw were:
Edouard Manet, Le Dejeuner sur l'herbe
Vincent Van Gogh, Autoportrait
Edgar Degas, La Classe de danse
Auguste Renoir, Bal du moulin de la Galette
Maurice Denis, Hommage a Cezanne
Claude Monet, Coquelicots
Antonin Mercie, David
And among many other things, there was one of Van Gogh's starry nights. Pretty amazing if you ask me.

After the d'Orsay, we walked over to the Louvre. Because we couldn't even begin to put a dent in the museum itself, we just opted to take pictues outside and walk through the gardens. Even from the outside it's impressive. I didn't realize how big the Louvre was until I saw it. Jess said that last time she was in Paris, the told her if you looked at every piece of art in the museum for 30 seconds, it would take weeks to get through it all. That is a lot of art.

The gardens were really nice and we took a break at one of the fountains too cool off our aching feet. Some little boys were sailing boats in the water. Jess and Morgan stopped and got street crepes which were delicious. We walked through the gardens to the end of the Chaps Elysee where the oblisque is. It was hazy, but I love my camera and it's zooming abilities for capturing these pictues.

Soon we headed home where we picked up wine, sparking wine, baguettes, cheese and grapes. I was tired, so I laid down for a little nap 7-8. After my nap, Morgan and I popped our sparkling wine (off the balcony and Morgan almost hit a car) and Daniel opened his wine as well. Soon we headed over to la Tour Eiffel with our picnic and blanket. There were tons of people there, but we found a great place to sit with a perfect view. Most of the group soon met up with us. It was the perfect way to spend our last night in Paris. There is nothing more magical than sitting and watching the Eiffel Tower twinkle with friends and a bottle of sparkling wine. I could spend every night doing that for the rest of my life.

I have one more day to post about in Paris and then it is on to Tours!

A bientot!