Sunday, February 17, 2008

Filling up a Sunday

I had a fear of catching the flu from the kids this weekend. I was beginning to feel sick, so I treated myself as if I was so that I could prevent it from becoming something horrific. I spent most of Saturday relaxing in my flat, reading, studying some French by watching French movies with French subtitles, and eating soup with cracker, and some cold 7up. I took a long nap and even went to bed early.

By the time that Sunday came around, I was ready to get out. It was cold, that's for sure. I called up Alexia and she mentioned that she had friends in town. They wanted to take the Velib bikes around Paris. I love being out and busy in Paris, but I kind of wanted something a little more slow paced. I met her on line 13 at my stop and we went up to Montmartre to meet up with her friends that were only in town for another day. We met outside the Anvers station and walked up to Sacre Coeur. My second visit in one week! But who could get tired of this.

They saw the carousel and got giddy like little kids. After running over, they pulled out the money and got tickets as the ride was just about to begin. It wasn't as busy as expected, but yes, they were the oldest kids on it.
During our trek up to the top, Brianna told me to look to my left. We saw two guys that were at the edge of a long drop. They were hoisting themselves over and then up into handstands. I was on the verge of severe shakes of nervousness for them. What if they lost their balance? I guess they knew what they were doing.
He's a show-off! This was one level above where he was the last time. Not sure if he was wanting a good photo-op or if he just wanted everyone to look at him. Either way, it worked.
There were three guys playing on the steps and had a pretty captive audience. The first song we heard was a Beatles song, but I can't remember which one. The second one was "...country road, take me home...to the place...I belong...West Virginia..." Oh that one was a good'un.A postcard can speak a thousand words.
She's so Paris!
Just before we parted ways, we walked by this little delivery truck. Could that get any more adorable? Come on! Matthew saw it and laughed and said, "Gosh, sometimes they really overdo the French thing." I laughed because he was so serious and didn't realize the irony. I left to start my hermit portion of the day. I've really become a recluse in France. I always had it in me and never hesitated to admit it, but it's more apparent to me now. Is it wrong that a person likes to be alone to read, listen to music, walk around cemetaries? Wow, that sounded morose. Whatever the case, it's one of my favorite relaxing places to go. There are a lot of famous cemetaries in Paris, but this one beats them all. You could picnic there, it's that great. It is the resting place of many famous people such as Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Moliere, Chopin, Sarah Berhardt, and many more. I wasn't able to see all of them since I was kicked out as the sun was setting.
This is one of the main squares in the cemetary. As you can see there are lots of people and quite a few levels since it's built on one of the large hills in Paris.
Jim Morrison's grave. I had no idea he was so young when he died. There was a guy next to it smoking and drinking champagne. This was the only angle I could get since it was barred off. It's actually in an obscure place and easy to miss.
Oh gosh how I would hate to have this near my grave. Maybe it's a remembrance to those that visit that it's never too late. Don't live and die with regrets.
Oscar Wilde's famous place of rest. It's known for the kisses of his admirers. People also write messages in all different languages on it. I didn't know much about his life but just researched it and found it fascinating. His lifestyle is believed to be what killed him at the young age of 46, but his actual cause of death is still a bit of a mystery. This man was either loved or hated in his day, despite his amazing genius.
I walked just a bit down the road and saw some more beautiful statues. Some of them just depict an emotion that is unknown until you stand in front of it. You can almost feel how much the person was loved and how much they are missed.This is one picture to show how much I love to walk around Pere Lachaise. Isn't it just dreamlike? I like this bench and I love dusk. This is where I sat and read the beginning of Les Miserable. I cannot believe it has taken me this long to read this book, but I was convinced after my third visit to Victor Hugo's home. I think it will be more to me since I am in the town that it took place in.
I am sure this won't be the last time you see some pictures of this place. It's so large and impossible to see in one or two visits. I am sure if any of you come to visit, I will take you here...It can't be missed.

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