Père Lachaise Cemetery

Established in 1804 by Napoleon I, Emperor of France, the Père Lachaise cemetery was the first garden cemetery and first municipal cemetery. Napoleon declared that "Every citizen has the right to be buried here regardless of race or religion." The largest cemetery in the city of Paris, it holds over one million interments in its 110 acres. 

When it was first established, the cemetery was actually east of the city. People didn't want to bury their loved ones so far from home, so it was not popular. Space was running-out inside the older Parisian cemeteries, so the planners decided that it would encourage people to choose Père Lachaise if they started burying famous people here. The first two celebrities were transferred here from their original resting places: Poets/Writers/Playwrights Jean de La Fontaine and Moliere. It is all about the marketing -- they knew that even back in 1804!

Above and below are photos of one very famous tomb in the cemetery. It is the tomb of an abbot and a nun who had fallen in love. When their relationship was discovered, they were sent far apart (and he was castrated!). In death, they were reunited here.

Many of the tombs have chapels built on top of them, often decorated with stained glass. The people are buried (stacked) below, and family members can comeand pray in the chapel.

Jim Morrison is buried here. The only requirement for burial in Père Lachaise is that you must have died in France. There is a barricade around the nearby graves, to discourage vandals. It wasn't enough for people to leave flowers (and alcohol, condoms, heroine needles) on Morrison's grave -- many wrote graffiti on the tombs nearby.

Oscar Wilde is buried here, too. His tomb also has a barricade, as so many women (and maybe some men, too) kissed his tombstone that it was ruining the stone.

Famous French singer, Edith Piaf, is here, as well as Chopin. . .

. . . and painter, Gericault, whose famous work "Raft of the Medusa" is depicted right on his tombstone.

There are also many tombs dedicated to the victims of the Nazis in WWII. Some are for those who died in specific camps, like Auschwitz, Ravensbruck and Dachau, some for the French Resistance fighters.

"Under this stone lies a bit of the ashes of the seven million French martyrs asassinated by the Nazis in the camp Neuengamme. They died so that we could live free. Their families and surviving comrades have erected this monument in their memory. 8 Novermber, 1949" (apologies if I got any of that wrong)

Luxembourg Marionettes and Paris' Gay Pride Parade

One of the traditional activities in the Luxembourg gardens is to rent a little wooden sailboat and push it with a stick to sail in the enormous pond in front of the palace (which is now where the Senate is housed). The park was built by Napoleon, for the enjoyment of the people of Paris and it is still used for that purpose. In addition to beautiful grounds in which you are free to stroll, sit, and/or take your kids to the playground, there are also a few places to eat, an historic marionette theater, pony rides (which I didn't see this time, but Mark and I did last time we were here) and gazebo venues for musical performances.

This morning, with many of the other students, we met Pierre, his wife, Mallory, and Pierre's daughter, Danielle and her boyfriend to watch the puppet theater's production of Les Trois Petites Cochons (The Three Little Pigs). The theater charges just under five Euro, and the first four rows of benches are for children only (strictly enforced!) so that the puppets can interact with the kids. It was super charming, and I would have loved to have taken photos of the puppet and the kids -- darling! However, photos are absolutely not allowed. I did get some photos of our group before the action began.

Tristan, Mike and Eloy (in the back).

Saul (commenting on how creepy the marionettes were) and Sarah. We all admitted to being creeped-out by the vintage marionettes (and clowns). Thank goodness, there were no clowns involved!

Katie and Mike (sister and brother)

All of the marionettes had head-shots around the room. This was one of the scariest ones, which Saul jokingly called Captain Crotch-it. LOL!

After the puppet show, which we all really enjoyed,  we went our separate ways. I stayed in Jardin du Luxembourg for a bit, enjoying the almost-rainy weather.

Catherine De Medici's fountain (my favorite fountain in Paris). She had it built in the Jardin du Luxembourg when she was Queen of France (and she missed her hometown of Florence, Italy).

Signs of the Gay Pride Parade geting ready to happen today. I loved this scene and was so happy to get this photo of a young gay man speaking with an old Parisian woman and a Muslim woman, who were all smiling and obviously chatting about the parade preparations.

It was saturday morning, and I had no plans, so I walked north, through the Isle (past Notre Dame), into the 2nd Arrondissement (past Hôtel De Ville, the City Hall, which was decorated for the Gay Pride Parade).

I continued to walk, reaching St Paul church in Le Marais, before giving-up and taking the Métro for just one stop to the Bastille, where I'd heard it would be a good location to watch the parade. I was early, so I sat on the steps of Opera Bastille  and waited. And waited. And then it started to sprinkle. And then it began to rain. Finally, the parade came. There were people everywhere, and the mood of the crowd was fiendly, electric.

Some in the crowd had wild costumes, but most were dressed in street clothes. There were rainbows everywhere on this very rainy day.

Free Hugs . . . Bisous Gratis (free kisses)!

Tour of L'Opéra Garnier

Originally built for the opera, this Baroque Revival 1,972-seat opera house was built in the late 1800s. Now, it primarily hosts ballet performances.

Just when you think that the exterior is over-the-top, the interior is jaw-droppingly amazing!

The grand staircase, which leads to the balcony box-seats (which are lined with red velvet).

Some of the costumes were on display. Ahhhhh-mazing!

Above: this looks like a set for an opera, and it is! However, it is only a 3-dimensional model of a set. The whole thing was probably 2.5'x 2'x2'

The library for all of the music was floor-to-ceiling (2 stories high).

Have I said "WOW!" yet? Some people were setting-up to film something in this hall.

A view of tthe 2nd Arrondissment from the front balcony of Opéra Garnier.

Montmartre and Sacre Coeur

Today, class was a trip to Le Bon Marche, Paris' fanciest clothing store and across the street, it's fanciest food store. You aren't supposed to take photos inside, so I can't share any of that. Suffice it to say, the grocery store was particularly wonderful. Filled with the best of everything and some ordinary stuff, too (but at extraordinary prices). Bottled water at twice the price? No? How about bottled "BLING" water (the bling on the label is spelled-out with crystals) for almost €60? I did go back the next day and buy a container of fresh orzo & shrimp salad, which I had for dinner, and it was reasonably-priced at €7.50.

Any-hooo, I couldn't let a day go by without walking for several miles and taking photos of interesting things, so my friend, Robert, and I walked (and took the Metro) and walked some more up to Montmartre and the 19th century church, Sacre Coeur.

As the name implies, this part of Paris is on top of a (small) mountain (big hill, really). Back in the day (late 1800s, early 1900s) many artists lived and worked here, since it was a less expensive and bohemian part (suburb, almost) of Paris. You can still see artists on the streets, but many of them are sketching the faces of tourists for a living. The area retains its bohemian charm.

Below: the Basilica Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart), which was built in the late 1800s. When we visited, we were so fortunate that wwe were able to waalk through during Mass. The nuns were singing and it was just beautiful to hear.

The view from in front of Sacre Coeur is really amazing. You can see almost all of Paris in front of you.

The tall, modern, Tour Montparnasse can be seen on the right. My neighborhood, the 15th Arrondissement, is located near the tower (though I cannot see it from the apartment).

Some pretty buildings on Montmartre.

Art in a park.

Saint Jean de Montmartre - built in the late 1800s-early 1900s. We didn't go in, but I really appreciate the archetictural style and thought it was beautiful.

Walking down the hill to the Paris streets below, the Metro stop is very close to the Moulin Rouge, so I had to take a photo. It was around 7pm and was just starting to sprinkle, so the lighting was great. You can get dinner and a show here, but it is an overpriced tourist trap. Still, fun to take a picture.