Montmarte and Sacre Coeur

After a great nights sleep, the morning started with Starbucks coffee. Chuck discovered a nearby Starbucks and  got some good coffee to start the morning.


Once we got ready, we had a nice petit dejeuner--cafe au lait, orange juice, croissants, and jam at a nice brasserie near our hotel. Then we wandered towards Montmarte, an area of the city that was (and still is to some extent) where

artists gathered to paint. The is a

small square that has artists around the edge selling their work and painting. The inside of the square is restaurant seating and artists that will sketch or draw a portrait in real time. It is a nice place to visit, albeit full of tourists.


Nearby is a Dali museum which we visited. Dali was a very strange person who had a vivid and bizarre imagination. One thing that I didn't realize was that his mother was a devout Catholic. He resisted religion for many years, but in later life converted to Catholicism. He did a series of paintings of both the Old Testament and the New Testament. A few of the prints of those paintings were in the museum.


We had lunch in one of the restaurants in the square.

Chuck had moules (mussels) and frites (French fries). Generally you get a couple of dozen moules, but these were small and, as you can see, I had 5 dozen or more of them. It more calories  t get them out the shell than I got from eating them.

Caroline had a quiche. This is not a place to go for great food. But it is a very picturesque place with lots of activity.


Also nearby is Sacred-Heart Basilica of Montmarte, or in French, Sacre Coeur.

Sacre Coeur is a beautiful church on the top of the hill. The church is a landmark because of its location and its beauty and dominates the skyline from parts of Paris. The steps in front of the church are a favorite place for people to sit and enjoy the view of the city and for street performers to set up shop.

We wandered back to the hotel and took a much needed rest for an hour or so.


Since we had a birthday to celebrate, we chose to go the restaurant on the second level of the Eiffel Tower, the Jules Verne. It 125 meters (or about 400 feet) up the tower and hence has a magnificent view. It was a wonderful night with a great view, and good food and service. Even if I do say so myself, we do clean up pretty well!


© Charles Eklund 2012