The Catacombs
Trip Start
Jul 23, 2008
1
18
27
Trip End
Aug 14, 2008
Paris,
France
Thursday, August 7, 2008
We FINALLY made it to the Catacombs. After an hour in line, we got up to the front. Entrance to the Catacombs only cost 14 Eur total, 7 ea for DH and I, and the kids were free. You walk down, down, down this spiraling never-ending staircase (or so it seems) to get to the tunnels. Then the tunnels slope down as you walk.
You walk and walk, and go past the quarrymen's footbath which is this beautiful, clear blue pool of water. You also get to see some sculptures by one of the quarrymen, and they're quite something
Small Fraction of the Line
. Finally, you come to the entrance to the ossuary where all the bones are kept. The entrance says in French, "Halt, for you are entering the empire of death."You are finally amongst millions of bones stacked one upon the other. Piles and piles neatly laid, some in a form of a heart or a piratey looking "skull & crossbones" fashion or other design. The walls are perfectly straight, or when it calls for it, perfectly curved, each bone so carefully put in place. There are plaques to let you know which cemetary (and the date) each group of bones were from.
On the way out you climb another never-ending staircase to get out. Then your bags are checked to make sure you didn't grab a femur or two for display at home.
We walked to a bistro and sat outside to have lunch. A family of five sat next to us and turned out they are from Orange County (we're practically neighbors). So we talked to them while we ate. They had been staying in Italy for a couple months for the dad's work and were now touring around. They must have been just behind us at the Catacombs. DH and the dad exchanged business cards. We had a fun time chatting with them about travel
Entrance to the Catacombs
.We went back to the apartment and relaxed awhile. Then went to the Monoprix--we let the kids do the shopping for their dinner. They were so excited; I told them what to get, and they went and got it. While the kids were in line buying their groceries, I bought myself a coin purse. I really never use coins in the U.S., but in France, they're used all the time. I found a pretty red one there at the Monoprix, so I got it. Anyway, the kids did a great job getting their items and checking out at the register with the exception that DD freaked out because she looked at the total in Francs instead of Euros. Silly girl.
DD wanted to make the pasta for their dinner, so I supervised. Once the kids were fed,
DH and I went half a block down to Le Phare du Canal to have dinner just the two of us. We had a wonderful time at a great table looking out at the goings on yet having comfy chairs and a large table on the inside. It started to rain a little while we ate, which added to the atmosphere.
We took our time eating and savoring our food and wine. I had chicken with a creamy sauce and DH had salmon. We slowly drank a bottle of wine (haven't done that in awhile) and had crepes for dessert. It was trully a great evening.
