Sunday I met up with V., an American friend whom I hadn't seen since mid-high school. She now lives in London and was visiting Paris with her boyfriend, boyfriend's sister, and boyfriend's sister's friends. It was a lively international bunch - exactly the kind of group one would want to romp around Montmartre with.
We met at métro stop Pigalle, then trekked up the hill to the Sacré Cœur cathedral by an alternate route and somehow managed to avoid the scammers who prey on tourists (grab your wrist, start making a bracelet around it, then make you pay for it) AND the long line to get into the cathedral (we cut without realizing).
We were still allowed to tour the inside of the stunning neo-Byzantine cathedral, even though Mass was going on at the same time. It was kind of awkward to be a "looky-loo" while people who were genuinely there for service sat and prayed or took communion...but so be it.
As we descended the hill, we passed a Paraguayan harpist playing on the steps - the same harpist I saw there in 2009!
2009
2011
We then passed the famous Moulin Rouge and a variety of sex shops (Montmarte is home to Paris' red light district) ...
And then, since it was an unabashedly touristic day, we ate lunch at Le Café des Deux Moulins - the café from the movie "Amélie" ("Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain"). It was un peu cher, but we vegetarians (there were several of us) were able to get lovely salads sans jambon (without ham).
Finally, we took a stroll through the Cimetière de Montmartre. We spent a good amount of time looking for Oscar Wilde's grave before realizing that he is in fact buried in the even-more-famous Père Lachaise cemetery (20e arrondissement). Still, all was not lost, since we happened upon the grave of French Romantic composer Hector Berlioz, most noted for his Symphonie fantastique; as there were several musicians in our little group, this was almost just as exciting!
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