Saturday Stroll

I've walked around Paris plenty, seen most of the highlights.  From the outside.  I hadn't really explored any singular place in depth until Saturday when I decided to change that.

Lunch:  at Page 35.  I've passed this place plenty of times and figured I could find something on one of the more-than-several formule menus (prix-fixe) posted outside.  I chose a plat + entree, starting with risotto, followed by bavette (skirt steak).  The risotto had a French twist, including charcuterie meat on top of the dish.  The bavette...well the first piece was cooked perfectly to my requested "medium."  The second piece, however, was rare at best.  Luckily I was full by the time I cut into the second piece so it wasn't much of a loss.

Shopping:  per the recommendation of Paris:  Made by Hand, I headed to rue du Pont Louis Philippe to check out the paper stores.  I'm always looking for journals (I'm really picky) and paper and cards and such.  The shops did not disappoint, and I found a slim journal that would suit my needs.  One shop had a large selection of 3D cut-out scenes of Paris, so I know I'll be going back.

Exploring:

I crossed the Seine to Île de la Cité and headed to Notre Dame.  I had been here my first weekend, but today I had the goal of seeing the inside, and specifically, the famous stained glass windows.  The line to enter seemed a bit long, but it moved quickly.  While Notre Dame does look large from the exterior, it seems utterly massive once you step inside.

view of the altar from the main "entrance" of the cathedral

Each nook on either side of the main sanctuary is small chapel, named after a saint and usually including the patron saint's likeness.  The stained glass window in each chapel is beautiful.  However, once you move closer towards the altar, you are able to see on either side the gorgeous rose windows.

From the South, you can look across the cathedral to the North Rose Window, installed around 1250.    The opposite is true once you walk behind the altar to reach the North side.  The South Rose Window is more famous than its counterpart as it was a gift from the king and tells the stories of the New Testament.

North Rose Window

North Rose Window (thankful for a camera with good zoom!)

Because of the time of day that I visited (and because--surprisingly!--the sun was shining), the pictures I have of the south window are not nearly as clear as the ones I took of the north.  I guess this means I'll have to come back another day at another time.  Poor me, right?

South Rose Window

After  exploring Notre Dame I walked around the plaza and saw a staircase leading down to the Archaeological Crypts of Notre Dame.  Intrigued, I went inside, paid my 3 Euros and walked around.  While the crypt doesn't seem like much, it is a quick tour around the original buildings that stood on the island during Roman and Medieval times.  You can see where the Seine used to run (50 m closer than it does now) and where the Romans installed thermal baths.  My favorite part, though, was an interactive, touchscreen display that showed the 4 stages of the building of the cathedral.  You could pan and zoom around the entirety to see what the cathedral looked like during the hundred years it took to erect.  Pretty cool!

I headed across the river to the 5th to see Shakespeare & Company.  I will do another post in the future solely dedicated to this gem, I promise!  I imagine I will be a frequent visitor...

The small dose of hearing English energized me and I walked back to Cité to see the Conciergerie.  The ticket teller was not entirely convinced that I am a resident of the EU, but a mixed look of disappointment, confusion, and slyness won him over and I got my ticket gratuit.  (Note:  Most museums and cultural attractions in France give reduced or free admission to residents of the EU/Schengen Area that are between 18 and 25 years old.  I am in the thick of the bureaucratic process of getting my resident card, so I just present my passport and visa.)

Entrance of the Conciergerie

This is another relatively quick tour.  The building is HUGE but the displayed areas are quite limited.  It was pretty neat to see the room* where Marie Antoinette stayed before she was beheaded.  Technically, she was held in a two-part room, where her "bedroom" was later turned into a chapel and renovations made to alter the room as it was during her imprisonment.  The other part of her quarters now houses the display of her assumed living area.

4+ miles of walking and I was definitely ready to rest my feet.  All in all, an amazing day with plenty of future plans made for further exploration!