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Published: August 27th 2012
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A Nervous Disposition.
The Catacombes and Jess do not agree. Our return to Paris was for both business and pleasure! We needed to organise our Indian visas for our trip in December and the annoying thing about the Indian Tourist Visa is that it is valid from the day it's issued, rather than the day of entry into India. So we were unable to organise them before we left as they would have expired before we'd even entered the country! The other annoying thing was that because we were not holders of a French passport, we couldn't opt for the express service and instead had to hang around Paris for "5-10 working days" until our passports (and hopefully visas) were ready for collection. We arrived at the Visa office first thing on a Monday morning and were also advised that there were 2 public holidays during our visa processing time, so we naturally expected the worst! But I suppose there are much worse places to hang around than Paris in summer!
Having already spent 10 days in Paris at the start of our trip, we enjoyed the relaxing pace of this visit. There wasn't any pressure to cram in all of the tourist activities during our stay, and
we even spent a whole day picnicking and reading our books in a park. The one touristy activity that Abe was keen to make up for was a visit to the Catacombes. The Catacombes are a series of tunnels underneath Paris, that were initially used as quarries hundreds of years ago. In the 1700s, Paris' cemeteries were filling up and they were running out of room for the recently deceased, so some bright spark came up with the idea to put the skeletons in the disused tunnels to free up space in the cemeteries. The remains of 6 million people were put down there in total. The last time we were in Paris, Abe was keen to see this very morbid sight. The Catacombes are right on the outskirts of Paris and we had never even heard of them before (an obscure Lonely Planet recommendation..!), so we naively thought that it wouldn't be too crowded. How wrong we were! We showed up at about 10am (the place opens at 9am) and the line to get in was already around the block. We stood in this queue for almost 3 hours and we weren't even halfway to the front, so gave
Chartres Illuminaire!
The Cathedral in her Sunday Best up. This time, Abe said, things would be different. We got up early and legged it to the Metro. The plan was to get in the queue before the 9am opening time to ensure a speedy entry. However our 8.40am arrival was not early enough. We were definitely further up in the queue than we were the first time, but there were still hundreds of people in front of us. We stood in the line for just over 2 hours before we were finally at the front! There was a big sign at the entry warning that people with 'nervous dispositions' should not enter, and after a few sniggers about 'nervous dispositions', we descended into the tunnels.
I had not considered myself a person with a nervous disposition, however an hour in underground tunnels filled with human remains has certainly changed that outlook. Abe had a wonderful time meandering through the tunnels and photographing the bones, but I just could not get comfortable. The added bonus of walking around a corner and stepping into a puddle (in thongs) just topped it off for me. I made an audible "URRRRRRGH! Dead people juice!" and concluded that the Catacombes
Labyrinth
Round and round and round... just weren't for me.
We decided to get out of Paris for a few days, and visited the nearby city of Chartres. Chartres has a famous cathedral, renowned for its amazing collection of stained glass windows. They actually removed all 170+ windows during both World Wars to ensure that they weren't damaged. It is also one of two cathedrals in France that have a labyrinth made out of stone in the floor. I think it was created some time in the days of the Cathars, and there have been rumours that the secret of the Holy Grail was hidden somewhere under the labyrinth floor of Chartres cathedral. Amazing stuff!
Unbeknownst to us, Chartres also has a spectacular light show every evening over the summer months, illuminating all of the towns landmarks with incredible moving and stationary light shows. Some of them were even accompanied by music! Our hotel provided us with a map and as soon as it reached dark (about 10pm!) we wandered around the city, enjoying the spectacle. It must be a huge tourist attraction for Chartres (even though we'd never heard of it before!!) because there was a massive amount of
Yay Love!
Congrats Kamelia and Charly! infrastructure to support it. There were even little solar lights in the footpaths that glowed blue in the evenings to show the way to the next exhibit. It took us two nights to see all of the sights and it was a very magical experience!
We headed back to our favourite part of Paris, Montmartre, in time for the Wedding Celebration of our lovely friends Kamelia and Charly! The reception was held on a boat, cruising up and down the Seine with the Eiffel Tower as a most impressive backdrop! We had a blast dressing up in our best H&M outfits and dancing the night away to celebrate a wonderful life ahead for Kamelia and Charly!
After only a week of processing time (4 working days including one of the dreaded public holidays) we received the surprising news that our visas were ready for collection! I felt a little bad for doubting Indian efficiency and hope this is the first of many pleasant surprises during our adventure to India. We spent our final days in Paris down south near Montparnasse, which is home to Paris' tallest (and most horrific looking) tower. Many Parisians complain about the Montparnasse Tower as a blight on the otherwise spectacular skyline, however the great thing that the tower offers is a wonderful view from the 56th floor that encapsulates all of Paris' icons… the Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, Louvre, Notre Dame, without having to see the ugly Montparnasse. Cos you're standing on it. Duh. We enjoyed a night time view (unfortunately the 30 minute queue to buy tickets meant that we missed sunset.. oops.. not very well planned on our behalves) as our last Parisian experience before we headed up to Normandy for our last HelpX stint for the trip!
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