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Trees in Luxemborg Gardens
We love how they prune the trees here - it makes the foliage so dense and rich. The day started with a hotel change. We checked out of the Marriott and made our way up the road to our next hotel, Le Meridien Montparnasse, which is right next to Gare Montparnasse. We don't like this hotel as much - it's situated in a very busy area without much charm. But, our 19th floor room affords some great views of Paris and her suburbs.
After settling in, we walked through the 6th arrondissement (St. Germain) and meandered to the Luxemborg Gardens for a picnic lunch. We marveled at all of the Parisians enjoying a leisurely midday meal in the park. After lunch we walked to the Luxemborg Palace, which anchors the gardens. Henry IV built this palace for his wife, but the building now houses the senate. We got a kick out of watching the gardeners trimming the boxwoods. They take their job very seriously - before trimming, they use levels to position stake and string to make sure they cut the bushes perfectly.
Next, we walked to Saint-Germain-des-Pres, which is the oldest church in Paris. Clovis's son Childebert I commissioned its building in the 6th century. Much of the original structure has been lost to hundreds
Sarah and the Palace
Yeah, my shoes look weird. Did you notice how much we're walking? of years of renovations. However, the main chapel features painting from the middle ages. It is apparent that most of the current decorations are much older than Notra Dame's; we've included a picture of a carving of a saint that illustrates the prevalence of early middle ages motifs.
We left St. Germain and made our way towards Montrematre. On the way, we stopped by yet another church, St.-Germain l'Auxerrois, which is located behind the Louvre because we had noticed when we went to the exhibit on the history of the Louvre that this particular church had been built before construction on the Louvre began. Turns out, this church was built in the 7th century and was considered to be the church for the Louvre Palace.
We continued to move away from the Seine, determined to see the steep slopes of Montremarte. I'll be frank - we did not care for Montremarte or the Sacre Coeur. Everything seemed dirty and crowded. We also didn't feel super safe walking through the area. I think most people take the Metro from the center of the city to the base of Sacre Coeur, and so don't experience a similar feeling. Additionally, Sacre
Stained Glass
This is from St-Germain-des-Pres. Coeur was really crowded and there was a little street fair that is better described as a tourist trap. Since we were there already, we climbed the steep slope to the steps of the basilica and were rewarded with a stunning view of downtown Paris. We then quickly made our way to the Metro and got out of there.
After taking a short nap, we were out again searching for food. We decided to head for St.-Germain-des-Pres again (the courtyard by the church is very cute). After taking in the evening, we saw a long line of locals queued up by a restaurant. Naturally, we got in line. What followed was really bizarre. After about a 15 minute wait, we were sat by a no-nonsense woman in a black dress, white apron, and slicked back hair. Next, another similarly clad woman brought us each a salad (with walnuts and a mustardy dressing) and some bread. No menu. About five minutes later, a woman came back and asked us how we wanted our meat and what wine we wanted. I was confused, but decided to just go with it (medium, and half a bottle of the house red). The house
A cool carving
It's a little blurry due to the fact that you can't use a flash in the church. red was nice and spicy and the steak arrived in a greenish sauce that tasted like a sort of coconut curry. The plate was also covered in thin, crispy frites. Talking to some diners next to us, we gathered that this restaurant, Les Relais de l'Entrecote, is one of three and is well know for its secret sauce. The meat was cooked with skill, and when we had finished, our waitress brought us seconds! All in all, it was an interesting experience, but I think I would have preferred to go somewhere where I could pick my own meal. The bill was a bit more expensive than we thought, too (remember, we had never seen a menu or anything).
Afterwards, we walked back to our hotel, trying to burn off some of the calories from the delicious frites.
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Mary Beth Bauerle
non-member comment
Thanks for all the updates!