Today we rolled out of bed, ate the continental breakfast and went straight back upstairs for a nap. We managed to get out for a few hours to walk around the neighborhood.
We're staying in Montmartre. It's the home to the Moulin Rouge, Paris' highest point (Sacré-Cœur) and a lot of young artist/hipsters.
(It was also home to some major activities of the 1871 Paris Commune. Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, and Mao have written extensively about the Commune, and it serves as the primary case study on how to structure a state after a successful revolution. Specifically, the lesson drawn was that once the revolution is kicked off, the revolutionaries must act quickly, decisively, and crush your enemies. Hence... The 20th Century. - GB)
We started at the Sacred Heart Basilica. It's a beautiful cathedral that was finished a little less than a century ago. It was built shortly after France lost the Franco Prussian War. Although built recently, it looks ancient.
(I think my favorite part was all of the mosaics of Jesus with no shirt on--- AKA Gun Show Jesus. According to our guide book, the church was built in repentance for the actions of the commune--- and for the tens of thousands killed when the French military, supported by the occupying Germans, destroyed the Commune. Nearby was another church built on the remains of an ancient Roman temple to Mars.)
Following that we went to the Dali museum and Picasso's studio (Le Bateau-Lavoir). We strolled past the Moulin de la Galette - the setting for Monet's famous painting. We also saw La Maison Rose - once frequented by Picasso and Gertrude Stein.
(All of the impressionist artists lived out here--- the rent was cheap and the booze was tax free. Earlier, Van Gogh lived out here as well. It's quite the neighborhood and featured quite a bit in the recent movie "Midnight in Paris".)
We stopped briefly for a couple sandwiches and a pastry. Even the touristy sandwiches are made the the best bread! I think the next five days are going to be full of wine, cheese and heavily spiced meat.
(True story. Though, I will say how impressed I am with the fruits of the American culinary revolution. We can get bread in Sacramento that comes close to what we're eating now. I suspect we couldn't say that 10 years ago.)
Tomorrow: the Louvre, Orsay and the Tuileries Garden.
(In short, my countdown to the military museum continues. But I'm looking forward to our picnic in the gardens near the Louvre.)
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