Winding Down

 Today marks the beginning of our last 10 days of our long sojourn in Paris and France. We are sad to be leaving Paris and excited about starting our new life in Chicago. This blog will cover a lot that we have done in the past two weeks. So it's a bit long.

We've had a number of sit-around days, between Chris needing to work and rainy days. It has given me time to write this blog and to recover from those days we walk 5 or 6 miles. 

We're winding down on things to see in Paris. We've hit most if not all of the must-see places. The last of those on our list was Chartres Cathedral, which we visited on Monday. More on that below. But I have to say that what we love most about Paris is just wandering the streets soaking it in. We've also become quite addicted to the wonderful food: the bread (yes, I found where I can get GF bread); the pastries (harder to come by GF, but not impossible); the wine; the cheese; the chocolate. 

Among notable must-see sites is the Catacombs, which is within walking distance to our Airbnb. We went a week ago. The site was originally a quarry where limestone was quarried for buildings in Paris - notably, Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre. In the mid-18th century concerns were arising over disease related to the presence of cemeteries in the middle of the city, and officials decided that the contents of the cemeteries would be moved to outside the city center. The quarries were the obvious place to reinter the remains. You can read more about the history of the site here. 

Many might find a tour of human remains creepy or morbid; I found it moving and holy. Although the remains were probably originally just dumped, today they are arranged neatly and even artistically and organized according to the churches from which they came:

I love the loving care it must have taken to arrange these skulls into a heart.

Early after our arrival in Paris, we went to a music and laser show at Eglise Saint Eustache with my friend Joan and her husband. I wanted to return to the church to see it in the daylight. It is a massive structure but also a really interesting space. In one chapel there is a copy of Rubens' "Adoration of the Magi." I took a picture of a section that especially touched me:

I love that what is probably supposed to be a blessing could also be 

the natural affection of a small child.

These pictures might give you a sense of how massive this church is.

I got a kick out of this neon Jacob's ladder in the middle of the church. 

But does it have to be over a rose window?

I ended up going back to Saint Eustache a second time. We were in the area and I wanted Chris to see it. It was well worth the second trip. I had missed the chapel to Saint Vincent de Paul, which had a beautiful bronze Keith Haring triptych in it. Haring died of AIDS just before completing this piece. He was active in the drive to find a cure for AIDS and used his art to inspire.

The very last must-see site that we made sure to see this month before we leave was Chartres Cathedral. It is a quick hour-long train ride to the city of Chartres. No need for Google Maps to find the cathedral; it looms over the city: 

So many great pictures of Chartres. I'll just list them here and write captions:

Chris got this picture of me walking on the labyrinth that forms 

part of the floor of the nave.

There are two rose windows in the cathedral. This was the only one

we could see, as the other was covered over with scaffolding 

as the cathedral was being renovated.

This is a scene of Mary's visitation to Elizabeth. It's part of a large frieze that

surrounds the choir (known as a choir screen).

This is a scene of the Ascension. I had to laugh to see the bottom

half of Jesus hanging down into the scene. I wonder if his top half

was sticking up?

The last photo is of the lovely Blue Mary window. 

Our final must-see was a "must-do." A boat ride on the Seine. It was too cool before mid-July to do this, so we waited for a hot day and got on board. 

Often you can see things from the boat you can't see otherwise:

The Zoave du Pont d'Alma

A statue of George Diebolt, one of the only statues left of 4 figures 

who participated in the Crimean War

This is a statue of Sainte Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris.

Almost every church we visited had a chapel for her.

And then there is the ubiquitous Eiffel Tower!

A boat ride is also a great way to get a sense of where things are in the city in relation to one another. But most importantly for me: sun and water!

Now we're working on the less-visited sites. Among these are some Roman ruins. These ruins were built as an amphitheater around the end of the first century AD. The amphitheater was in use until the late Roman empire. It was discovered in 1870 and was probably built up into the park that it is today. It is being used as a "fan experience" for attendees of the Paralympics.

We also love how we have come across fun surprises as we wander around. Here's a sign we saw outside the American Church in Paris:

And here's a sign we see in the Metro train. This babysitting agency has a campaign of cute advertisements. This one translates to "Word mill seeks attentive ear." 

I will send out at least one more blog after this. We leave Paris on Sunday, September 15, arriving in Chicago O'Hare around 7:30 CDT.