Paris Day 1 – The Trip and Arrival

We’ll be cataloging here our trip to Paris day by day.   As mentioned earlier, the trip was a surprise to Angie, and she didn’t find out about where we were going until we were at the airport.   We used sky miles for the flight and actually brought food from the states to prepare at our apartment since food and especially eating out is expensive in Paris.   It was a trip on a tight budget, and it worked out great!

Thursday and Friday

Our plane left at 12:40 PM which was nice because we didn’t have to get up super early to leave for the airport.   The airport also wasn’t crowded at this time and it helped that we left on a Thursday instead of a Monday morning or a weekend.

We flew Continental and had a great flight and service.   We had video monitors located in the backs of the seats in front of us and we each watched a movie on the way.   I watched “Kung Fu Panda” and was quite content because I had wanted to see it again.   We then tried to sleep on the plane because it was night in Paris and we would be arriving the next day.   We had plane switch in Houston and were glad that the airport was open again.   Hurricane Ike had cause the closure of the airport days before we were set to connect at the city for our next flight.

We arrived Friday at about 11AM Paris time.   Our total travel time was about 15 hours.   We could see bits of Ireland and England as we flew over them (they were partially obscured by clouds).   We were amazed as we flew closer to Paris how much farm land there was near the city.

I had arranged transport from the airport with a shuttle service instead of taking a cab because the shuttle drivers at the company spoke English.   It was a little frustrating because we had to wait a while for the shuttle as there was a mix up as to where we would meet the shuttle.   Two girls that were waiting for the shuttle with us were actually BYU students.   Three others in the shuttle van were from Great Britain and two were from Scotland.

We were dropped off at the corner near our flat because cars were parked all along the street.   I arranged for us to stay in a Bed and Breakfast.   We had a whole apartment to ourselves.   The apartment was old but we liked that it had a fridge, freezer, stove top, and microwave.   We were given vouchers for the bakery down the street.  We booked our stay through  http://www.bed-and-breakfast-in-paris.com which was nice because we could pay for part of the rent online and not have to carry so many Euros with us.  The transfer rate of Dollar to Euro was 1.49 when we left which meant it took 1.49 US dollars to buy one Euro.

The owners of the apartment live outside of Paris.   Our hostess was very helpful and recommended places to eat and answered questions we had about the city.

We stayed in the Montmartre district (named the Mount of Martyrs for Saint Denis that was killed there and for other martyrs as well).   The district is number 18.   Paris is a large city with different districts.   Each district is known for something.   The first districts are located in the center of the city and then circle around until reaching the end.   The 18th district was really neat because literally up our street was the artist display and shops or Montmartre.

The history of the area is fascinating.  From Wikipedia:

Montmartre is a hill (the butte Montmartre) which is 130 metres high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district. The other, older, church on the hill is Saint Pierre de Montmartre, which claims to be the location at which the Jesuit order of priests was founded. Many artists had studios or worked around the community of Montmartre such as Salvador Dalí,Modigliani, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh.

The toponym Mons Martis (“Mount of Mars”) survived into Merovingian times, Christianised as Montmartre, signifying ‘mountain of the martyr’; it owes this name to the martyrdom of Saint Denis, who was decapitated on the hill around 250 AD. Saint Denis was the Bishop of Paris and is the patron saint of France. (Source:  Montmartre. (2008, September 26). In  Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20:46, September 28, 2008, from  http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Montmartre&oldid=241189138)

Below is the street we stayed on.

Walking up our street a bit to get to the top of Montmartre. We loved seeing the old style of buildings. Many we would walk by and think that the building had been there for 150 years.

Below is an artist drawing a portrait at the top or Montmartre near the church.

The Sacre Couer Church is at the top of the hill and is very beautiful. We went inside and listed to the services for a while. It was great. From the church, you can see the city.  Joan of Arc is featured as one of the horse riders.

From Wikipedia:

The Sacré-CÅ“ur Basilica (French: Basilique du Sacré-CÅ“ur, “Basilica of the Sacred Heart”) is a Roman Catholic basilica and popular landmark in Paris, France, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Sacré-CÅ“ur is pronounced /sakʁe kœʁ/. The basilica is located at the summit of the butte Montmartre (Montmartre butte), the highest point in the city.

The purpose of making a church dedicated to the Sacred Heart, with its origins in the aftermath of the French Revolution among ultra-Catholics and legitimist royalists, developed more widely in France after the Franco-Prussian War and the ensuing radical Paris Commune of 1870-71. Though today it is asserted to be dedicated in honor of the 58,000 who lost their lives during the war, the decree of the Assemblée nationale, 24 July 1873, responding to a request by the archbishop of Paris by voting its construction, specifies that it is to “expiate the crimes of the communards”. Montmartre had been the site of the Commune’s first insurrection, and many hard-core communards were forever entombed in the subterranean galleries of former gypsum mines where they had retreated, by explosives detonated at the entrances by the Army of Versailles. Hostages had been executed on both sides, and the Communards had executed Georges Darboy, Archbishop of Paris, who became a martyr for the resurgent Catholic Church. His successor Guibert, climbing the Butte Montmartre in October 1872, was reported to have had a vision, as clouds dispersed over the panorama: “It is here, it is here where the martyrs are, it is here that the Sacred Heart must reign so that it can beckon all to come”.

Since 1885 (before construction had been completed), the Blessed Sacrament (a consecrated host which has been turned into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ during Mass) has been continually on display in a monstrance above the high altar. Perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament has continued uninterrupted in the Basilica since 1885. Because of this, tourists and others are asked to dress appropriately when visiting the basilica and to observe silence as much as possible, so as not to disturb persons who have come from around the world to pray in this special place. (Source:  Basilique du Sacré-CÅ“ur, Paris. (2008, September 24). In  Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20:43, September 28, 2008, from  http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Basilique_du_Sacr%C3%A9-C%C5%93ur,_Paris&oldid=240784003)

A little bit more of Montmartre at the top of the hill shown.

It was nice to have this area so close.   When we finally got our luggage from the airport and had dropped everything off at the apartment, it was later in the afternoon.     We enjoyed seeing all the restaurants with many of patrons eating outside.  The cobblestone roads were neat.  Just be aware that we really didn’t see any drinking fountains and restrooms were hard to find, so plan accordingly if you go.

This district was also great because it was one of the few places that we saw souvenir shops, and the prices were reasonable.

Related Paris Posts:

Paris Day 1 – The Trip and Arrival

Paris Day 2 – The Louvre, Jardin Des Tuileries, Champs Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, and Tour Eiffel

Paris Day 3 – Notre Dame, Palais du Luxembourg

Paris Day 4 – Bastille, Opera House, Victor Hugo’s Home, Jardin des Plantes, City of Lights

Paris Day 5 – Outside the Louvre and Return by Train

Paris, France Video