France 2022- Montmartre, Paris

April 21, 2022

My flight to Orly airport went well as did my transport by tram, train, and then metro to Anvers station, Montmartre. My last (and only) visit to Paris was over thirty years ago. I had stayed four or five days and covered ”the basics” of Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Musée d’Orsay, the Louvre, the Rodin museum and gardens (my hands-down favourite), Versailles, and a boat ride on the Seine. While in Paris, I saw the Basilica of Sacré-Coeur in the far distance on a hill, shining white, and that memory has stayed with me all of these years so that is why I chose Montmartre for this one day visit to Paris. I love my room at Le Village Montmartre Hiphostel! Close to the Basilica, the hostel has kitchen facilities and an outdoor seating area with a peek-a-boo view of the towers of Sacré-Coeur.

Although my travel day went smoothy, I was feeling tired so I just walked a little bit in the neighbourhood to get my bearings, and then I sourced some groceries for my dinner and next day’s breakfast and had an early night. The next morning, I was up early for the short walk to the Sacré-Coeur Basilica which sits on Paris’ highest natural point. The five-domed Roman Catholic church was built between 1875 and 1919 in the Roman-Byzantine style, and the exterior is treated with gypsum which whitens with age.

I feel very lucky to have had this view almost all to myself. It would have been impossible to take this photo an hour later because of all of the tourists entering and exiting the church and posing in front of it.

The interior was quite striking and had beautiful mosaics accented with gold, including the large principal scene on the dome above the alter and a series of mosaics representing the twelve stations of the cross.

Here are just a few more photos from the massive and elegant interior of Sacré-Coeur.

After touring the interior, I was a little bit too early for climbing up to the top of the central dome so I walked around the exterior taking photos from different angles and vantage points. The last photo in this collage is my favourite.

I also had a look at the hundreds and hundreds, possibly even thousands of ”love locks” that are attached to the railings of the steps leading up to the church (and in other locations throughout Paris). Couples personalize the locks with their names and sometimes the dates of weddings or anniversaries or their visit to Paris.

I returned to the church to begin the long climb up the narrow spiral staircase to the top of the main dome – that’s 292 steps! I was the first one in line so I couldn’t dilly dally on my way up! At the top, visitors can view Paris in literally all directions.

After visiting the church I decided to wander about and visit some of the more well-known locations in Montmartre. I came across this one by accident. Known as the ”Mur de Je T’aime”, “I love you” is written in white script on blue tiles in all the languages of the world. Tucked into a tiny garden, this place was full of young couples and others taking selfies in front of the wall. It’s a wonderful art installation by artists Fréderic Baron and Claire Kito that definitely inspired excitement and happiness among the crowd of visitors on this sunny afternoon, and I could see people from all over the world looking for the ”I love you” written in their home language.

Next, I located the 17th century Moulin de Galette, one of only three wooden windmills remaining of the many which operated in Montmartre over the centuries to grind flour and grapes. The Moulin de la Galette was famously painted by Renoir, Van Gogh and Pisarro. A series of information boards nearby detailed van Gogh’s time in southern France and featured images of some of his works including his painting of the Moulin de la Galette.

Also nearby was one of the few remaining vineyards in Paris, the small but pretty Clos de Montmartre which featured a border of spring flowers around its edges. It has been here since the 12th century when monks tended the vines and produced the wine.

Continuing on my stroll, I passed by this theatre which caught my eye, and then the ”ethnografilm” poster also caught my eye. The beautiful illustration on the poster, and the words ”Understanding the social world through film” compelled me to open the door and ask what it was all about. I was told, ”It’s on now, go ahead in,” and inside they were screening documentaries about the human condition, through a wide variety of cultures and viewpoints, and the directors were present to answer questions about their work. I won’t go into detail about the films that I saw but they were all excellent, moving, thought provoking, and illuminating. Later, at my hostel, I googled the event and learned that it is a Director’s festival where directors view each other’s work and learn from each other. But, they just let me in, and there was free food! It was a very special and unexpected way to spend a few hours of my afternoon in Montmartre!

After leaving the theatre I decided to head down to the Pigalle district to see the Moulin Rouge. Initially I wasn’t planning on seeing it but I decided that I would probably regret not doing so. And, despite the hills, Montmartre is extremely walkable and there are interesting buildings and people to see en-route so off I went. And, here it is, the famous cabaret that opened its doors in 1889.

I walked for a while on the main street of the Pigalle district where the Moulin Rouge is located. It still operates as a red-light district and there were many ”sex shops”, most of them rather non-creatively named, ”Sex Shop.” At least one of them had “souvenirs sexy”!

Leaving Pigalle, I found several more notable Montmartre landmarks. Le Consulate is housed in one of the oldest buildings in the district and the likes of Picasso, Sisley, van Gogh, Monet, and Toulous-Lautrec have all sat at tables here for drinks or a meal. La Maison Rose has been serving guests for over 100 years including Picasso and Albert Camus, as well as other artists and writers. Finally, the Lapin Agille is one of the more famous of the many cabarets that were to be found in Montmartre during La Belle Epoque and it has been in operation since1860.

Here are a few last images from my walk around the streets of Montmartre. In the bottom right photo, the motto written on the sign of ”La Bonne Franquette – Café, Restaurant, Cabaret” is ”Aimer, Manger, Boire et Chanter” which quite nicely sums up the history and ambiance of Montmontre I would say.