Monday we slept in a little bit and then walked up the Boulevard Saint-Germain to Les Deux Magots, a famous café which supposedly has the best hot chocolate in Paris. It was the best hot chocolate I have ever had! We sat outside and watched the people, and had a stereotypical surly/snooty waiter, the first “attitude” we had received from a Parisian since we had arrived. We were initially turned off but decided to see if we could shift his perception of American tourists by leaving him a generous tip, which earned us a genuine smile from him.
From there, we headed out to Montparnasse per Christophe’s instructions. Since it was overcast and grey, we did not bother to go up the tower for the view. Instead, we headed back towards the Seine to take the Paris Sewer Tour. Sewers have been draining wastewater in Paris since the beginning of the 13th Century, when the city's streets were paved and drains were built. Covered sewers were introduced during the reign of Napoléon Bonaparte, and the current network of more than 2,100 km of sewer tunnels was begun in 1850. The sandstone tunnels carry drainwater from the streets, sanitary sewers (now in separate pipes), mains for drinking water and the water used for streetcleaning, telecommunications cables, and pneumatic tubes between post offices.
The tour goes along the tunnels where the sewer pipes run. After descending the stairs from the aboveground ticket office, we entered a long gallery beneath the Quai d'Orsay that runs parallel to the Seine. We saw pipes and a five-ton "flushing boat" in what once was the main sewer line between the Place de la Concorde and the Pont de l'Alma. We also passed a large basin that traps solid material from wastewater (the sewers recover more than 15,000 cubic meters of grit per year). The main exhibit area is built above the sand trap of the main sewer.
We also saw sewer-maintenance equipment from past and present, mannequins of sewer workers in underground gear, huge wooden balls used to clean tunnels beneath the Seine, fascinating exhibits about the history and design of the Paris sewer network, and rushing drainwater from the streets above. You can also watch a video in the small theatre and browse through the gift shop. We had never contemplated how a sewer system works, and it’s amazing that a system that is over 100 years old is still supporting the millions of Paris inhabitants and modern engineering aboveground. It was very interesting, and we enjoyed it. (It’s dry, but it does smell a bit….odd.)
Antonia was eager to see the Pere La Chaise Cemetery. It took us forever to find it – we didn’t realize that there was an actual Metro stop for it since the guidebook we had neglected to mention the fact. We finally found the stop and we got on our way around 4 pm. By the time we arrived, we only had an hour to explore the Cemetery, and we didn’t find a map that would show us where some of the more famous people were buried (like Sarah Bernhardt, Honore de Balzac, Isadora Duncan, Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, and Oscar Wilde), but we did spend an amazing hour wandering around the gravestones. The weather was grey and overcast, and the cemetery looked just like a movie set: gothic, ominous, but with incredibly beautiful details. We could have stayed for hours taking photos. Unfortunately we were kicked out at 6 pm.
From the Cemetery we took the Metro to the Arc de Triomphe and walked down the Champs Elysees, past the Tuilleries Gardens, and back to our apartment. It was getting dark. Although the Champs Elysees is famous, it was not a highlight of our trip for us. Perhaps because we had now walked so many “main streets” (in Munich, in Rome, and all over Italy), the charm was somewhat lost on us. In addition, it’s clear how much global commerce has taken originality out of shopping. We expected to see some extraordinary fashion in Paris and Milan, but we didn’t see anything that we didn’t think we could get in Los Angeles, for cheaper. Perhaps you need to know where to shop. It was distressing to see a Gap on the Champs Elysees, that’s all we’re saying.
Back at the apartment, I was exhausted, so Eric volunteered to get food for us. I should have known after the two nights in Munich and Rome, but there were so many cafes in our neighborhood, I didn’t think it would be such an ordeal. 2.5 hours later (I was freaking out!) he returned, bringing….Subway sandwiches. He couldn’t find anything to bring home, got on the metro and got turned around. Good grief! He was forbidden to go anywhere else by himself after that. (‘Course, we only had two more days of our trip, but still!)
