So begins my Parisian Halloween weekend folks!
Friday: I had my first French test; I thought it wasn't terrible but that will depend on my grade come Tuesday. And since I got out of class early, I got an early start on my visit to St. Denis! My overall impression of St. Denis is that it's more authentically Gothic than Notre-Dame. Don't get me wrong, Notre-Dame is impressive, but St. Denis has a certain flavor to it.
Abbot Suger, who was a 12th century statesman & abbot, rebuilt major portions of the Basilica when it was just an abbey church. It's thanks to him that Gothic became known and spread throughout Europe. Plus, unlike Notre-Dame, St. Denis didn't suffer the massive destruction of statues and damage of it's facade like Notre-Dame did. But St. Denis did end up with some desecration; some of the tombs were opened and the bodies scattered, but many remains were later found and returned.
The basilica is quite impressive, beautiful windows and a very beautiful altar. Not only that, Joan of Arc came to the basilica in 1429, and in a symbolic gesture, offered her armor to St. Denis. But the real prize is that St. Denis is the Royal Necropolis of France. All but 3 French kings are buried here. So seeing their tombs was so surreal. Some of them, like Henry II and Catherine de Medici's are quite impressive. I plan on putting some photo links up soon.
In the crypt of the church are more tombs of famous monarchs: Louis XIV, Louis XV, and yes, Louis XVI. In black marble tombs are the remains of Marie Antoinette and her husband. I was freaking out!!
Today was equally as great. I met up with Kirstie and Mandi to go to Louis Vuitton. Now, it wasn't to shop there. But if I were to have endless amounts of money, I would spend it on luggage. That's what got the original Louis V. going: luggage and trunks. Needless to say, these are still made beautifully, definitely pieces that will last a lifetime. And you can get them without the annoying LV logo; I think so much of what LV now makes is too loud or gaudy. A nice handsome piece of luggage never goes out of style.
But I digress.
The LV store has a museum on the top floor. No joke. The exhibition changes, and the one we saw was called "Who are you Peter?" in reference to Peter Pan. The exhibit was modern art, playing around the idea of Peter Pan, Neverland and not growing up. Getting to the top is the best. They explain to you that when you up the elevator, it's done in complete silence and in pitch black dark. This is supposed to clear your mind and prepare you for the exhibit.
Needless to say, I loved it! It was eerie, creepy, and haunting. Which is a lot like Peter Pan; Disney makes the story so sweet, but Peter Pan isn't all rainbows and gumdrops. Neverland is quite wild, remember how the mermaids try to drown Wendy?
After the museum we got a fantastic lunch at Les Deux Magots, a very famous cafe that was frequented by Simone de Beauvoir, Jean Paul Sartre and other members of the intelligentsia. We ate outside because it was so beautiful. My meal consisted of:
*Cup of hot wine. YUM.
*Omelette with cheese, ham & herbs.
*Roll.
*Chocolate cake from heaven. It was covered in chocolate ganache. It melted in my mouth. And I melted with it.
To finish off the day we explored Montparnasse Cemetery. There we saw the graves of:
*Simone de Beauvoir & Jean Paul Sartre
*Serge Gainsbourg, singer-songwriter & once had an affair with Brigitte Bardot
*Alfred Dreyfus (remember the Dreyfus Affair and J'accuse?)
But what really struck me was the grave of a family we saw. Three family members aren't buried there; instead the sign read "To the memory of... deported and died at Auschwitz."
I gasped when I read that. Many other tombs in this cemetery mentioned "Lost to the German Barbary," namely the German invasion and/or deportation. There was a much more feeling of sadness to this cemetery vs. Pere Lachaise. This cemetery seems to be much more active, and seeing all the flowers on graves in preparation for Toussaint, or All Saint's Day, definitely gave the place a more somber feeling.
I mistakenly thought All Souls came before All Saints, but that's not the case. All Saints is Monday and All Souls Tuesday, but it looks like the French combine the too, for on Toussaint the graves are decorated with flowers. I saw some older couples placing flowers on graves, and I just felt so sad. For though we tourists come to graveyards to look up famous people, right next to them is someone's husband or wife, brother or sister. And who knows what their life was like. Perhaps it was just as extraordinary or tragic like Jim Morrison's or Edith Piaf's.
I plan on going to Mass Monday morning for All Saints, and then to another church for prayer on All Souls. It's always nice to take some time away from the busy world and reflect.
No comments:
Post a Comment