Our last day in Paris, and I have to say, I was very sad to be leaving. We got up fairly early, packed up our bags, and dragged them down to the hotel luggage room. We had until about 5 to explore Paris a little bit more, so Miles, Jamie White, Chad, and I went up to Montmartre to see their open-air markets. A quick metro ride took us right to the market, which had a few interesting things, but was mostly African/Rastafarian novelties, along with hookas and various other smoking parphenelia. We browsed the market for about an hour before heading off to the large 19th century Byzantine-style cathedral, Sacre Coeur. Along the way, we stopped in a boulangerie to grab some breakfast. I had a chicken-filled pastry that tasted a lot like chicken pot pie and a Sprite.As we made our way toward Sacre Coeur, we walked through a North African part of town and spotted a little Algerian pastry shop. Unable to resist, we got some pastries, and they were THE BEST THING EVER. Continuing our trek, my knee started to act up again, and it was only with great difficulty that I dragged myself up the hill to Sacre Couer. It was worth it though…not only was the church impressive, but the view of Paris from the top of the hill was incredible, even on a hazy day. Jamie White and Chad waited outside while Miles and I walked through the church. It was big and pretty, but annoyingly, there were staff there telling us exactly where to go and what to do. By the time we were done, my knee felt a lot better (maybe it was just a cramp?), so we headed down into the famous square in Montmartre where street artists sell their paintings. We looked through the paintings for awhile, and Jamie White even bought one. Afterwards, Chad led us to a restaurant that served delicious and filling french onion soup. This, along with a giant beer, made for a perfect late lunch.
Following lunch, all we had left to do was venture down to see the windmills, and, of course, Moulin Rouge. The Moulin Rouge, as you might imagine, is overly touristy and not at all what it is supposed to be. Unfortunately, we forgot that this area also included an eroticism museum, so we didn’t get to go there. From what other people told me about it, I’m really sad that I missed it. At any rate, we all got on the metro at Moulin Rouge, and Miles and I split off from the group to go check out an ‘art deco Mosque’ listed in Miles’ guidebook.
We found the Mosque and went inside for a reasonable 2 euro fee. It was quite beautiful, with intricate tile work and a peaceful courtyard, although I couldn’t tell you what was Art Deco about it. It all just looked like Islamic art to me. We saw some people praying, which was interesting. Sadly, we couldn’t take any photos inside, and the postcards were kind of crappy. After leaving the Mosque, we stopped in an Islamic bookstore across the street, hoping they would have better postcards. They didn’t, and it was kind of awkward being English-speaking college students in a store full of the Islamic faithful. Not that they were rude or anything…it was just weird.
We left the Mosque and headed back to the hotel, where we got our bags, and after a short wait, took the public bus to the TGV station. At the station, there was more waiting. Jamie, John, and I got some sandwiches from one of the stands inside the station. Finally, we were able to get on the train. The ride home was long and a lot bumpier than the ride to Paris. I think maybe the wind was knocking us around a bit, but I can’t be sure. When we arrived in Avignon, it was colder than it was in Paris and windy.
The bus ride back to Lacoste was quiet and uneventful. I think Miles and I spent most of the time talking about anime. In Lacoste, I slowly dragged my bag up the hill. After only about 16 hours of sleep total in Paris, I was exhausted. I collapsed into bed and slept so hard that I missed my alarm and class the next morning.
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