Sights Roundup

Well, even though the British are here, that hasn't really interrupted getting around Paris, I wasn't expecting a crowd of jersey-clad fans at the Musee de la Vie Romantique today...

I checked out the Catacombs yesterday, which are basically a series of underground tunnels you enter over by Place Denfert Rochereau (look for the green door). It's about 1.6 km long, and houses the remains of thousands upon thousands of people - whose bones were put under Paris due to the constant overcrowding of Paris cemetaries throughout the centuries. Literally, it's a lot of bones, stacked high on both sides of the tunnel. There's a few little eerie stopoff points with tombs or inscriptions as well. Not bad, but not something I'd reccomend if you're only in Paris for a few days - it was mostly American college tourists.

Also, I forgot to mention I turned 22 years young on Monday. Celebrated with food over by St. Germain - was a good time but I was a little bummed out because most of my American friends left this weekend for the States, so there's only a few of them around now.

Today, I spent the morning at the Musee de la Vie Romantique and I also finally went inside the Opéra Garnier. The Musee de la Vie Romantique is the museum of the life of George Sand, the nom de plume of the Baroness Dudevant. She spent her life writing and engaging in some of the great romances of the day with men such as Chopin and Delacroix. Although not exceptionally pretty (as you can see on her portrait at Wikipedia), she was fiercely intelligent and an early proponent of women's rights. The museum, on Rue Chaptal right off Rue Blanche, is a two-story house containing portraits and personal artifacts, and a great garden/tea area. The permanent collection is free access, so it's a great place to go and get away from some of the crazier parts of Paris. Also, the museum has a large collection of Sand's personal effects, jewelry, etc, which are very beautiful. The museum also has a temporary exhibition space that costs a few euors if you don't have an art history card. Right now there's a Picasso exhibit that chronicles his work with the engraver Piero Cromelynck (I found an English obituary here). There's a number of plates and prints, plus a series of erotic prints made by Picasso and also a room of presents - paintings/drawings Picasso did for Piero of his daughter and himself. It's cool to see "for Piero" with Picasso's signature on the bottom of lots of the drawings. Also, I'd reccomend reading more into the life of George Sand, everything from her royal heritage - she descends from the Saxes, who ruled Poland, and was also related to numerous French kings - to her liasons and her wonderful books are worth the time spent.

As for the Opera. I've passed by it so many times on the 68 Bus, but I've never gone inside until now. There's not much to say about it besides that it's gorgeous, obviously. Beautiful architecture, paintings, etc. Make sure to go when you can see inside the amphitheatre, because it's great to see all the red velvet chairs lined up and the stage. On the ceiling of the amphitheatre is a gigantic Chagall ceiling, which replaced the original, end of the 17th century one. I had a conversation with my host dad, and he explained it was there because of the changing fashion in Paris at the time, which I think is really too bad. As cool as the Chagall mural is, it's out of place with all of the baroque furnishings and decor.

Oh, and how can I forget the Star Wars: L'Expo. The Cite des Sciences is holding an Expo on all things Star Wars, and I went there yesterday with some buddies to geek it out for a while. Mission accomplished. I'm sure it's not high on many people's lists unless you're a fan like me, but it is worth a bit of time to see various movie props, concept sketches, etc, although there's nothing earth-shattering there.

The Da Vinci Code opens in Paris tonight. It goes without saying I have to see it here before I leave. The reviews I read out of Cannes sound mixed, but I'm still down.