At the recommendation of my thesis advisor, I visited the Gustave Moreau Museum, which was actually just a 5 minute walk from my hotel. It was so cool! It's in Moreau's actual house' filled with his things and covered all over with his art and the stuff he collected. It was really super fascinating, and made me totally real-estate envious.
My main journey for the day was a tour of Pere Lachasie cemetery, but I barely scratched the surface before it closed. Below are pictures of the graves I did manage to find. Hey mom, get this, Clarence John Laughlin is buried there! I only learned that after I left, though.
The map with the organization grid.
The list of the notables.
The crematorium, where 1,300 niches hold cremated remain above ground. (That's a working crematorium, by the way)
And over 2,000 niches below ground.
Maria Callas' ashes were buried in Pere Lachaise, but then stolen and later recovered. They were scattered in the Aegean Sea, and this niche holds the empty urn. Look at the graffiti! I love Maria Callas.
This is totally inappropriate to put in here, it's so wrong and so disrespectful. I'm a terrible person!
Gertrude Stein!
Quand il me prend dans ses bras.......
Who doesn't just adore Edith Piaf???
Modigliani
I only put this in here because it's from this year. I was interested in learning how the cemetery remains active today. Apparently there are leases on plots, up to I think 50 years. If your plot expires, or no one is there to claim it, they bag and tag the bones and open the space back up.
Moliere and la Fontaine. They were reburied in Pere Lachaise in 1804 in order to increase interest in being buried here. Clearly, it worked
Somebody got out!
I HATE this graffiti that people leave on the way to Jim Morrison's grave. It's so disrespectful.
And now his grave is barricaded, because people just can't stop scratching and painting and marking on the surrounding graves. Ugh it's just so infuriating! I like the Doors fine, but seriously? You've got Chopin down the way, a plethora of the most impressive an important artists of all time and some of the greatest literary and political figures well. And those are the GRAVES of PEOPLE you're destroying with your foolishness. Just get it together, Doors fans. You've already lost the right to go up to the grave. Have some respect.
Blah, mini rant about dead people aside, after I was kicked out of the cemetery before I made it everyone on my list, I ran over to the Opera Garnier for a quick visit.
Soooo glorious! The opera's underground supports actually straddle and underground lake, which gave rise to the Phantom of the Opera. The amazing ceiling was painted by Chagall, who has two big paintings at the Met in New York. The lobby is as big as the stage, so that the rich and beautiful could come here to see and be seen. Did you know there are beehives on the roof? The honey is sold in the gift shop. And yes I bought some. It was the most expensive honey I have ever bought! I also got a kit to make a model of the opera.
Right down the street are the Galeries Lafayette, which were MOBBED.
I only got a quick pic inside before I couldn't handle it anymore. It was way worse than Harrod's.
This man was playing classic music on a piano outside with VERVE! That's the back of the Opera Garnier behind.
And the other fancy department store, Printemps.
I found a restaurant that served mussels, which I've bee dying to have, but haven't found a place serving them. Yet when I ordered they were out. MAN. So again, little celiac me had to get steak. Le sigh.
At least the Champs élysées song came on. And don't let that dark brown color fool you into thinking this was well done. That steak was raaayyyerrr on the inside. I have been thinking about trying steak tartare, and after eating this I feel confident I'll be able to stomach the experience.
After coming back to the hotel, I discovered there was no hot water. The only up side of this situation was that I was able to have a mini conversation all in French with the desk staff, who told me that there was a problem and it would be fixed tomorrow. I hoped it's fixed in time for me get ready, I have a massive last day planned!
Alors, bon nuit mes amies! Pray I don't freeze to death without my radiator tonight...
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