It was hard to believe that our Paris adventure was drawing to a close, but we still had one full day remaining and we certainly made the most of it! Again, we enjoyed breakfast at our hotel and then headed back to Montmartre, which is where we had enjoyed our Secret Food Tour earlier in the week.
At the top of the hill in this Montmartre neighborhood (translated as “Mountain of the Martyr”) sits the Sacre-Coeur Bascilica, built between 1875 and 1914. As the story goes, in the third century, Saint Denis, the patron of Paris, was beheaded, and holding his head in his hands, he traveled to the future site of the church, preaching along the way and then lay down and died. What a perfect place to build a Bascilica!
There are several ways to reach the Sacre-Coeur, including 256 steps straight up, a more gradual paved pathway or an incline car. On our hike up the hill – (of course we walked!), we witnessed the “Love Locks” that can actually be seen at several bridges throughout Paris, a city known for its romance. Although the city has made an effort to begin eliminating the locks, there are street vendors hawking the locks and encouraging tourists to participate.
In order to get a true taste of this magnificent structure, we decided to attend mass. Celebrating Pentecost, everyone in attendance was handed a red or gold ribbon and at certain times throughout the mass, attendants waved their ribbons in the air! Of course, all but one reading were spoken in French, so we just followed the congregation and waved our ribbons along with the crowd! Photographs were not permitted but I did get to snap a quick shot of the ceiling.
Following mass, we strolled the cobblestone streets and revisited the shop where we had sampled macarons and chocolate on the food tour. We stopped in a few other shops before heading back to the Metro. Our plan was to eat a late lunch -“linner” as we call it, at a unique restaurant named Le Relais de venues – Entrecote. What’s interesting is that we heard about this restaurant from two unrelated people – a woman I play golf with as well as a delightful woman I sat next to on a plane recently. Based on that, we figured it was worth checking out. The restaurant is open from noon until 3:00 and then reopens at 6:45 p.m. We arrived at 1:45 and the line waiting for tables was halfway down the block!
After 45 minutes we were guided to a table outside which was great, and – wait we didn’t even need a menu! The restaurant serves only one meal – a walnut salad with mustard vinaigrette and then steak and frites – sliced rib-eye and French fries! It was delicious and you could eat as much as you wanted. We accompanied our entree with wine and then splurged with a rich dessert!
Our day was hardly over, nor was our “waiting time!” There is a bar in the Ritz Carlton named Bar Hemingway, that seats only 25 patrons and is the bar that writers such as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Gertrude Stein frequented. It opens at 5:30, but little did we know that people start lining up at 5! We arrived about 5:45 and stood in line for an hour! Fortunately, we met a great group of college students – all from the University of Texas, in line so they became our new best friends and made the time pass quickly. Two of the girls, Annabelle and Hope, were studying abroad and the other three had graduated from UT and were on a “senior trip.”
Once we got inside, I immediately started channeling Hemingway, as photos, memorabilia, and stories abounded! I could envision him and the others drinking and conversing…and drinking! A rose is served with every woman’s cocktail which was a nice touch and the drinks were some of the strongest we have ever tasted – loved it!
We were going to stop at another bar we had heard about – Harry’s New York Bar, which is where the Bloody Mary is said to have been first created, but we cut ourselves off and I just took a picture of Bill at the door!
Our last day in Paris was unforgettable, but then again the entire Paris adventure was truly one for the books!
thervdreamlife 