Yes, we are going to hit every church in Paris.

Written By:  Amy at the Beauvais Airport in the corralling area (moo).

We woke up refreshed and breakfasted at the hotel.  There’s not much to eat, but the coffee is exceptional.  I asked for café au lait and the waitress brought me a carafe of coffee and another carafe of hot milk.  Yum!  I couldn’t get enough.  Otherwise, I scarfed down my croissants, plain yoghurt and granola knowing that I get to have the same thing tomorrow.  Yeah, me!

We headed to the Metro where Abby and Ker plotted our course for Sacre Coeur.  This cathedral is on the highest point in Paris.  And, it very much is.  First, you have to climb through a fun street filled with little tourist stuff shops. 

Stuff!

Ker tried to shoo us up the hill but, the girls and I are wise to his ways.  We sent a silent signal that on the way back, we would have to slow down and get some stuff.

Once we were hurried through the street of fun, we were stopped by the magnificent site of Sacre Coeur.  

From that angle, you definitely feel like an unworthy speck of dust looking up at the most holy place of worship.  Once I got over myself, I ascended the curved avenue that leads up to the next level.  I now feel like I’m on a pilgrimage.  Once we get several yards up the curved sidewalk, we encounter a wall of people trying to get tourists to stop and buy a handmade bracelet.  Well, we are wise to these pickpockets ways.  However, one did not take the hint and Ker had to get all caveman on them.  A fight almost ensued, but it was my turn to keep it calm. 

Level Two!

But, we finally left them behind on the next level.  On the next landing we headed up the set of stone stairs where I decided that we were now just ascending levels like Super Mario Bros.  We had defeated the bad boss and were now getting to reap the benefits.  In total, there are over 300 stairs and several landings to get to the doors of this incredible basilica.  Once you are there, Paris is spread out beneath you like a supplicant.  Pretty awesome.

All the climbing and pickpocket drama was so worth it.  Inside the church we were all just amazed at how something built in 1914 could be so incredible.  Stain glass, many small chapels dedicated to well-known saints, and one of the most incredible alters I have ever seen.  This place has got it all.

On the descent, it was very much like coming down from a very good high (pun intended).  And, we even convinced Ker to let us buy some scarves, t-shirts, and hats from the cool little vendors on the stuff street.  I fell in love with one hat that Ker and the girls could not abide.  So, I contented myself with a hat that wasn’t so hideous. 

From Sacre Coeur, we headed across town to Saint Chappelle. 

Surrounded by other palaces, you can just spot the steeple.

This chapel was built and finished sometime in the mid 1200’s.  So, yeah.  It’s old.  The queue outside was long and took us 45 minutes to finally get through security and be let inside.  The ground floor was for the common folk, but the upper level was a private chapel for King (later Saint) Louis of the IX variety to allegedly house the crown of thorns.    I’ve never had stained glass knock me back a step or two, but once you get on the upper level, the 15 panels of 30 ft. stained glass cover the entire entrance. 

Just some of the stain glass panels.

The glass art covers the major stories of the Old Testament.  Some panels are read left to right, some down to up and some are read in an inverted and elongated S shape.  To me, they looked like the best picture book of the Old Testament I have ever seen.  I would just love to be able to have a religious historian help me interpret the “story” panels.  I bet that would be fascinating.

But, it was COLD inside the chapel.  It was -2 degrees C (28 degrees F) outside, but in the upper level of Saint Chappelle, it was noticeably colder.  So, after I had my fill, we headed out to our next stop—Mundolingua.

So, never heard of Mundolingua?  Well, neither had I until Ker found it in TripAdvisor.  You see, we had dragged the girls from museum to museum  and cathedral to chapel to church showing them the best art the world has to offer.  While interesting, this is not real fun for children.  So, Ker and I looked around for ideas for an interactive place that would suit the kids and the parents.  Mundolingua seems that place.  We hopped back on the Metro and zoomed to yet another undiscovered part of this giant city. 

On our walk from our Metro stop to Mundolingua, I spied another official looking church. 

Saint Sulpice

This turned out to be Saint Sulpice.  For all the fellow nerds out there, Saint Sulpice is only a foot or two shorter than Notre Dame.  Also, it played a big role in Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code.  Which, we are all listening to via audio CD’s. 

Fountain outside Saint Sulpice.

So, we were really pumped to see the old Meridian.  Not to mention the organ…and the gnomon.  Win!

So, Mundolingua is a museum dedicated to language.  It was SUPER interactive with touch screens, hands-on displays, and other play type stations. 

Abby enjoying one of the stations.

It is a tiny two story museum, but it packs it all in that small space.  You get your own set of headphones that plug into each station.  I am planning on stealing so many of the cool things I saw in there when I get back to a classroom.  This place takes learning stations into an art form.  But, once you get to the last station, there is an Enigma machine staring you in the face.  That was really cool because we all had watched The Imitation Game before Christmas.  So, seeing the actual machine Turing built was super cool. Mundolingua was a big hit with us.  There were only 2 other people in the museum with us, so we were able to go at our own pace with no pressure or people around. 

After the museum, it was tea-time for us.  Tea-time has been one of my favorite things living in Europe has to offer.  We find ourselves needing a break around 3 – 5 pm.  So, like all the civilized people here, we stop what we are doing and have some tea and some type of snack.  It’s a great way of gearing up for the evening.  We decided that after churchfest and Mundolingua, we had earned our tea-time today. 

Chocolate!

There were a couple of places near the hotel the girls wanted to try out, so we went back underground to the Metro back to Montparnasse to hunt down chocolate, pastries and tea. 

After tea, I decided to check on my Dad and see how he was doing.  It was then while thumbing through Facebook that I found out an old friend had passed away the night before.  With tears in my eyes, I found out that Jerry Jackson lost his fight with cancer.  Some may know this, but Jerry and Tina sang our wedding song the day we got married.  He was also the person that encouraged me to sing.  He was also the man that helped me build my very first car.  He was my official mentor on the project and did most of the body work himself.  I wished I had the opportunity to tell him how grateful I am for his encouragement, praise and patience with me before he died.

After calling Tina to get the down-low, we decided to head out for dinner at a French restaurant.  Feeling a little down, I bundled up and headed out.   As we were walking down a nearby street hunting for our restaurant, we heard music.  As we walked closer to the source, we saw a 4 piece band complete with stand up bass, accordion, and washboard.  They were singing a French song but as we walked up, I heard the first sounds of What A Wonderful World.  Which was the very song Jerry sang to us at my wedding.  Maybe that was his way of telling me he already knew how grateful I am for his part in my life.  As I sat there fighting tears, I enjoyed feeling close to him in the middle of a Paris street.  Thanks, Jerry.  Rest in peace.

After an excellent dinner, I just wasn’t feeling very exploratory.  A movie in our jammies on our excellent hotel beds sounded divine.  Of course, we choose to see The Da Vinci Code.  But, after 30 minutes, we all were just too tired.  Good night Paris.