A Paris Walk in Montmartre and the Musée de Montmartre

Having trouble remembering what a full night of sleep feels like. More coughing. Sigh . . . Ed had decided on a Paris Walk in Montmartre for today and as coincidence would have it, our Metro station is a direct connection to Lamarck so it was an easy trip and we did get seats. There was a slight delay because the ticket lady had disappeared and our credit cards won’t work in the machines. We had used our last carnet tickets yesterday so had to get tickets. Fortunately, she appeared pretty quickly, we bought another carnet and were on our way.

We passed the dreaded Abbesses Metro station with its 265 or so steps and exited at Lamarck to discover slightly fewer but still a huge number of steps. The last time we exited at Abbesses, the elevator was out of order so we had to climb the stairs. Very interesting mural on the wall walking up the steps to the exit, but quite a hike. At 70+ I was happy to note quite a few 30-something Parisians were gasping their way to the top along with me. (Actually, I only stopped once for a breather; quite a few younger folks stopped more often.)

This time we stayed on for one more stop and got off at Lamarck-Caulaincourt. Fortunately there is a very large elevator and it was working. That was good because the Paris Walk started us out climbing a lot more steps on the way to the famous cabaret Au Lapin Agile and the Montmartre vineyard. Climbing more stairs at rue due Mont Cenis, we saw a group of students climbing a lightpost for photos. How funny. On to Place du Tertre and tourist mania.

We found La Bonne Franquette but the menu wasn’t appealing so we went in search of Au Clocher de Montmartre below Sacre Coeur where we’d eaten with the girls. We missed it by one, but had a very nice lunch at Le Cabanon de la Butte. The lady was very nice, spoke excellent English and was happy to speak French with us.

We both got salmon and chose the legume du jour which was haricots verts. It was served with a lovely, rich but soft brown bread with a crisp crust. Very nice meal. We got the crême brulée for dessert and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Fantastic views of Paris from the restaurant windows. [Le Cabanon de la Butte, 6 Rue Lamarck, 75018 Paris; tel: +33 (0)1 4257-2046 or +33 (0)6 9857-3974; Le Cabanon de la Butte web site]

After lunch, we visited St. Pierre de Montmartre consecrated in 1147, one of the oldest churches in Paris. We immediately noticed stunning new floor lighting under the 1977 altar by Jean-Paul Froidevaux that goes perfectly with the gorgeous modern stained glass windows by Max Ingrand. We love the amazing and huge bronze doors by Tommaso Gismondi installed in 1980 seen from the courtyard. The three main doors are by Gismondi but our favorite is the door into the cemetery (closed) that is a completely different style and is the Resurrection of Christ. Eglise St. Pierre is also the most peaceful place on Montmartre. Hordes tromp through the dark, gloomy Sacre Coeur but haven’t discovered the ancient and beautiful St. Pierre right beside it . . . thankfully. [St. Pierre de Montmartre, 2 Rue du Mont Cenis, 75018 Paris; tel: +33 (0)1 4606-5763; St. Pierre de Montmartre web site]

Next we walked down to the Musée de Montmartre, climbed through the construction and to enter the quaint museum fought off numbered tour groups all wearing baseball caps with their tour number. There was a fun “Picasso in Montmartre” exhibit and then the regular Montmartre history exhibit all in the oldest building in Montmartre. The building, garden, vineyard and views are all spectacular. [Musée de Montmartre, 12-14 Rue Cortot, 75018 Paris; tel: +33 (0)1 4925-8939; Musée de Montmartre web site]

We walked around a little, found the Maison Rouge and went back to Place du Tertre and hopped on the Little Tourist Train for a tour of the Mont. I love the little trains and cheerfully snapped pictures out the window.

We reversed our morning trip to get home, stopped at Proxi for supplies and got in before the rain started. Fun day!

It was a short rain storm so we decided to walk down to our neighborhood restaurant for a kir and cheese plate and afterwards took a short walk. Perfect!