A year ago we were in Paris, on our first trip abroad since the pandemic had started. It felt strange, but good, to be travelling again after almost two years.
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The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris, to give it its full name, seems to divide opinion. Built only in the early 20th century, I have seen some commentators criticise it as an eye-sore. Others (actually often the same people) abhor the reasons behind its construction. Its inspiration was the defeat of French troops during the Franco-Prussian War, which some felt was due to spiritual rather than political causes.
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Over breakfast on a damp Parisian morning we discussed our plans for the day. Maybe rather than a walk a museum visit would be a better option, given the weather? This museum occupies the Hôtel Biron, where Rodin lived for the last decade of his life.
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Television has brought our world together, never more so than at times of great historical significance, and times of great tragedy. Together we watched as Neil Armstrong took his first step on the moon. Together we watched Live Aid. Together we watched the planes fly into the twin towers on nine/eleven. Together we watched the fall of the Berlin Wall. And together we watched Notre Dame burn.
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What do Parisians do on a sunny Sunday? They do much as people do in any city. They meet friends in a favourite café or restaurant. They exercise in the local park or take the children there to play and for a picnic. They walk the dog, do a bit of food shopping perhaps, or browse a lively market. Certainly the people of Belleville do all those things.
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Never go back, they say. And it’s a rule we tend to follow when it comes to travelling, but we make a few exceptions. And prime among those exceptions is Paris. We spent the first part of our honeymoon there, recently celebrated our fortieth anniversary there, and in between those two trips have visited together on five other occasions. And that doesn’t include a visit each back in our even more ancient and separate histories!
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Paris is not alone in being as much a collection of villages as it is a single city; but its villages have to be among the most charming of any city's. And none more so perhaps than Montmartre, set high on a hill, with its basilica, the Sacré Coeur, visible from miles around.
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When you visit a city regularly, you can make time to explore new areas, as well as revisit favourite corners. And you can look for quirky details to photograph as well as the obvious sights. In Paris o, I was on the look out for colourful and interesting street art in the different neighbourhoods we explored.
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It’s no secret that I’ve badly missed travelling abroad over the last eighteen months. It’s not that we were always travelling, far from it, but we always knew that we could. And most years we would go abroad three or four times, on a mix of weekend breaks and longer trips.
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Everyone knows about the iconic sights of Paris. The Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the Sacre Coeur, the Seine … And they are not to be missed, for sure. But if you have the luxury of a second visit (or a third or a fourth or even more), why not get off the beaten track to explore some of the city’s neighbourhoods?
