Paris, Day 15 - April Fools Day

Paris from the steps of Basilique du Sacré-Coeur

Today is April Fools day and here as in other countries there is a tradition of playing small jokes on one another.  In France the objective is to pin a paper fish on the back of someone else without their being aware and that person is the "fool."  To celebrate this tradition the shops sell chocolate poissons d'avril or April fish.  Virginia bought a box of these to take to her class, yesterday, to share with fellow students and, I suspect, to act as an "apple" for the teacher. As an adult educator she knows that capturing the teacher's attention for a few minutes will generally mean that she is not seen as avoiding the teacher's eye and thus she is less likely to be called up to answer difficult questions at least during the first part of the class. A good strategy when it works.

Chocolate Sardines

Today we walked up to the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur.  The streets below it are always thronged with tourists and, naturally, shops full of souvenirs. At the bottom of the butte is a lovely old carousel. 

The carousel seen from a street full of tourists

A popular landmark, the basilica is located at the summit of the butte Montmartre, the highest point in the city. Sacré-Cœur is a double monument, political and cultural, both a national penance for the brutal recapturing of the city during the socialist Paris Commune of 1871 crowning its most rebellious neighbourhood, and an embodiment of conservative moral order, publicly dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which was an increasingly popular vision of a loving and sympathetic Christ.

Basilique du Sacré-Coeur

 This is a particularly popular gathering place for tourists as it has possibly the best views over Paris. Perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament has continued uninterrupted in the Basilica since 1885. Because of this, tourists and others are asked to dress appropriately when visiting the basilica and to observe silence as much as possible, so as not to disturb persons who have come from around the world to pray in this special place.  This, of course, means no photography in the Basilica itself.  But the outside is still a photographer's dream with its statue of Jeanne d'Arc,

Jeanne d'Arc

its massive doors

Door of theBasilique du Sacré-Coeur

and its wonderful gargoyles.

Gargoyle at Basilique du Sacré-Coeur

One isn't, of course, limited for photographs of Paris to the steps of the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur.  Almost anywhere on the butte there are photo opportunities.  One of my favourites is about 100 metres towards the Place du Tertre after getting off the funiculare.  There one almost always find a group of people, cameras at the ready and focussed on the Eiffel Tower.

So, where's the Eiffel Tower?  It was here just a few minute ago!

And here, of course, is the picture they want, the Eiffel Tower seen over the rooftops of Paris.

Quintessential Paris

But people are so busy taking these pictures, they often miss the quieter moments such as those reflected in a lovely private house only a few seconds walk from the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur.

A private dwelling on the butte