Paris à Pied: Exploring the City of Love in 30 Hours

I spent 30 hours in Paris this weekend–a whirlwind vacation. My friends were busy, so I hopped on a train by myself and came to the City of Love. (Pairs is both the City of Love and City of Lights). Lucky Paris–to be known for both great things!

Paris Catacombs

In 1797, the first bones were moved from Paris cemeteries, specifically from Saints-Innocents cemetery, which had been in use for 10 centuries, to the quarries. There are a lot more leg bones than skulls because in mass graves the bodies are piled on top of each other. As bodies decompose and only bones remain, the thinner bones of the skull are crushed, but leg bones remain intact. Many of the skulls are now just fragments and are pilled behind all the carefully arranged bones.

The bones were originally just dumped into the quarries, but one man decided to organize them. He stacked skulls and leg bones into patterns. It was creepy already, but made more creepy by the fact that some of the bones in the catacombs are from 14th century plague victims.

The Big Three: le Louvre, l’Arc de Triomphe, et le Tour Eiffel

After lunch, I checked off many of the well known Paris sites such as the Louvre, the Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower.

I needed a rest—I walked over 17 miles this weekend!

I ended the night with a glimpse of the National Assembly and a walk through the Marais district, stumbling upon something new and grand every other block, like the City Hall and the Tower of Saint Jacques. The moonlight made the tower particularly ominous.

Île de la Cité: le Conciergerie

Time for a mini history lesson on the Île de la Cité:

In the 5th century, Clovis I united most of Gaul (what is modern day France), kicking off the Merovingian dynasty in France. Clovis built his royal residence on the Île de la Cité, though, he wasn’t the first to build there. A Gallic tribe had lived there for a few centuries, first settling the Île in the 1st century BC. But Clovis I made it the home of France’s Kings. Clovis also converted to Christianity, sowing the seeds for the close relationship between France and the Catholic Church.

In the 14th century, with so many other castles in Paris to choose from, Charles V appointed a concierge to run the palace and prison. This was the building’s transition to a judicial role. Then, during the French Revolution, the Conciergerie housed the Revolutionary Tribunal where prisoners were sentenced to the guillotine.

Marie-Antoinette was a prisoner here for 76 days before being executed. Also, it’s said that Robespierre, who was partially responsible for the many killings during “The Terror” that followed the revolution, was also held in a cell near here before he was executed several years later.

Île de la Cité: Sainte-Chapelle

City of Lights