Day 12, Monday, April 18

The day dawned bright and clear with not a cloud.  We rose by 8 am and after a hearty breakfast downstairs we were off and running.  Gail was game to do the metro with me.  Marilyn and I had bought 5 day passes and had still 3 days to use up.

First of all we went down the wrong 'rabbit hole' and had to climb out again and after a second look at our map we found our way down Saint Germain to the right metro stop.

It is interesting to ride the metro...the people are a mixed bag and all sorts of workers use this facility.  I was amazed to see this young man come on with a ladder and then a few stops down the way he got off with his ladder and bucket and was on his way.

We were headed to The Flea Market to end all, so we were told.

The Flea Market was somewhat of a disappointment for the most part.  It consisted of knock-offs and acres of rather poor quality.  At the very far end we came upon some stores from Morocco where I tried to find my son some new slippers...none the right size, Shelby.  But I did find a cool Moroccan scarf for myself. 

These prayer rugs have a little compass on them to show you where Mecca is, I believe.  Interesting shops...beautiful fabrics and lots of colour.

If you feel a need for some new scarves, this is the town of your dreams.  Every which way you turn there are scarves for sale.

As we turned around to come back to the metro we found the part that this market is famous for and that is the antique furniture, glass, silver, bric-a-brac and what-nots.  It was fabulous.  Gail picked up one little ivory lady, maybe 3-4 inches high, well done, exquisitely carved in fact, and asked the price.  Only 600 Euros so we knew we were in the wrong store...

It was fun to look though and soon we were back where we started and off on another metro ride.  This time we decided to make a switch and head over to Sacre Coeur.  When we got off the metro where we thought the right exit would be for easy walking to the basilica, we were surprised at the stairs we had to climb to get into daylight.  Unbelievable!  And then we started off in the wrong direction.  Upon further perusal of the map we decided that we better backtrack.  The steps in the metro were only the start of one 'stepping day'.

When we thought we were at the top, there were more...

Gail and I were ready for lunch by now so on our way we found a delightful patiserrie where we bought a baguette each and a pastry for each of us...doesn't my dessert look wonderful?  It was...

We thought we would find a park bench where we could quietly eat our lunch and catch our breathe but we did have one more set of stairs to climb to get to a level where we could get to our destination.

As we got close we noticed the 'hordes'.  Sherilee, the following photo is for your enjoyment.  I do believe that Easter means everyone in France has come to Paris besides a lot of N. Americans and other Europeans.  There are sooooo many people, everywhere.

Everywhere you turned there were people...and cafes...and art shops and touristy trap stores...

This church is one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen.

It is not an ornate interior but very awesome in its simplicity. When we got to the door the guard would not let me carry my camera in.  There is a 'no camera' rule for the basilica and they are strict about it.  We sat quietly inside for some time just absorbing the atmosphere.  There was an organ playing...

It is an excursion well worth the time and energy.

Going down the stairs we continued to look back ...

Then we headed down the hill to find the metro to take us to the hotel we call home right now.

It was a full day, gloriously warmed by French sunshine!!!

I am posting this a day late and I do apologize for my scratchy reporting...there are so many photos and so many memories...just need a longer day.

Love to all.