Pére Lachaise

Favorite moment of the trip so far!

Are you ready for this?

To be honest, I'm growing weary of the city and it's honking horns, subway cars, and downturned eyes.

Yesterday we went to Pére Lachise Cemetery, and it was three to four hours of sheer solace for my soul. If I ignored the police sirens, I could pretend I was far away from hustle and bustle of city life.

This place is like a city of its own. Over 300,000 bodies are buried here.

(Can you see me in the background there?)

Recognize any names?

We came to see this man.

He is most loved.

While his body lies here at Lachaise, his heart was transported back to his beloved homeland Poland. He was unable to return there while he lived.

Poulenc is also buried here.

I took off my sandals and felt the cold stones beneath my feet. It was most wonderful, and my feet were grateful. They've been hiding from "metro grease," as we've dubbed it.

Later that evening I scrubbed my feet, and I felt like I was washing away the ashes of many years.

We also saw Jim Morrison's grave. It was blocked off, because crazy rockers probably try to steal the body. They had thrown boots and other strange articles across the railing.

I love this.

I like the shadows and lighting in this one.

Cassandra and I looking out over the sea of sepulchers. It was incredibly sobering.

This grave had been robbed.

See?

Looks like this one was broken into, as well. Some of them are just old and look naturally decayed.

Here is the grave of Oscar Wilde. Another interesting fellow. Can you see all the notes and graffiti? It's also covered in lipstick markings, and three girls were there adding their own prints.

This is the grave of George Bizet, opera composer most known for Carmen.

Josh and I were in the same music history class last semester, and our group analyzed and wrote about Carmen. We sent this photo to our professor and other group project classmates.

This note left on his grave says "Your music changed my life."

Speaking of life-changing music, my roomie and I were just listening to Beethoven Sonata no. 30, op. 109, and I'm covered in chills. I can't listen to that piece without being moved. It's a rainy day here, so we're sitting in our room making rainy day plans. Next stop? Beethoven's grave in Vienna.

Seriously. One day.