Trip Day 49 – Notre Dame

So another day of wondering and organising, I started off the day by coming to grips with the Metro, I have got myself a Navigo card which is similar to the Oyster card in London as it is a recharge card and mine lasts 1 week, Monday to Sunday, I also got a 10 trip ticket to fill in any gaps if I want to use the metro outside of next week.

So with ticket in hand I descend into the bowls of the Metro and ride the train to the Chateau stop, from here it is a short walk to the Notre Dame Cathedral and the islands in the middle of the Seine. Before I get to the Cathedral I head to the St Michel or Saint Michael fountain, from here it is a small walk to Notre Dame. The thing that impresses me the most is the detail of the carving, unlike a lot of the carvings of the UK Cathedrals these are remarkable preserved and detailed.

I find there is a lovely park behind the Cathedral which only a handful of tourists have found, from here there is a bridge that crosses the Seine, one side of this bridge is covered with padlocks, it seems that all of these have written on them the names of lovers who then locked it to the bridge as a public display of there commitment to one another.

After doing a full lap of Notre Dame I decide that I shall walk back to the hotel along the Seine, and pass all of the sidewalk book sellers. the walk takes me past the Louvre and then onto the Museum de Orsay, here I stop to check out where the Museum Pass entrance is and then, to recharge my batteries, get an Apricot crepe.

After relaxing on the steps of the museum while eating my snack it is off once again towards the Grand Palais, I have to cross the Alexander Bridge, which is by far the most beautiful bridge I have seen so far, decorated in statues and carvings, a pair of golden statues marks each end of the bridge.