Père Lachaise and other Paris, France Off The Beaten Path Tips

Cemetery of many famous people including this grave of Frédéric Chopin, the great Polish piano virtuoso who lived during the romantic era of classical music. He was buddies with Berlioz, Liszt and Wagner.

He is located in section 11, number 5 next to Cherubini.

To get here, it is northeast of the Bastille Station. The station the same name as the cemetery.

If you can listen to all of Chopin's 21 Nocturnes. Walking about Père Lachaise is a perfect setting, especially if it's a cold, rainy, winter morning overcast , to listen to Chopin's Nocturne's. My favorite is his 15th Nocturne in F Minor.

Leave a Comment

Phone: 01 55 25 82 10
Website: http://www.bonjourlafrance.com/france-tourist-attractions/pere-lachaise-cemetery.htm

At the Père Lachaise Cemetery, located at the Père Lachaise (Blue #2 Metro) North Bank east from Central Paris.

As you walk out of this metro station, follow the signs. I got there at about 9am. It was open and as you walk in, there is an administration building on the right behind a few trees. It's a peaceful place, great if you want a walk and some peace away from the city noise.

To get to Wilde, you'll have to walk about 1 or 2 km's up the hill of this cemetery. It's a healthy walk and you'll burn some calories to get to Wilde. He is easy to find on the map you have.

**Note: If you are a fan of the great opera Mezo Soprano, Maria Callas, she is buried here too, but the map doesn't show where she is. To find her, you can find it on the large map when you first enter the cemetery. Unfortunately, I regrettably did not have the time to find her. She's a long walk from the entrance.

Leave a Comment

As you enter the Père Lachaise Cemetery, the mauseleum of Gioacchino Antonio Rossini, the great romantic opera composer, who wrote the famous overture to his "Barbers of Seville" Opera, can be located as you walk straight on the main "road" on the left.

**Updated, September 21, 2005**

Actually, this picture only marks the spot where the great opera composer Gioacchino Rossini was buried. After his death, the Italian government pleaded with France for his body so that he could be re-interred in Florence.

Rossini's remains now rest at San Croce (Holy Cross) Cathedral in Florence with the company of Michelangelo, Machiavelli, Galileo, Ghiberti and many other prominent Italians of the Renaissance period.

Leave a Comment

The Père Lachaise Cemetery is probably the largest and most peaceful one in Paris. Many great artists are buried here including Jim Morrisson, Frederic Chopin, Bizet (composer of the opera "Carmen"), Gertrude Stein, Cherubini, Edith Piaf and many others.

Leave a Comment

North of the Seine in the hills is the historical Montmarte District. As Vienna was a city where great classical musicians existed, and how San Francisco and New York were cities where great poets and writers congregated, Paris' Montmarte District is where many great painters and artists lived.

Toulouse-Latrec painted grotesque portraits of Harlots, Monet took peace in Montmarte's Pastoral scenes, Renoir, Picasso, Dali, Pisarro, Cezanne and van Gogh all lived about the streets of Montmarte.

Take the busy 2 (blue line) Metro to Blanche Station. As you walk out, you'll see the lighted windmill made famous by Moulin Rouge, a cabaret theatre.

Find Rue Lepic and walk up the hill. You will come across many great restaurants and shops. 15 Rue Lepic is the cafe where Amelie was filmed at. Keep walking up the long and windy hill and, eventually, you'll stumble into 54 Rue Lepic. Inscripted next to the street number is plaque which indicates that Vincent and his Brother Theo Van Gogh lived here. It is the entrance with the black door.

Leave a Comment

I found myself at Arr. 13, Place d'Italie, looking for Chinatown. It was the morning and my eventual destination was Montparnasse Cemetery in Arr. 14.

With a morning sun through the cold morning air, I took this shot, just an intimate moment while walking Paris.

Strech every morning if you can because although the Metro system in Paris is wonderful, you still will have to do lots of walking.

I took this picture while on Avenue de Choisy.

Leave a Comment

While atop the Tour Montparnasse, I saw the Montparnasse Cemetery where I'd just walked about trying to find names of important contributers to life.

While looking down, notice the line down the middle which is a road that divides the cemetery in half. To the left of the front half, that is where the famous philosopher of Existentialism, Satre has been laid to rest.

Other famous people buried in Montparnasse Cemetery include the composer of my favorite opera aria "Printemps Qui Commence" Camille Saint-Saens; writer Samuel Beckett, Nobel Prize winner for Literature in 1969; Poet Cesar Vallejo (darn! only just realized this :( ); Edgar Quinnet (the street just next to this cemetery; he's a famous historian); Charles Garnier (the architect of the Garnier Opera house and an infamous artistic opponent of the construction of the Eiffel Tower); Composer Cesar Franck; and Andre Citroen (the famous French Automobile maker).

The cemetery is open Daily from about 8-9am until 17:30-18:00.

The guard person working at the cemetery may not speak english. If you cannot speak much French just say: "Carte Sil'vous plais."

Leave a Comment

Phone: 01 44 10 86 50

I love the few symphonic works of Camille Saint-Saens. He also composed the opera Samson and Delila. My favorite opera aria is the beautiful "Printemps Qui Commence."

Although I couldn't find his grave, I took this picture in proximity of where he was supposed to be buried. The arrangement of burials at Montparnasse Cemetery are not very organized. I walked in this area between Avenue du Nord and Allee Lenoir, section 13, where he was buried and couldn't find it after 20 minutes of searching for his burial.

In frustration, I took this picture to signify roughly where he was supposed to be buried. I hummed a few lines of Printemps Qui Commnece, and headed out. I didn't plan on spending more than 15 minutes in this cemetery as the day was young, and I had plenty to do as it was.

Leave a Comment

To be quite honest, and I do promise that I will read up on her, I know very little about Gertrude Stein. Had it not been for the catchy chorus by Idlewild, a Scottish Punk Band, who wrote the following lyrics in the song "Roseability": "Gertrude Stein says that's enough, I know that that's not enough now...." , I wouldn't even have recognized the importance of her contributions to literature.

Upon casual, superficial research, I see that she had connections to Picasso, Charlie Chaplin and even lived in Oakland, California prior to moving to Paris; she was Jewish and very lucky to have not seen a concentration camp during WW2.

Interestingly, her last words, prior to her death in 1945, just after WW2, were:

"What is the answer? ...without a reply, "In that case...what is the question?"

I hummed the song "Roseability" by Idlewild as I paid respects to her grave after long walk all the away across Père Lachaise.

Leave a Comment

Are you a Louie Vuitton lover? Then come to this museum of Paris' obsession with fashion. It has a collection of bags, dresses, outfits, and jewlery which I found to be the most interesting.

it's located near the Louvre of rue de Rivoli.

This is a picture of the entrance. I wasn't supposed to take pictures but snuck a few.

Leave a Comment

Phone: 01 44 55 57 50
Website: http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-2775942-musee_de_la_mode_et_du_textile_paris-i