St Denis, Montmartre and freezing

Today was the first free day spent in Paris. After the beautiful Wednesday and Thursday, today the weather proved…uncooperative. It was extremely cold, it rained a bit, and the wind was freezing cold. This however didn’t stop me from visiting a bit.

I started with the basilique St. Denis – the burial place of the French kings. Very nice place to see, and the fact that I joined a group with a French guide (a professional one, nonetheless!) helped me to understand a lot. Very interesting information – how the cathedral was built, why did the kings of France start getting buried there, how the French Revolution made a mess of eveything, and so on. I even got to stay at a mess for Marie Antoinette!

After freezing the whole morning, I decided to continue the day with some walking around Montmartre and the the rest of Paris. From this second part of the day I attach some photos, while the ones from St Denis will come later.

It was very pleasant to see again Montmartre, Pigalle, the Moulin Rouge, Vendome, The Louvre, and other places from the spring trip. Only the biting cold put an early end to my trip – not only was I shivering but my camera batteries were dying.

Now I am planning tomorrow’s visiting, while enjoying the warmth in the hostel.