Parisian Paradise - Part VIII: The Notre Dame Walk

The world has been waiting long enough. My only excuse for a lack of posting was an awesome President's Day weekend getaway. But now it's time to resume the trip recap.

Sunday afternoon, we walked from the Pompiduo across the river to Notre Dame cathedral. They hadn't even taken down their Christmas tree yet - embarrassing!

We learned all about the many gargoyles and Saint surrounding the facades of Notre Dame - including St. Denis, who (according to legend) was beheaded and then proceeded to stand up, pick up his head, clean it off and walk a number of miles before dying.

The entry into Notre Dame was free, but we were excited to use our museum pass to gain free access up the stairs to the viewing tower. Unfortunately, the weather was too cold and icy, so the viewing tower was closed. Foiled again!

Inside the cathedral, however, was very cool. Dark, gothic, and voluminous (as you would expect from a medieval church), with sculptures, paintings and stained glass throughout:

Not only does the cathedral still have its Christmas tree up, but also its Nativity:

Exiting the cathedral, we photographed its west facade:

Deidra was fascinated by this man, who was feeding birds directly out of his hands:

We walked around the Latin Quarter of Paris, with our audio tour guide, Rick Steves, pointing out all sorts of places of interest. These included the oldest tree in Paris, an alley where residents used to dump their excrement, a street corner with a history of violent protests, and the prison where inmates stayed prior to being beheaded.  Unfortunately or not, we didn't think to take pictures along the walking tour. But it was interesting and refreshing to walk through parts of Paris, instead of just hopping on the metro from one landmark to the next.