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Post by imec on Sept 12, 2009 22:05:35 GMT
We let the kids pick a number of the activities and one that they both agreed on was the Catacombs. What kids don't love anything to do with skulls, bones and scary underground places? One thing I choose not to do unless absolutely essential is queue. As this activity was one chosen by the kis I couldn't very well abandon it just bbeacuse I don't like to waste my time in queues - I did however, insist on a bio break prior to getting in the long (which turned out to be 1 and a half hours worth) line of people. As you can see, I share kerouac's enthusiasm for pics of state of the art public facilities...   Down the rabbit hole...   It's quite a long walk to get to the actual catacombs. Signs in the tunnels (former stone quarries) identify what streets are above ground.   Some interesting stone carving...   An then, BONES, BONES and more BONES!        Back up into the daylight...   After our tour and a little bit of shopping, we headed back to the hotel for a rest before dinner. Well, when I say we, I guess I don't mean everyone - 10 and 14 year olds don't rest so much. We had a fabulous dinner that evening at l'Ardoise - I had veal, young Mr. i had lamb, Mrs. i had rabbit and Miss i had roast chicken along with some very nice apperizers and desserts. This was our favorite meal in Paris. Me looking tough on the Metro...  Do you know where your kids are?  |
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Post by cristina on Sept 13, 2009 1:49:15 GMT
Thank you so much for the catacombs photos, imec. This saves me from the far too claustrophobic experience myself!  What I do find interesting is that the bones seem to be arranged (more or less) by body part, rather than preserving all parts of one's personal body in one place. I love the photo of young Mr i jumping off the bed! And the young Miss looks quite relaxed knowing she has the toughest guy in the world by her side to protect her. |
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Post by lagatta on Sept 13, 2009 2:12:08 GMT
cristina, I think all the human remains were so mixed together in the common grave near Les Halles (Fontaine des Innocents) that it would have been impossible to preserve single skeletons. But one does find this aesthetic in other catacombs. I have friends who partied down there (illicitely). Was always successful in getting out of that, as I'm very claustrophobic myself, and happy on the top floor of a block of flats, or up in Belleville/Ménilmontant in Paris.
Yes, imec is very much being the stern father in that pic. And don't think Miss imec minded. Paris is a very safe city, but it could have been rather distressing for a pretty blonde young-teenager in short shorts riding around alone, if she was not used to how to "faire la gueule" and discourage creeps.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2009 5:15:20 GMT
The very first time I visited the catacombs, errrr, maybe 40 years ago, there were not yet electric lights and you had to carry a candle or a flashlight (most people carried candles, which just seemed more appropriate) and quite a few of the skulls still had a couple of teeth left. You can imagine what happened to them.
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Post by imec on Sept 16, 2009 19:37:54 GMT
Sad...
Paris catacombs closed to public after vandals scatter human skulls along underground paths
2 hours, 28 minutes ago
By The Associated Press
PARIS - Paris' underground bone collection, the catacombs, has been closed to the public indefinitely after being vandalized.
Ordinarily, the creepy collection of human remains - cleared from city cemeteries long ago - is orderly, with bones piled in stacks along underground tunnels. But a post-vandalism photo in Le Parisien newspaper showed bones and skulls scattered along the walking paths.
Isabelle Montagne, the spokeswoman for the Paris prosecutor's office, said Wednesday that an investigation has been opened into the weekend incidents. The catacombs have been closed because the littered site has become hazardous, she said. Montagne and a police spokesman declined to give details of the damage.
The catacombs are a vast underground network tunnel of tunnels holding the bones of more than 6 million Parisians. Near the end of the 18th century, Paris' cemeteries were filled to capacity, so city officials decided to transfer the contents of graves to quarries.
The section open to the public is only a sampling of the secret world: More than 300 kilometres (186 miles) of tunnels like beneath the city. The catacombs are visited by 257,000 tourists each year, according to city historical officials.
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Post by cristina on Sept 17, 2009 0:06:05 GMT
So I jumped the gun by admitting that I was claustrophobic.  I could have told everyone that I couldn't go because it was closed, and my secret would have remained safe. However I am genuinely sad that the Picasso museum chose to take a break right before I go to Paris. I was really looking forward to that visit. |
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Post by lagatta on Sept 17, 2009 0:41:59 GMT
cristina, that is a reason to return. There are so many museums and monuments in Paris that something is always closed.
I am very claustrophobic. It isn't shameful. But I also have the opposite anxiety; I hate vast empty places.
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Post by koloagirl on Nov 9, 2010 23:08:09 GMT
Aloha from Kaua'i!
I know this is an old thread - but it is worth noting that at sometime after the post from 9/16/09, the Catacombs were re-opened - we visited Paris in March 2010 and I thoroughly enjoyed going thru them.....it was pretty amazing to be surrounded by the remains of Parisians from centuries ago.
Not for everyone I'd imagine, but as a history nerd, I loved it!
Malama Pono (take care)
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 13, 2010 16:06:07 GMT
Oh! I didn't see that this thread had been >ahem< resurrected. Thanks, Koloagirl (& welcome!). And the news of the re-opening of the catacombs is very welcome as well.
It's wonderful to see this thread again, especially since I neglected to comment it on it before. Shame on me, as it is not only fascinating, but the photos are so good. #10, Imec ~~ out of this world!
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What I do find interesting is that the bones seem to be arranged (more or less) by body part, rather than preserving all parts of one's personal body in one place. 
