A few Saturdays ago, some very good friends asked if we would like to join them and their little…read moredog on a 2-hour guided tour of Montmartre
Well, we both know Montmartre very well, me, after nearly 55 years visiting Paris...apart from anything else, it's the only place to get all your haberdashery needs! (Oh yes it is!)
But this was to be a little different. Our guide would take us around, pointing out all the main places where artists, poets, musicians and writers had lived and how they lived, the bars they frequented and generally who met who, where, when, why
It was an excellent visit. There were so many little side streets that I had never been to; buildings I knew as a "site", but not in terms of their history; little parks; who the statues were and why they were there; the old entrances to the metro stations and much more....also she introduced us to Flashinvader, see below*, but beware, it is addictive, though if you are bringing kids, then it's a big bonus
She did not bother doing the normal sites; that was not the purpose. Rather it was about the long gone, hidden history. During my French studies all those years ago, I had read most of the books and poems we discussed; since when, I had probably seen most of the art referred to (BTW, just don't miss the Musee d'Orsay or even the little museum in Montmartre itself) and heard the music
She was very patient, answered all our questions, had enlarged photos of everything so you could understand what Montmartre used to look like all those years ago ie being outside of Paris then
One more thing. We all speak fluent French, but she spoke seriously good English, both in terms of vocabulary but also accent, which is just as important for understanding
Oh, wear sensible shoes - if you didn't know, its very up and down
We had a great time and fully recommend Elisa to you. If you look her up online you will see plenty of other visit opportunities
*Flashinvader: its an app. All over the place little space invader art is dotted around; mostly you have to look up to near the street signs. And not just in Montmartre or even just Paris. There is a fan who is patiently logging a map of them all over the world. You get points; its just a bit of fun...but who knew?!
