Day Trips From Paris
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Montmarte and Pigalle
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Perched on a high hill north of the city centre, Montmartre remains a contained and only slightly sullied throwback to a bygone era, with winding streets, ivy-clad houses with gardens, and artists' studios remaining just as you imagine they always were.
Sacré Coeur is endlessly besieged by coach tours, as is the Place du Tertre, peopled by so-called artists. But as soon as you get off the main drag, the area is surprisingly village like. The tiny 12th-century church of St-Pierre de Montmartre ranks among the oldest of the city, while the quiet streets, cafés and squares have a character quite unlike the rest of Paris.
For a total change of mood, head down to Pigalle, the area along Boulevards Clichy and Rochechouard, with the odd diversion into dimly lit streets on either side.
Tourists are still driven in to inspect the neon-lit peep shows, but Pigalle is also increasingly the centre for music, lively clubs and quirky late night bars, as more and more of former cabarets reopen to new forms of decadence. The area can be rough so be careful.
Basilique du Sacre Coeur :
Constructed at the end of the 19th-century and completed in 1914, this Byzantine style basilica was situated in the heart of a 19th-Century village of painters, sculptors and poets (Toulouse-lautrec, Modigliani, Utrillo).
The view of Paris from the entrance of Sacre Coeur is a site to behold. You can see the entire city from the abbey's chiseled steps
Address : Place du parvis du Sacre Coeur, 18th. Phone : 42 51 17 02. access from st Pierre market by funicular ride. Open 9am to 6pm in winter, till 7pm in summer.
Saint Pierre de Montmartre :
The oldest church in Paris is the last remnant of the royal abbey founded by Louis VI and his wife Adélaïde de Savoie. On the left side of the property, stands the Cimetière du Calvaire, cemetery open only to visitors on All Saints day. Here lie Bougainville, the duke of Fitz-James and the sculptor Pigalle.
