Le week-end passé
On Saturday morning I headed out via train to Amiens, just over one hour north of Paris. I took a medieval architecture class a couple years ago where we mainly studied the cathedrals of Italy, France, and England. I had been planning on going to Amiens since I arrived - its cathedral being the tallest in France. (The choir of the cathedral in Beauvais is technically taller, but that’s all it is - the nave was never completed.) It’s been consistently sunny here in France for over a week now so I got some really good photos both inside and outside.
I made it back to Paris in the afternoon just in time for a Scottish parade. Yesterday the Scottish national rugby team played the French team here in Paris so in honor of the Auld Alliance, linking the two nations back in the 1295, they held a pipe band parade at Montmartre. The parade was supposed to start at 4 o’clock but didn’t commence until sometime after 5 o’clock. The French seemed to blame the delay on the Scottish stopping in at a bar (or two) on their way to the starting area. The Scottish appeared to blame it on the French for putting so many bars along the eventual parade route! When the bands (from Scotland, England, and France) finally got their acts together any harsh feelings were quickly abandoned.
And any true Scotsmen running up the steps to Sacré Coeur in Paris, please note that your actions might cause on-looking lassies to fall down the steps! Trust me; I’ve seen it happen.