Montmartre :)

**EDIT-COMPLETE POST**

Today I was so exhausted, I didn't think I could do much of anything. But, because I will take advantage of this awesome opportunity, I decided to go out to Montmartre. My French professor told me about this festival that would be going on over near there, and I figured if I couldn't find it, I could at least see Sacré Coeur.

It only took about half an hour to make it over there, and upon our arrival in Montmartre, we decided we were hungry and began searching for a place to eat. We found this Halal Fried Chicken place that seemed safe to eat (because of food allergies), so we stopped in there. It was actually pretty good!

I discovered the Fanta here has real orange juice in it. It basically just tastes like carbonated orange juice. New favorite drink!!!

Then we picked a direction and figured it we didn't see a hill in a few minutes we would turn around. I'm going to live in one of these apartments, I say!

On our way, we saw this store that sold underclothes called Undiz. Haha, get it?! :P

We also stopped in a few shoe stores that had good sales. I was sooo tempted to buy a pair of super cute blue and black flats for only 8.50 euros, but I restrained myself. I still like them :/

We finally found the hill, and began our way up the stairs.

Our first glimpse that told us we were going the right direction :)

I realized how out of shape I am!! About half way up, we saw all these people dressed up in very bazar attire. One man was walking up the side of the hill, and he stopped to let me photograph him!

Further down the hill, we saw more people that looked like they were going to be in the parade. We followed them quite a ways, and found the beginning of the parade!! It was so awesome! The theme of the festival this year was the French Islands, so there was a lot of dancing and drumming and bright colors. It was probably the most fun parade I've ever been to--and they didn't even throw candy! Ha, although they did give out little glasses of wine. But I'll excuse that, since it is a wine festival :P

And, my favorite group:

After the whole parade went past us, we made our way back up the hill. This time we found a more direct route with stairs all the way up. Geez! I ran up all at once, and at the top, I was sooo dead!!

Me, at the top of the first set of stairs :)

The church looked very different than I remember, but I think a lot of that had to do with the festival. There were so many people, all with booths and such. But we made our way through the delicious smelling crêpes, waffles, and an inordinate number of foie gras stands, into Sacré Coeur.

WOW. There were no photos allowed inside, and I decided to respect that, but oh my goodness. The beauty was breathtaking. I cannot wrap my mind around how this was built. If its sheer immensity isn't mind-boggling enough, there's all the detailed engraving and sculptures that truly make this building a masterpiece. After making our way around the whole thing, we sat down in the pews for a contemplative moment, which turned into half an hour. I was so touched by the spirit that was present. Amid hoards of tourists (many of whom were taking photos), gift shops, and the pouring rain outside, I could feel the spirit of those who love God. That someone would undertake such an endeavor in praise of their Lord, means so much to me. I'm so grateful for all the people in this world who aren't afraid to share their faith. I'm also so grateful we have buildings like this to remind us of a time past when, even through the corruption and politics, people praised God openly.

After we felt it was time to go, we tried taking the grand staircase down the hill, but there were performances set up for the festival, so we took the lift instead.

The view of Paris from atop Montmartre:

Et moi, avant de partir:

It was quite interesting--and we were able to use our Navigo Passes! :)

We took the long way down Montmartre, and found this little candy shop. Oh my goodness, it was cute! I broke down and bought some cookies and a lollipop (probably because I secretly wanted those shoes :P). I'd come back just to buy some to bring home to people. Delightful!

The candy and cookies I bought (left to right): caramel chocolate fudge, strawberry lollipop, cinnamon navette, and lemon something or other :)

So yes, it was a great day. I feel very grateful for the opportunity I had to experience Sacré Coeur, and for the joy that parade brought me. I think I smiled the whole time :)

I'm excited to attend church for the first time tomorrow!!