Montparnasse cemetery

Saturday
We had a good day up in Paris today, exploring an area we weren't so familiar with - Montparnasse. We went first to Montparnasse cemetery, the final resting place of a number of famous people - French poet Baudelaire, Samuel Beckett, the composers Saint-Saens and César Franck, sculptor Antoine Bourdelle, Bartholdi, designer of the Statue of Liberty, car manufacturer Citroen family, amongst others. Unfortunately, while there is a map showing the location of the significant graves, it only shows the section they are in and not the exact location, and there are no other markers around the cemetery, so we only succeeded in finding two, those of Bartholdi and Citroen. However, it was still a pleasant and interesting walk since the cemetery is shaded by numerous trees, decked out in their autumn foliage. Afterwards we went to get some lunch, then went up the Montparnasse Tower, a rather uninspiring office block skyscraper, which however affords wonderful views over the city. The tower was completed in 1973, and during its construction it was viewed favorably by public opinion. That changed however once it was completed, being regarded as a blight on the landscape, and within two years buildings above seven stories were banned within the city center, all new skyscrapers being built in the business area of La Défense, leaving the Montparnasse tower sticking out like a sore thumb! The saying goes it offers the best view of Paris, since it's the only place you can't see the tower! The views are extensive, and you can easily pick out all the major sites - obviously the Eiffel Tower and Sacré Coeur stand out very clearly, but you can pick out Les Invalides, the churches of Notre Dame, Saint Sulpice, saint Germain des Pres and Saint Eustache, the Louvre, La Madeleine, the Pantheon, le Jardin de Luxembourg, the Grand Palais and Petit Palais, etc etc. The one thing you don't see is the River Seine itself - you can easily see its path, lined with trees, and one or two of the bridges, notably Pont Alexandre, but you don't actually see the river itself! We spent quite a while up there, taking in the view and picking out the different landmarks, then went back down and went for a walk around the area, and later along the river, finishing up by about 7.45 at Notre Dame, in good time for an 8 pm organ recital. Then we had a late dinner, and took the train home, by which time I felt quite tired, but it was a great day!