Sunday in Paris, Day 5-The Church in Paris: Seven centuries of making God smile

Today we got ‘take away’ croissants and pain au chocolat from our hotel breakfast nook, and met Marie-Helene out front to begin our day of church hopping.  The Hillsong fellowship is a modern church that began in Australia, and has spread rapidly due to its emphasis on a real time, interactive and relational walk with God.  They meet in a theatre in Paris (Theatre Bobino) every Sunday, and pack it to standing room only.  Mostly consisting of people below the age of forty, they have free coffee and social time before and after, and are formatted in a similar way to our less formal services where the worship is with guitars, drums, singers, and uplifted hands.  Ely and I felt very much at home, and Marie-Helene seemed to enjoy it as well. 

Afterwards we did what the French do, and paused to discuss it over a cappuccino in a nearby café.  We bonded a bit, as do the French, and shared the differences and similarities of our personal beliefs.  Good thing to do in Paris on a Sunday afternoon.

Next church hop stop:  Notre Dame by day.  Although we had already experienced its wonders by night, there was no leaving Paris without seeing firsthand how the light plays as it streams through the colors of her stained glass windows. 

We learned to recognize the tiny focal point in the rose window to the left of the altar, Mary and Jesus done in shades of emerald green.  Stunning. 

The third hop was a smaller gothic, the Sainte Chappelle.  I was once told that visiting the Sainte Chappelle was like being inside a jewel case.  Its floor to ceiling stained glass windows are a feast of colors uninterrupted by other structure.  The windows compose most of each wall…like soaring sheets of jewels of every color. 



We all three just sat and stared.  I think that the architects of the time must have been very intent on using their new technology to create something to make God happy, and His children feel closer to Heaven.

We completed our sensory feasting by a culinary one.  Dropping down into the metro, we arrived in the Saint Germain district, where Dave and I had had a wonderful meal several years ago at a creperie. 

I was hoping I could find it again, and within minutes, VOILA!  What the stained glass masterpieces were to our visual senses, the various flavors and textures of the crepes would be to our tastebuds.  Among the delicacies were salads with very fresh and fragrant olive oil dressing,  crepes with fillings of spinach and varied French cheeses, crepes with ham,  goat cheese, crème sauces, and finally, dessert crepes.  Ely and I split the pear belle Helene with apple compote, raspberry drizzle, chocolate, and heavy cream.  Marie Helene went with the simplicity of the crepes aux beurre et sucre.  Very good choices.

  Marie-Helene took leave of us to do some errands, and Ely and I went on to shop a bit in the St. Germain shops, and head out to the Tour Eiffel. 

There was nearly a two hour wait, so instead we took the train to Versailles, where Aurelien awaited us for the Paris by night tour with chauffeur:

Aurelien!  There is no better way to tour Paris than with a Frenchman and his mother! 

Among the highlights were the glistening golden facade of the Opera, the glittering shopping district of Place des Vosges, with its animations in shop windows and zoomie displays with light shows for Christmas.  We saw every main district and every monument together tonight, which left it all indelible in our memories. 

Bonne nuit, et merci beaucoup, cheris.