A Perpetual Student's Wife: From Montmartre to Champs Elysees

The basilica never fails to exude a pure and sacred aura, even if you view it from a small rue several kilometres away. Needless to say, it is at the highest point in Paris. Just by climbing those stairs at the side of the hill, with the orange tinge from the setting sun, you can already feel the warmth of romanticism. At least, this was what I felt when I first came alone several years ago. At that time, I told myself that I should bring a lover boy the next time, or maybe I should find one there and then. And so, here we are...the Student and the Wife, at the foot of the basilica.

The 2 nearest metros are Pigalle and Anver. We chose to alight at Anver and walk up Rue Steinkerque. This street has many souvenir stalls and a sweet shop that looked oh so delicious...A great place to hunt for Parisien printed place mats and pictures for decorations. Beware of those peddlers trying to sell you coloured bands though, stay firm and polite...Non, merci monsieur...and walk away.

We had wanted to bask in the sun and people watch at Place du Tetre with a cuppa, but it was really overflowing with tourists in that little artists' square, that we've lost the desire to do so. Down to rue de Abessess for more reasonably priced lunch. Rue Norvins is supposed to be good for getting some authentic bread, but we ended up with crepes instead, preferred the sugared crepes that our boulangerie gave us with our croissant though.

Moulin de la Galette

As we approached this area, I had wanted the Student to take a picture of the cafe that Amélie worked in. His reply was prompt: "Who is Amélie?" And the story goes to why this picture is here instead. Walk down rue Tholoze (where the windmill faces), and you'll reach rue Abessess, with plenty of cafes to choose from for lunch.

Sex shops along Blvd de Clichy

I supposed the night scene here will be very colourful...with the Boulevard lined with sex shops, topless shows and bar top dancing. Seriously, I don't mind paying for a lap dance for the Student, for my entertainment sake...naughty naughty*

Moulin Rouge

For more information on Montmartre area, below is a link that is rather useful:
http://www.montmartre-guide.com/in/practical-informations.html

We took about 40mins' walk from the 18th to the 8th arrondisment, to start our journey on the materialistic street of Champs Elysees.

Mercedes show room along Champs

Having walked through the 2 areas, there is a significant change in the air we breathed. In the small streets of Montmartre, we tasted passion, sacrifices, humanity and love...but in the boulevard of Champs Elysees, it is all material, winning, pride and bling. Paris is such, a city with multiple facade.