Wednesday 22-10 - Catacombs

I got up earlier than usual. With Janelle I set off for the catacombs. We got there at the agreed time and waited for Caryn (and Jullian) to appear. They were taking there time, so we got brekkie at a bakery. I am the kind of person who wants to keep giving everyone a little more time. Luckily Janelle was there to convince we that we should just go. So an hour after we got there, I made good on my promise to go with out the others.

Down into the combs we went. Down the spiral stairs to the tunnels. It was warmer than the air above, even if somewhat more damp. There was no wind, only a slight white noise that seemed to come from the deepest hidden cavern.





We walked through endless tunnels to the first rooms. They were houses for stone castles,like the most wonderful sand castles to be found at the beach. They had wonderful turrets and ornaments, but seemed out of place in a treasury of the dead.





A few more tunnels brought us to the Ossuary. Millions and millions of bodies rested here. They were all dug up when Paris´s cemeteries were shut down due to disease. All the bones were moved here. So here they lay, making up the walls of endless dark paths.



The walls were lined with femurs and decorated with skulls. Occasionally there were other parts showing, I gathered that for the most part, the other bones were dumped in a tangled mess behind the femurs. The skulls were made into macabre centre pieces, such as skull and cross ones and even a love heart. There were crosses and tombs scattered throughout.





Some people were shocked, but I have seen many many skulls before. I mean, yes, the shear mass of human bones was creepy. But I thought to myself, most of these people died of natural causes years before they were brought here. After Poland and the holocaust memorial, these bones didn´t seem quite as loaded with emotion. It was sad, but not chilling. Mostly just interesting.



We finished the walk and left, I still hadn´t heard from Caryn. So we walked around the shops a bit before heading back to Janelle´s house. We tried to get a hold of the others but to no avail. In the late afternoon we finally made contact.



We went to Montmarte to meet with Caryn, Jullian and Nick from Perth. It turns out we made the right choice in going to the catacombs without them. They didn´t turn up at all. Everyone went to a pizza place where we caught up with each other´s lives.