The Notre Dame

The Notre Dame
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We spent the day walking the streets of Paris and ended up at the Notre Dame Cathedral. We were unable to go the previous day because they were having a concert of Gregorian chanters (which would have been great to see). We took the audio tour of the cathedral and were fascinated with all the history. The church supposedly posesses significant religious relics, including a piece of the crucifixion cross, the crown of thorns, and one of the nails driven into Jesus (which are not on display but are only taken out for special ceremonies).  Preparations were being made during our visit for the two-day celebration of Annunciation Day, which commemorates the ascension of the virgin Mary into heaven.  The church also contains a statue of Joan of Arc, as it was here the decision was made to grant her sainthood.

The front of the cathedral
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We then bought a two-day pass on a "Batobot", which is a water taxi that stops at major tourist attractions up and down the Seine.  We made the entire round once, and otherwise took the water taxi when we preferred a more scenic method of transportation than the Metro.  The advantage of the water taxi is that it affords some unparalleled views of notable buildings and structures from the river.

Food of the Day:  Mmmm!  We stopped at a sidewalk cafe and treated ourselves to a menu of escargot (which Max tried(!) and Mateis ate the major portion of), crispy leg of duck, carrot gratin, crepes Suzette, and creme brulee.