Entrance of the Pere Lachaise Cemetery
8th November, 2011
Today, my brother and I started out very early to visit the famous Parisian cemetery. We left the apartment at 9:00 a.m., took Bus Line 3 (Gambetta?) and arrived to the Cemetery around 10 a.m. or so.
Visiting the final resting place of some of the most extraordinary people who have ever lived is one of the many highlights of my trip. When we arrived at the actual site a free map of the cemetery was handed to us at the main entrance. The map came very handy because we located most of the graves we wanted to see.
While searching for Jim Morrison’s grave site we stumbled upon several Monuments in honor of Frenchmen who died in the Resistance or in Nazi concentration camps. The monument brought chills all over my body. Looking at the horror on their faces were so nerve wrecking and quite disturbing.
After walking like about a mile or two, we finally found Mr. Morrison’s site. There were at least five people visiting when we arrived. There were lots of flowers left to his tomb.
Jim Morrison's gravesite
After spending five minutes at Morrison’s site, we then proceeded and searched for Oscar Wilde’s location. We had trouble finding his grave and after searching for about 20 minutes my brother finally located his gravesite. Unfortunately his grave is under renovation at the time of our visit.
Oscar Wilde - Under Construction!
Off we go in search for other famous people. This time we discovered Frederic Chopin’s grave while walking towards Edith Piaf’s location.
Frederic Chopin
Lastly, my visit is not complete without paying respect to my favorite singer….Edith Piaf! Her grave is the hardest to find. It is located all the way in the back of the cemetery and if I am not mistaken its Lot 96. Frankly, I’ve never heard of Ms. Piaf before but thanks to my language professor, he made us listen to her songs in our French class and for our finals, we all went to see the movie “La vie en Rose.” After listening to all her songs and seeing her life story I’ve become an avid fan of her. Je ne regrette de rien!
My favorite French singer - Edith Piaf
Edith Piaf's gravesite
In conclusion: A quick visit to this famous cemetery is such a fun adventure itself and I’m glad we went. We finished the self-guided tour at noon and had Mickey D for lunch.
Next Destination: The Famous Eiffel Tower
pritingpinay 