Back to France, finally!

Since I was visiting Brittany and Andy in the U.K. this past spring, no way was I going to be so close to France and not go. So mid-April, after Arundel, I flew to Paris.

First stop, Notre Dame. Even after the surprisingly sharp sorrow of watching la flèche burn and fall in real time on my laptop in 2019, I was still stunned at how moving it was to be finally standing there seeing the intricate spire standing tall again.

But the lines were long to go inside, so I headed instead to the Musée de Cluny. My favorite tapestries are still as popular as ever. Here are two of the six:

One of my main goals for this trip to France was to get to Chartres, an easy train ride from Paris. I had to go on a Friday, the only day the chairs are removed and the labyrinth is reserved for prayer.

When I first arrived, there were hordes. A volunteer explained how best to use the labyrinth, crowded as it was: keep moving at a slow, steady pace, like breathing, silently make our way to the center then on across to the far side, rather than coming back out the way we had gone in–impossible with so many.

The volunteer suggested we start with open hands facing down, symbolizing letting go, then hands crossed over our hearts in gratitude, and finally hands open, facing up to receive. The path is on average 13.5 inches wide–the average human, slightly wider. This meant we had to accommodate each other to  pass alongside those on the next ring. My labyrinth experiences have generally been alone or with one or two others, so it was strange and oddly wonderful to feel the world so gently present with me in that space.

Besides the labyrinth, the famous “Chartres blue” of the stained glass is not to be missed.

Jean-Étienne, my host at the chambres d’hôtes in Paris (and my friend Pascale’s cousin), had recommended that I spend the whole day in Chartres, so off I went to find lunch down by the river, L’Eure.

I managed to get into Le Moulin de Ponceau without a reservation, and it was spectacular. Then a stroll along the river and back up the hill to the Musée des Beaux-Arts.

Then back to the cathedral, to see if the labyrinth was less busy. It was, which is how I managed to get the photo above.

Next, une limonade at a café while I do a quick ink drawing of the cathedral. Then back to the train, where I manage to embarrass myself, even in reasonably fluent French. I have my aller-retour (round-trip) ticket, but I’m not sure of the procedure. So I ask an attendant if I need to do anything before getting on the train. «Achetez un billet» he says, laughing. (Buy a ticket.) Haha. But I just shake my head and smile back at him.

Finally, the nearly-empty train arrives, I get on and choose a seat I’m sure is facing the direction we’re going, and wonder why so many others are choosing rear-facing seats. Then we start. Nope. I sheepishly switch seats, while the others kindly pretend not to notice.

Still amusing the locals, apparently.

Wishing you beauty and kindness, grace and peace!