Montparnasse Cemetery

“The reverend he turned to me without a tear in his eyes. It's nothing new for him to see. I didn't ask him why.” - Pantera

The plan for today was:

1. See the Montparnasse Cemetery.

2. Try out the TV famous Berthillon ice cream.

3. Walk around The Latin Quarter since we were in the area.

We wanted to see how people lived... and how they wanted to be remembered.

I grew up a Catholic like almost all Filipinos did. The Montparnasse Cemetery felt familiar... but not. It seemed like a better version of what I used to visit when I was a child during All Saints and All Souls Day. Because, obvious to me right now, Paris is what most cities all around the world tried to imitate because Paris has been around long before any other cities even knew what the word “modern” or “civilized” meant.

What I noticed about the tombs in the cemetery were that the old ones, the ones that have been around since the 1800s, were more extravagant – they had at least a bust or a sculpture:

Some were still remembered:

..some looked like they were forgotten a long time ago:

Some were collectively remembered:

And like most lives lived, were filled with...

Here's Guy de Maupassant's tomb:

...and the family Citroen's, which was quite simple:

Some were extravagant:

Some were simple:

Everything in Paris is a train or bus ride away. Berthillon ice cream was. But in order to get there, after the bus ride, we had to walk through The Latin Quarter.

And pass by the Notre Dame Cathedral:

There were street performers everywhere:

The view was always nothing but spectacular:

Paris, I love you.

For the record. I want to be cremated. I don't want to take up space after I die.