Saturday afternoon, 22 degree, sunny…
I open the window and the spring smell coming. Cannot wait and stay at home under such a wonderful day and I decide to look for Amélie in Montmartre.
I know a lot about Montmartre because I have seen the film AméliePoulain, who lives in Montmartre. I love that movie and I want to look for her today. 1st Stop – the ‘LOVE’ wall at Place des Abbesses I take the line 12 and get off at Abbesses. The ‘LOVE’ wall is just behind the metro entry and in side a little park with more than 300 phrases of ‘I love you’ and translated into different calligraphy and languages. Frédéric BARON is the inventor of the Wall and collector of ‘I Love You’.I think when people start to learn a new language they always start with “Hello! Thank you and I love you!” In chinese, I love is ‘我愛你’. There is a character ‘Xin’ inside the word of love which means both heart and spirit. In Chinese calligraphy the hand is guided by the heart, when you copy a calligraphy, you feel the spirit of the person who wrote it. Same for love, you should feel it by heart and spirit as well.
2nd Stop – ice cream + crep + SPA of sun at Place des Tertres Along the stone road, I walk up to the Place des Tertres where some of art's great names once set up shop. Today the plaza is occupied by painters offering conventional portraits of the city to tourists. 3 years ago, the first time I came here, I found the most lovely restaurant in Paris. It is not big but decorated full of flowers, even the sheet of menu, like a paint as well. And today I find a place outside the restaurant, ask for a crep with nutella and a glass of ice cream with my favorite flavor black chocolate and pistachio – ice cream + crep + SPA of sun, who can refuse?I remember when I was in Shanghai, I always went to Café Montmartre nearby my home. Whatever a brunch or a crep, I can spend the whole afternoon there with a book. The food there was not that excellent but name of the restaurant and the same smelling of Paris. The boss is French and we always chat for a while when he was there. I cannot say I don't love France, I don't love Paris, even at this VERY moment, French people is against Olympic Game; the friendship between France and my motherland is getting freezing; and Chinese people are boycotting French products…... I don't know since when, the name France has already infiltrated into my blood, became a part of my life. You can get exciting when you hear it, see it or think about it. It is a very special feeling and I cannot explain it well by words. 3rd Stop – Street show in front of the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur Each time when I come here, there are always different street shows in front of the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur, you can see hundreds of people sitting on the stairs and watching; sometimes they are laughing and cooperating with the performer. I don't know where is the origin of street show but I like it. There are some impressed me, the symphony inside the metro station Chatelet; FIRE show in front of Notre Dame; also the graffiti and etc.Compare to these, the street show in China almost disappeared right now. I remember when I was a child, there were still some, like Monkey performance (耍猴), Paste doll (面人), Candy paint (糖画) and so on.
Last Stop – the café where Amélie works After 7 p.m., I decide to go for some serious Amélie-hunting. I walk around in Montmartre for at least 3 hours without seeing her anywhere. I go to her café but she apparently takes the day off because she isn't there. Lol. I just take a cappuccino and sitting for a while.Well, that was my wonderful afternoon, even I didn't find Amélie but I felt she was just there, very close…