A Visit to the Catacombs

This was our second (or third?) try getting into the Catacombs in Paris.  As usual, the line was very long and this time the wait was about an hour, and it was cold and rainy.. and so we almost quit again.  But we didn't!  We're glad we didn't.. it was really interesting, and surprisingly,

no one freaked out.

 

The story goes something like this: The cemeteries in Paris were overflowing by the late 1700s and parts of the city were collapsing because the limestone underneath had been mined in the past centuries to build the buildings in the city.  So, to solve both problems, they bolstered the caverns and moved the bones down there, arranging them by cemetery.  More than six million peoples' bones are lined up for miles underneath the city. 

See more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catacombs_of_Paris and here http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-europe/dark-underworld-paris-catacombs-002834

 

 

 

 

There are many things that go through your mind when you're walking through the passages underground... mostly wondering what life was like for these people, and really how long ago they were alive.  When you climb the 87 stairs back up to the street level and come out into the street, it feels like it was a surreal journey or a dream.