I had enough energy last night to go to what turned out to be a wonderful concert with a string ensemble and a soprano soloiste. The concert was held at l'Eglise St. Julien-le-Pauvre in the 5ème; apparently this church frequently hosts classical concerts (they had a Chopin event the night before - check your weekly copy of Pariscope or Officiel, available each Wednesday at your local tabac or newsstand).
I decided to take advantage of the event to try out the Paris city bus lines. The RATP has a multi-lingual website (www.ratp.fr) that lets you map out the best ways to get from point A to point B, whether by bus, metro, RER or tram, and there is a line that stops almost outside my door that runs straight up through St. Germain to the Louvre and on up to Montmartre. Using the RATP site, I saw that the 95 line stopped at St. Germain where I could grab the number 4 metro just two stops to St. Michel. From there it was a short walk to the concert. It looked easy enough and the only thing I wasn't sure of was how long it might take, so I left loads of extra time and figured if I got there early I could always wander around and explore the neighborhood.
I have had people tell me the bus is so much more enjoyable a mode of transportation than the metro, and you know what? They're right. I suspect you might have to leave a bit of extra time when taking the bus in case of traffic jams, but the bus is cleaner, and when I factor in the amount of time it takes me to walk to/from the metro stations near my apartment where the bus stop is right here, I can see that there will be times when the bus is as fast if not faster than the metro might be. And you really do get to see more of Paris by bus. (I loved spotting the Eiffel Tower all a-sparkle on the way back!)
So, I got to Metro St. Michel easily, and found Rue St. Severin which was the way to St. Julien-le-Pauvre. I was immediately reminded what it was I love about Paris -- these little winding streets on a Saturday night, with lots of people walking around, stopping in to any number of restaurants and bistros, or browsing in the shops which are open late for the Saturday night crowds. I found what looks like an adorable restaurant that serves fondue and raclette (making a mental note as I haven't had raclette in over 20 years) and took a short tour around the church at St. Severin.
The concert was fantastic! The seats are only 18 or 23 € and you can buy them right at the door. The church is not large so really, most of the seats are decent enough provided your view isn't obstructed by a gothic pillar (parts of this church date to the 6th century although it has been a Greek Melkite Catholic church since about 1889).
The group started out with Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, followed by a few other familiar Mozart violin pieces. Then the soprano came out and did both the Schubert and Gounod versions of "Ave Maria" (so you could pick your favorite), and another Mozart piece as well. Then it was onto the Four Seasons by Vivaldi -- easily one of my all-time favorite classical pieces (it can be found on my iPod!)
I definitely plan to come back to St. Julien-le-Pauvre for future concerts -- easy to get to, reasonably priced, good quality and value for the money, and as an added bonus, I had a view of the spires of Notre Dame, all alight, through the glass church window.
What more could I want?
