The Chairfather: Père Lachaise Part II
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About the Tour
About the Tour
Welcome to Part II of the Chairfather, where we’ll cover the space of 15 football fields seeking out 20 personalities. Of the three walks, this one is the most challenging to follow, so please pay close attention to directions.
We will visit the final resting places of luminaries Camille Corot, Jean de La Fontaine, Molière, Antoine Parmentier, Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo, Jean Anthelme Brillat de Savarin, the Tissandier family, Elizaveta Démidoff-Strogonoff, Georges Rodenbach, Ferdinand de Lesseps, Jim Morrison, Héloïse and Abélard, Camille Pissarro, Michel Petrucciani, Frédéric Chopin, Claude Chabrol, Marcel Marceau, and Théodore Géricault.
We will explore separation: diverging from tradition, rifts in the relationships of fathers and sons, slicing through the sky, cutting through continents, lovers forcibly pulled apart, breakthrough bold musical compositions and silence as a means of communication.
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
Joe Start
Hi, I'm Joe, the author of French License, a tragicomedy travel memoir, and The Chairfather companion photo book to my tours on VoiceMap. After graduating with a journalism degree, I jumped over to the advertising and marketing side of communications. My day job has been selling media and technology in the US and Europe for more than a dozen years, lately with startups.
I write non-fiction about my adventures as an American expat abroad, first-person travel memoirs, cross-cultural observations, the impact of technological innovation on individuals, the history of food, the crossroads of ingredients recipes and culture, and recreational sailing. If you like this stuff too, let's connect on social media or my site.
Preview Location
Preview Location
Location 1
Start - Crematorium Entrance
My name is Joe Start, expat resident around Paris for more than a dozen years. I'm the author of French License, a travel ... Read More
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Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
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Père Lachaise Chapel of the East
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Tomb of Jim Morrison
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Tombe de Frédéric Chopin
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Tombs of Molière and La Fontaine
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Héloïse and Abélard's tomb
Getting There
Getting There
Route Overview
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Start location55 Rue des Rondeaux, 75020 Paris, France
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Total distance1km
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Final locationAv. de la Chapelle, 75020 Paris, France
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Distance back to start location231.58m
Directions to Starting Point
If you just completed the first walk of the Chairfather tours, meet me at the Southwest corner of the Columbarium.
If you are arriving from outside the walls of the park, from the Gambetta Métro station, take exit 3, called ‘PÈRE LACHAISE.’ At the top of the escalator, take a left down AVENUE DU PÈRE LACHAISE. The main entrance is at 56 Rue des Rondeaux.
After passing the gate, continue straight. Looking up to the left, you will see the gold dome of the Columbarium, which is surrounded by walls. Go to the Southwest corner of the Columbarium, which is at the intersection of Avenue Transversal #2 and Avenue Aguado.
Show Directions
Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
Père Lachaise is a gigantic walled park, with really only three practical entrances and exits. There's no food nor drink inside, so BYOB especially a water bottle. Also, only two toilets, so plan accordingly ;-)
Before or after, you may want to visit the funky Belleville bistrots in the 20th arrondissement. The three closest are at Place Martin Nadaud. A bit farther from the main entrance are two places I can recommend, Leslie Road for British fare (8 Rue du Cambodge) and Shingané for Korean BBQ (63 Avenue Gambetta). Exiting the opposite side at the little door in the Northwest corner, near the Père Lachaise métro station, there are a number of good sit-down French establishments starting at the 40s block of the Boulevard de Ménilmontant and walking North.
Best time of day
Any time is good, but you'll want to start before 4pm so the visit isn't rushed.
Precautions
Comfortable flat-soled shoes are a necessity. High heels might break off on the cobblestone paths, and some of the terrain may be dirt or moist earth. While we have fun with our hosts, let's remain respectful by not stepping on graves, in-between is OK, and if you see a group of mourners, please pass by quietly.
To honor our hosts on Tour 2, you may choose to bring with you a bouquet of chrysanthemums, one stone, a ruler, a balloon, three paintbrushes, three pencils, three sheets of music, a mirror, a fork, a knife and a potato.
The companion photo book, also called The Chairfather, includes pictures of all of these sites. You may wish to pick it up to help identify our hosts among similar looking tombs.
Sound credits: voices: Joe Start, Manon Kennedy; effects: freesfx.co.uk
Music: musopen.org and freemusicarchive.org including
Gavotte - Burmester arr. performed by Thrax
Le bourgeois gentilhomme (Suite) - II. Gravement performed by Advent Chamber Orchestra
Hard XxX Ultra Yaoi Psychedelic performed by Monplaisir
Nocturne in B flat minor, Op. 9 no. 1 performed by Olga Gurevich
Sonata no. 2 in B flat minor 'Funeral march' - III. Marche Funebre, Lento performed by Andreas Xenopoulos
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