This afternoon we visited the Basilica of the Sacre Coeur in Montmarte, at the summit of the highest point in the city. The Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart) was built as a memorial to the French soldiers who were killed during the Franco-Prussian War. It took 46 years to build and was finally completed in 1923. Priests still pray for the souls of the dead here 24 hours a day. It is also one of the most photographed sites, with panoramic views of the city (above). As it was Saturday afternoon, this tourist hot spot was in full swing. We did our best to avoid the touts at the base of the church, and then climbed the stairs to the summit. Along the main stairway were a group of locals who had set up a bit of live entertainment with acoustic guitars, singing in both English and French. It reminded me of the Spanish Steps in Rome. 
After an afternoon of strolling around Montmarte we made our was to a fondue restuarant that had been recommended to us. Refuge des Fondus is a tiny, crowded space on a quiet and quaint street in Montmartre. Inside the restaurant, the walls are covered with graffitied proclamations like "Tim waz 'ere" and "I’m drunk!" It opens at 7pm and by 7.20 the place was jam packed, with people starting to queue outside - we thought this was a good sign.
Rather than pull out our crowded table, the French waiter made people walk over the table to take their seat in the booth. Next an aperitif (a glass of sweet wine rimmed with sugar) and a plate of finger foods were delivered and the waiter asked "Viande ou fromage?" to which I replied "fromage" - I went with the familiar as I couldn't understand what the other option was! (It was meat for those of you playing at home)
Then he hit us with “Blanc ou rouge?!” – I guess it’s just assumed that every diner will be having wine. He goes to the kitchen and returns with three baby bottles filled with wine, each complete with a big fat rubber nipple. I'm sure they introduced this concept just to have a laugh at the tourists drinking from baby bottles!
Our French man returned with the fondue. He lit the burner and we dug into the bubbling pot of yellow goo. The fondue was super-creamy and delicious, but after about five minutes of dipping and twirling I started feeling sick. I just can’t eat that much cheese! The people next to us, on the other hand, were obviously fine with cheese - they downed their entire pot in like four minutes!
When the waiter came to clear our table he seemed really disappointed that we hadn’t finished our cheese. Under pressure I couldn’t remember how to say “I’m finished” in French (which is so easy - Je suis fini) and instead repeated “Je ne suis pas faim. Je ne suis pas faim (I’m not hungry. I’m not hungry).” But I was still hungry, I just didn’t want any more cheese! Luckily I decided to have dessert which consisted of a lemon (citron) hollowed out, filled with sorbet and frozen solid. This could have been the best thing I had in Paris! It tasted like what I imagine sucking on a frozen lemon would be like - real fresh lemon sourness.
After dinner we made a stop back past the Eiffel Tower for a night view and the light show.
Sassi - Our French Bartender
Then our final destination for the evening.... Lisa was so in love with the chocolate mousse she had for dessert the previous night that we made a stop in on the way home to a place called Buffalo Grill near the hotel for her dessert!! It turned out to be a lot of fun, as our French waiter sat us at the bar and had a bit of fun with us... it also resulted in cocktails on the house! Lisa tried to tell the bartender "C'etait tres bon merci" (It was good thank you) but when his response was "Ooh La La".... we're not sure what he thinks she meant!! All in all a fun end to the night. And the best part was that our hotel was just around the corner.
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