Paris, the city of lights, has a dark and dirty history. It has risen up the ranks from trashy to international treasure in the past few centuries, which is all part of its appeal, for me anyways. And I will be seeing it with my own eyes in just a matter of weeks!
During an episode of "Trashopolis" on History Television, I learned that Paris has a seedy past.
In an attempt to discourage criminals, the king of the day had built the city's gallows at the centre of Paris in its cemetery. The smell of the rotting corpses left to hang on their noose was meant to be a warning to any wrongdoers. No wonder Parisians invented perfume!
Soon the cemetery became too full and the secretions from the graves and unburied bodies (criminals did not receive a Christian burial) made their way into Paris' main fresh water source - a fountain in the centre of the city. It is suspected that millions may have died from the contaminated water, forcing city officials to move the cemetery; but where?
The solution was to send thousands of skeletons and scattered bones into catacombs below the city. They also built hundreds of miles of new sewers to help rid the city of its collection of "mud" (it was actually raw sewage).
The final step to transform Paris was the installation of lanterns, lighting the streets for the safety of its residents. It is still known as the "city of lights" to this day.
Today, Paris is a model city for its refuse solutions. Forced composting and recycling is accomplished by dividing garbage into different coloured bins. They even have a "poop patrol" for the many apartment and condo dwellers with pets (over half of residents have them). Leaving your dog doo on the street can get you a hefty fine from one of the many specialized officers on patrol.
Paris cleaned up its act to become the biggest tourist attraction in the world. There are 5.6 million annual visitors to the Eiffel Tower and 12 million visitors come every year to the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay and Versailles alone!
What is it about the appeal of knowing ones sordid past? I found that I was even more excited to see Paris after I learned about its buried secrets and the dingy details of bygone days.
Dirty or not, I'm ready for the trip of a lifetime! Talk to you again in two weeks.
