Gargling Gargoyles of Notre Dame de Paris

notre dame vintage postcard

My legs are still sore from scaling the 387 steep stone spiral steps (love those s words) that lead up to Notre Dame de Paris' bell tower! I got to stick my tongue out at the city below along with the gargoyles and chimeras:) My jaw dropped when Francois (who was born and raised in the city of lights) told me that he had never been to the top! I dragged his French derrière to this 'touristy' spot and he ended up LOVING it! Duhhhh.... Parisians are officialy bonkers!



Here is a Notre Dame coloring page for your kids or grandkids:) Johnny loved it and I've printed it out 6 times already!


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40 cool cats commented:

Chris Overstreet said...

That's not a gargoyle. It's a gar-boy. You can tell by the horn.

Terry said...

Hi Marie
Oh my what a wonderful thing to do.
I love the postcard it is fabulous.
I am so proud that you dragged the family along :)
Thanks for posting the coloring page .
Now go rest you deserve it after climbing all those steps.
Hugs

Catherine said...

François is right, I'm also born here, live here since always, and I've never been to the top ! Too much time to wait. On the other hand, I scaled the steps to the top of the Cathedrale of Chartres. As a tourist.....: )

(I get some personal problems that let me less time to blog. I hope all this will change soon. And that I'll find enough energy to find back my previous rythm. Thanks dear Marie to ask.)

Pat said...

Well, I lived in Paris for years before I went up the Eiffel Tower. But I did ND right away; love Gothic stuff...including gargoyles.

Floss said...

That gargoyle is so iconic. He even had a good side-kick role in the Disney movie!

RA said...

387 steep stone spiral steps! Wow, what a workout. Thank you for the coloring page. My kids will absolutely love it.

Unseen India Tours said...

OMG !! This One Is Beautiful !! Asusual A Great Post..I Am Now Follower As I Dnt Want To Miss Any New Post..:)

Mia said...

I have lived in London for about a year now, and I haven’t been to on any of the main tourist thing yet. I have however been to see the little mermaid lots of times in Copenhagen, but that is free, not very big, and it is a great place to sit and have an ice cream :)

Cezar and Léia said...

Hello sweetie Marie!
I'm very grateful that you did it for us!No doubt it has a magnificent view from the top! Your picture is stunning and I loved it perfect b&w choice!I visited Paris once but I did not go to the top, I can not remember if it was allowed in those days.Anyway, I intend to come back.Absolutely,this spot so pleasant is in my list now!
Hugs
Léia ( and little Luna )

Vodka Mom said...

i wish I were there climbing those steps with you!!

Maggi said...

How cool! I didn't even know you could climb that tower!

Polly Forns said...

steep stone spiral steps, steep stone spiral steps....oops, can't say that three times real fast! lol..... That's too funny.
Gargoyles are SCARY! And after my little trip climbing all those castle steps in Germany, I don't think I COULD climb all those steep stone spiral steps......Hugs!

kRiZcPEc said...

take a good rest. :)

Daryl said...

LOL ... I do believe that's a malegoyle

This Vintage Life... said...

Hi Marie,
Thanks for stopping by and leaving such kind comments.
Well done on that feat by the way...I'm pretty sure I'd have given up!
Deb x

Veronica Lee said...

I wish I was up there at the bell tower but I don't wanna climb the spiral steps!!

Betsy Brock said...

I've always been fascinated with gargoyles! Funny how you just don't do the things in your own backyard! Good for you to get him up there to enjoy!

Anonymous said...

I can tell why a kid would love this coloring page.

Anonymous said...

Totally worth it - what a symbol. I didn't climb the stairs and I wonder why? It was 1998 I think they had the reconstruction of the facade at that time. Is it possible. I was so exited to see Notre Dame with my own eyes - one of the places that made my imagination fly as a teenager.
Thank you for teaching me a new word - razzmatazz! It is like ruzzle-duzzle, right?

Lowell said...

I didn't go up. But Lois Anne did - with a sprained ankle!!! You should have seen it when she got back down!

She got some nice photos...I'm going to post a gargoyle (Photoshopped to look vintage) on my Paree blog)...

Great postcard!

Have a wonderful day!

Pietro Brosio said...

Really an enjoyable post, Marie. Nice you've put the coloring page.
I remember a very charming Easter Mass (during a trip to Paris, many years ago) at Notre Dame, with a fantastic powerful organ music: unforgettable!

Martha@A Sense of Humor is Essential said...

I love the Notre Dame in Paris. I lit a candle there for my brother.
Thank you for your visit to my blog today, I appreciate it.

tapirgal said...

I'm glad you like Astoria's pink house! It's always fun to visit your site. Love the gargoyles :)

Anonymous said...

I LOVE LOVE LOVE GARGOYLES!
IF I COULD I WOULD HAVE THEM ON MY FRONT STEPS BUT THEY WOULD GET STOLEN IM AFRAID.

Starman said...

I've never been to the top either, but I have a legitimate excuse. However, I expect my health to take a sharp turn towards improvement by the time we go to Europe in September, so maybe this time will be the charm (if there aren't too many tourists).

I had a good laugh at Mr. Overstreet's comment.

Heather at My Coupon Coop said...

How sweet!

As an aside, I can't believe you walked up all of those steps. Ouch!

Jientje said...

You're brave!! 387 steps spiral staircase? Ewww!
But judging from the picture of the gargoile on the postcard, it was worth it!

Miss Rosa said...

I love gargoyles!

Joanna said...

Sounds like you had a fun day. Isn't it weird the way we never do the "touristy" things at home. We live in Victoria and have never been to the world-famous Butchart Gardens.

Janie said...

Quite and interesting gargoyle. Good for you, getting the Frenchman out to see his own tourist attractions!

Postcardy said...

That's the cutest gargoyle I've ever seen.

Mescrap said...

Gorgeous !!!
I never thought to have this great Gothic gargoyles on top of Notre Dame.

James said...

Yep, it's really hard but the view from the top is a nice reward.

Ann said...

marie..love this postcard..my grandkids will love the coloring pages!! thanks!! may I use this postcard in altered art?

irenet said...

Hi Marie, I'm captivated by your gargoyles post. It's also great to discover a vintage postcard blog!

Tammie Lee said...

Fun that you took a local to the top!
Thanks for the coloring page I will send it to my niece and nephew in Italy.

Danielle said...

Reminds me of disneys hunckback. Gargoyles are cool but creepy at the same time. Neat pic though! Thanks for your visit.

JamaGenie said...

Congratulations, Marie! You are much braver than I. More than a dozen steps in a spiral make me dizzy, so there's no way I'd ever climb to the top of ND! Great postcard!

Debby said...

Oh, I love this one! congrats on the big climb!!!!!!!
Debby

Music said...

That's an achievement! Hubby & I did that some years ago. Climbing up wasn't a problem, going down caused my knees to buckle, they were sore for the next week, and I was only in my 20s!