Trip 53

April 25,2026

We started our outing today, a Saturday , on the left bank, going to see Eglise Saint-Germaine-des-Pres and then Eglise Saint-Sulpice.

We last visited Saint-Germaine-des-Pres in 2022. It’s such a beautiful, simple interior. There was a service going on and we determined it was a baptismal ceremony (5 actually).

Originally located outside the walls of medieval Paris, in the fields and meadows of the Left Bank, known as “les Prés”, the church was the center of an important abbey complex, famous for its scholarship and its production of illustrated manuscripts, and was the burial place of Germain, and also of Childebert and other rulers of the Merovingian Dynasty. Most of the Abbey, except for the chapel and the Bishop’s palace, was destroyed during the French Revolution. 

Hymns were sung (audio, recorded, link to cloud storage) and the ceremony conducted.

The Chapel of Saint Symphorien, located just to the right inside the entrance of the church, is one of the oldest places in the church. It was constructed in about 1020, at the same time as the bell tower. to contain the sarcophagus of Saint Germain, who died in 576. His tomb was formerly located in the earlier church on the site, which had been destroyed during the Viking invasions. It was located at the edge of the Abbey so that it would be accessible for lay persons who came on pilgrimages, while most of the Abbey was accessible only to the monks. The square chapel of Saint Symphorien with its bare simplicity, windows high up the walls, gives it a large amount of light.

Conveniently 😉, Chapon Choclatere is located just down the street from Saint-Sulpice. Their chocolate is sourced from many countries . We indulged, again (Madagascar 75 & 100%). There always a line, because it’s a very small shop.

Saint-Sulpice is such a contrast to the beautiful simplicity of Saint-Germaine-Des-Pres with its dual towers, massive fountain and , more recently, featured in Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code. The Meridian was covered up by the protective cover for the ongojng conservation.