But there is one thing, I realized this evening while sitting in my apartment and listening to the church choir, that I absolutely need to do. I can see the tower of Saint-Genès des Carmes through my skylight. Though the original 12th-century church fell victim to the Revolution, the people of Clermont rebuilt it shortly afterward using the dismantled façade of a medieval structure nearby, so it retains the eerie, fairy-tale quality of the pre-Arthurian era. I see the church every morning when I get up to open the shutters, and every night before bed. Its bells serenade my weekends. Now, the French are not a religious people; they banned it during the Revolution, and seem to have lost it completely after the world wars. But even they can't deny the beauty that the Catholic church contributes to everyday life in this country. It's not everywhere that you can wake up to the same orchestra of bells that people heard a thousand years ago.
And yet, I've never visited. It would be a shame to live a year in the shadow of this church-- which is as close as I have to a roommate-- without ever meeting it personally. Michelin, take it or leave it. But this I have to do.
