Far from the Madding Crowd
If you have been to Paris, you know what Cathedrale Notre Dame is like. Its magnificence makes it a magnet for tourists. Endless queues snake towards its doors as people wait to go inside and up the tower. Like all great world tourist attractions, it is a place to steadfastly avoid.
Only five minutes’ walk from the maelstrom of humanity, across Pont de l’Archevêché and down on the riverbank of Port de la Tournelle, all is serene. The view of Notre Dame is sublime, the river Seine quietly flows, minding its own business.
So few people walk by that I have to wait patiently to compose my source photo for the drawing I want to do. Finally a few pedestrians come into view and I have my composition.
I give a prayer of thanks.