Places alexismsw Wants to Go

One of the few standing Roman lighthouses and a labyrinth of tunnels are a couple of the secrets at this historic castle.

Each spring, a dreamlike carpet of bluebells overtakes the forest floor.

A memorial to the nearly 10,000 American soldiers laid to rest on the beaches of Normandy during WWII.

This church sits upon a peaceful hill and a long, turbulent history.

Sacked by Vikings, blessed by William the Conqueror, dealt a fatal blow during the French Revolution—these ruins have seen it all.

At Monet's beloved home you can still see the Japanese bridge, waterlilies, and weeping willows that were the subjects of some of his most iconic paintings.

A quaint medieval millhouse hovers surprisingly above the waters of the Seine.

The famous winding walk at Chartres is surrounded in mystery and myth.

Abandoned railway line circling the city of Paris.

A horde of stray cats rule in this secluded Parisian cemetery under a bridge.

The vast, legendary catacombs hold secrets much stranger than stacked bones.

France's most famous cemetery, with some of its most curious tombs.

A Parisian cemetery where the elite and artistic are interred beneath an eccentric collection of tombs.

A haunting collection of the vanished and disappearing natural world.

The first green space constructed on an elevated viaduct.

Remains of Roman amphitheater hidden in a sleepy quarter of Paris.

This massive library holds what was once the largest book collection in the world.

A 400-year-old church covered floor to ceiling in ex-voto offerings from the faithful.

Where the high court feasted, frolicked, and high courtesans put their royal lovers' diamonds to the test.

A lone cannonball remains lodged in the walls of the Hotel de Sens as a sober reminder of a revolution.

This former “ante-chamber to the guillotine” has been refurbished to illustrate the brutal history of French justice.

This iconic Parisian bookstore doubles as the "Tumbleweed Hotel" for traveling writers.

It’s not hard to see why the historic Peabody Conservatory of Music’s library has been described as a “cathedral of books.”

Despite violent work crews and massive delays this abandoned canal tunnel was built to last into the modern day.