It was a hot and humid day in July.
Today, 15 years ago I stood in front of Jim Morrison’s grave in Paris and thought, ‘Wow, you’re really crammed in there aren’t you Jim?’
Not the best way to win a dead guy over, but it was a real genuine thought I had that day.
It was the highlight of my high school trip to Europe that year. The 21 days I spent time in England, Spain, Switzerland, Italy and Monte Carlo did not compare to the natural high I had when I finally saw the Lizard King’s final resting place.
Several guards watched over visitors since riots broke out at the 118 acre Pere Lachaise (Father Chair) Cemetery two years earlier.
I wore my planned INXS Devil Inside concert t-shirt – no of course there’s no visual and physical connection between the two singers! J
While carefully maneuvering around other crowded plots, I noticed Jim had no headstone. Even though the image was captured on film for Oliver Stone’s The Doors (also two years earlier), the bust no longer existed by the time I walked up to the replaced granite block. It bore colorful candle wax drippings and used cigarettes.
I bartered with a woman to take my picture; she obliged and in turn I took one of her – you can actually see me holding her camera in my photo. (I have to find it before I can download it to this site.)
There’s also some long-haired guy standing next to me with a leather vest. Very noticeable. Funny thing is I had no idea he was next to me until I saw the picture weeks later.
Jim was the main focus of my cemetery visit that day. But I can also say that I saw Frederic Chopin, Sarah Bernhardt and Oscar Wilde. And if you know me, you know j’adore Oscar Wilde.
I went with a group from Paris, Tennessee; my group decided to stay longer at the Louvre. And I’m not sure where the California group went. I just remember how much my (Nevada) group hated them and actually recruited spies from the Tennessee group to spy on them for us. Hey, it passed the time and made for some good occasional gossip.
By the time we got to London, it was just us and California; Tennessee had left for the U.S. And man did not like California.
I think we finally buried the hatchet when we parted ways back to our states.
Every year I reflect on how lucky I was to see James Douglas Morrison’s grave. Definitely one of the highlights of my life.
from wikipedia
Filed under: All About Me! | Tagged: California, cemetery, devil inside, INXS, italy, jim morrison, london, monte carlo, Nevada, oscar wilde, Paris, pere lachaise, spain, switzerland, tennessee
