Paris.
The capital of love.
At least on the surface.
Underneath lies a true “realm of death”,
a scary reminder of its haunting past that
has inspired such works like the Fanthom of
the Opera or Les Miserables.
But as you will soon learn, a place as eerie
as this can attract more dungeon crawling
thrill seekers than you would think.
As we go deeper under Paris, you might want
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Welcome to the Paris catacombs.
An underground city of the dead.
Back in 1793, during the French Revolution,
Philibert Aspairt, a Val-de-Grâce Hospital
doorkeeper, went missing.
His disappearance was a complete mystery.
It took many years for this case to be finally
solved.
Apparently, Philibert accidently discovered
an old staircase in the hospital which, for
motives unknown, he descended into.
He did not know that this staircase would
lead him into a 200 miles long, pitch-black
dungeon where he got lost, never to return.
His body was found 11 years later in this dungeon.
A monument was built for him on that very
spot, reminding those who get lost there that
they risk joining the army of the dead, 
which already lay there...
But as time went on, Philibert wouldn’t
be the last one who would become lost in this
haunted place.
The history behind this place is unique.
Back in 18th century the local Parisian graveyards
got so overcrowded that decaying bodies became
a public health hazard.
An instant solution was needed in the face
of an upcoming sanitary crisis.
An unusual idea was proposed.
Paris was built upon hundreds of miles of
then-already-unused quarries, so it was decided
that this is where the bodies should be relocated.
Thus the quarries became the catacombs.
200 years have passed since the creation of
the catacombs.
Where the remains of around 6 million people now lay.
This is almost three times more than the current
population of Paris.
How does the realm of death look today?
Ironically, The Realm of death is very much alive.
The tunnels are explored and brought to life
by urban explorers, or, how they're known
locally - Les Cataphiles - the cataphiles.
Their activities there range from exploration
and urban art like graffiti and limestone
sculpting, to rave parties and fully-fledged
festivals.
All of this happens in secret because... 
it's illegal.
They go out after dark and go looking for
secret passages,
sewers and ventilation shafts,
which serve as hidden entrances into the forbidden
underground labyrinth.
Only the ghoulish part, filled with bones,
is open to tourists, which is less than 1%
of the whole underground maze.
The remaining 99% of the area is off-limits.
The underground tunnels make up to around 170 miles
Some parts of these restricted tunnels are
extremely narrow, while others – flooded
with water, or, as some explorers call it,
- with the cata-juice.
The cataphiles want more and they risk arrest
while exploring the mysterious dungeons.
You might think that this is crazy already,
but there's more.
Back in 2004 an fully functional cinema was
discovered there...
But more about this, in a moment.
Generally the cataphiles know what they're doing.
But sometimes the secret entrances are discovered
by nosy but unprepared adventurers,
which can lead to a disaster
and remind us why the
entrance here is forbidden.
Back in 2017 two boys broke into the pitch-black
tunnels and... got lost.
After having spent three days underground,
they were rescued.
Their rescue was conducted by a special French
Police Unit which was formed exactly for these
kinds of situations.
They are known as the Les Cataflics, - 
the „cave cops“.
A police force with a unique mission – to
patrol the underground tunnels.
They look for the illegal trespassers and
seal the secret passages that the cataphiles
use to get in.
Cataflics seek to protect the historical heritage
from sometimes destructive activities that
happen there and ensure that these quarries
survive for generations to come.
The whole thing turns out to be like a huge
hide and seek game between the cataphiles
and the cataflics.
There is no time to be bored – cataflics
arrest up to 100 cataphiles weekly.
Yet sometimes even the cataflics get outplayed.
Back in 2004, when they uncovered the cinema
theatre underground, they were baffled.
This discovery consisted of a 500 square-meter
cavern, equipped with a screen and projector,
a lounge area and a bar.
It had electricity and phone lines installed.
They were not prepared for a discovery like
this and needed to recuperate before coming
back a few days later.
But once they came back, the cinema was gone
without a trace.
The only thing they found was a note, which
said „Ne chercez pas“ -
„don't come looking“.
The people responsible for this were a rather
special kind of cataphiles.
They call themselves the UX or 
Urban eXperiment group,
they are a part of secret society of artists.
Opaque art performances, ominous gatherings
and underground installations is what they're
after and the only way to get invited to what
they organize is to... be one of them.
The Catacombs are a part of the city but they
just happen to be underneath it.
Cataphiles believe that spaces like this belong
to the public just like any other street does
and that's what motivates them to descend
into the tunnels again and again.
Maybe one day their activities will be considered
as cultural heritage as well?
A man close to the group responsible for building
the underground cinema, once commented:
„you guys have no idea what's down there“.
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