Paris - Parks & neighborhoods

We arrived in Paris on April 26th and checked in to our home away from home for the next month. The apartment is small, but well equipped and nicely updated. Best of all, it’s very central.

April 27th. Our first full day in Paris and the weather was lovely. We took a walk to the market on Rue Cler and enjoyed lunch from a market vendor. Then we walked to the Eiffel Tower. We found a quiet park near the tower and sat watching dogs play.

April 28th. We had a quiet day and took a walk on an island on the Seine, Ile aux Cygnes.

April 29th. Visited the Galeries Lafayette Haussmann, the flagship location of an upmarket department store in the 9th arrondissement. The architecture of the store is art nouveau, with a remarkable dome and a panoramic view of Paris.

Close to the store is the Paris Opera which can also be seen from the roof of the Galeries.

After leaving the store, we took a walk along the Seine with a great view of l’Hotel de ville along the way.

We visited the Notre Dame restoration site and then enjoyed a late lunch at an outdoor cafe.

On April 30th, we took a rest day.

May 1st is the Labour Day holiday in France. While there were a number of demonstrations across the city, all was quiet near us. Many sites and stores were closed. We walked near the Eiffel Tower and along the Seine. Had lunch at an outdoor cafe during our walk.

On May 2nd, we got to one of my favorite Paris districts - Montmartre, a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. Montmartre is primarily known for its artistic history, and for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré-Cœur on its summit. Near the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th, during the Belle Époque, many artists lived, worked, or had studios in or around Montmartre, including Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent van Gogh.

We sat on the iconic steps with a view of the city, viewed the gorgeous stained glass within the church, walked through the square where artists still work and enjoyed a lovely lunch.

After our trip to Normandie on the 3rd (see separate chapter), we went to the Latin quarter on May 4th. We walked Rue Mouffetard, a pedestrianized street which is one of the oldest and most picturesque in Paris. There’s been a road in this location for 2,000 years and it is home to a lovely street market - which we happily explored.

We then came across Luxembourg Park with the beautiful gardens created by Marie de Medici in 1612.

During the day, we enjoyed seeing both the Parthenon and Saint Sulpice church.

May 5th. We walked along the Champs Elysees, stopped by Place de la Concorde, and enjoyed the Tuileries Gardens before visiting L’Orangerie (see museums chapter).

On May 6th, we took ourselves to the 5th arrondissement. There we walked along Rue Saint-Jacques which is the oldest street in Paris and has been trodden for more than 2,000 years. On our way to the Marie Curie museum (see museums chapter), we came across a church - Saint-Severin - with beautiful stained glass.

Before going home, we walked along the Seine past the iconic Bouquinistes (book sellers) and had ice cream on Ile Saint Louis.

After spending the previous day at the Cluny museum (see museums chapter), we took a bus ride through the city on the 8th. The bus took us to the Pere Lachaise cemetery, where many notable people are buried including Jim Morrison, Chopin, and Oscar Wilde.

After wandering through the cemetery, we stopped at a cafe for lunch and watched the national police gather due to planned protests later that afternoon.

On our way home, we stopped at the dog park near the Eiffel Tower to watch the pups play. Some people come to Paris to people watch - we come to dog watch!!

The next day was rainy so we stayed home and caught up on laundry.

On the 10th, we went to a mall shopping and then stopped by Galerie Vivienne for lunch.

Galerie Vivienne, built in 1823, is one of the most iconic covered arcades in Paris. It’s in a peaceful location, behind the Bibliothèque Richelieu and near the Palais-Royal. We admired the colourful mosaics on the ground and the beautiful glass roof which lets in the light.

On our way home, we stopped at the Tuileries gardens behind the Louvre and watched the ducks in the pond.

After our trip to Giverny on the 11th (see separate chapter), we went for a walk along a different section of the Seine. We walked by the Pont de Bir-Hakeim bridge, featured in Last Tango in Paris.

After an interesting yet exhausting day at the Louvre on the twelfth (see museums chapter), we went to the Parc Monceau the next day. It was a warm sunny day and the park was beautiful.

After leaving the park we went to rue Cler and enjoyed lattes at the market. From there, we wandered home through the dog park.

On the 14th, we visited the Saint Martin covered market in the 10th arrondissement. Peter was happy to find a German store in the market.

We then walked along the Canal Saint Martin and then enjoyed an early dinner before heading back to our apartment.

After a quiet day on the 15th, when we took a short walk and did some shopping, we took a Seine cruise the next day.

The Parisian buildings are wonderful to see from the water - as are the beautiful and interesting bridges. Looking up the river, one can see multiple bridges layered over each other on the horizon.

The most beautiful is the Pont Alexandre III.

After a complete tour, we got off the boat in the Latin quarter where we walked to Pont Neuf. Jutting out from the bridge further into the water of the Seine is a tiny public park that was created in 1884 as a tribute to Henri IV - the Square du Vert-Galant.

We had lunch at a creperie. My first crepe since being in Paris was delicious with maple syrup, pecans and whipped cream.

We returned home for a bit and then took the full boat tour again in the evening. It was a lovely relaxing day.

We spent two and a half days visiting Versailles and some museums (see museums chapter), and in the afternoon of the 19th we took a walk to the Arc de Triomphe.

We capped off the day with dinner at the creperie around the corner from our apartment. Hopefully our walk today was long enough to make up for all the calories!

Over the weekend, we continued to explore different parts of the city. On Saturday we visited the Bastille neighborhood. We took a long walk looking for a market, which proved elusive. But the street itself was wide and tree-lined. From there we took the metro and went to Rue Cler for coffee at a sidewalk cafe before walking back to the apartment.

On Sunday, our market search was more fruitful. We located the Edgar Quinet art and craft market in the Montparnasse neighborhood. There we saw some great paintings and ceramics and I bought some jewelry from one of the artisans. From there we took the metro back and picked up lunch at a market. Later we took a walk to the Eiffel Tower park.

We planned Monday the 22nd as a rest day. Took a short walk, got groceries for our remaining days and did some laundry.

On May 23rd, we followed a Rick Steves’ historic walk which began at Notre Dame cathedral. The walk took us through parts of the Latin quarter, including a deportation memorial which commemorates the deportation of Jews and political prisoners from France to the camps in the east during WWII and the Holocaust.

The walk took us to the oldest tree in Paris - planted in 1901 - and to Saint Severin church with its wonderful gargoyles.

We spent the late afternoon at Sainte Chapelle.

The Sainte-Chapelle is the finest royal chapel to be built in France and features a truly exceptional collection of stained glass windows. It was built in the mid 13th century by Louis IX, at the heart of the royal residence, the Palais de la Cité, to house the relics of the Passion of Christ. Adorned with a unique collection of fifteen glass panels, which date from the mid-13th century and a rose window (put in place in the fifteenth century) forming a veritable wall of light - magnificent to see.

About two thirds of the glass is original.

On the 24th, we returned to the Latin quarter and walked along the Seine, perusing the Bouquinistes.

We saw, as always in Paris, some amazing buildings and architecture.

In the evening, we enjoyed a lovely cruise on the Seine after sunset.

On the 25th, we spent a few hours at the Musee d’Orsey (see museums chapter) and then had drinks and a light dinner at a local restaurant.

May 26th was our last full day in Paris. We took a last walk around the neighborhood and took some photos of our favorite stores and restaurants. It has been amazing to have the time to explore the city at our own pace and to go beyond what tourists usually see.

My favorite place is easy to choose. It’s the water garden at Giverny. But to choose other favouriteis much more difficult. I loved the Parc Monceau and the gardens of the Rodin Museum. I also loved having art museums so readily available and visiting Montmartre once again. And how can one not appreciate a city with florists, bakeries, cheese shops and cafes on virtually every corner.

I shall miss it here. What I won’t miss is the masses of people. A city girl I am not. Lovely to visit, but I could never live here.