Paris Day Trip: Marly-le-Roi

May 21, 2012 by Andrea 6 Comments

Marly-le-Roi is a 20 minute drive to the west of Paris, provided you don’t get lost like I did. Having a GPS which works usually helps. The very small old town has a few pretty cobblestone streets but on the Monday I visited everything was closed so there was little to do but head to the town’s main attraction; the Parc de Marly.

The park used to be home to the Chateau de Marly, used by Louis XIV when he wanted time away from formal life at the nearby Chateau de Versailles. The chateau was destroyed after the French Revolution and now only some of the foundations remain.

The water supply at Marly-le-Roi was used to provide water for the fountains at Versailles using a specially engineered machine known as the Machine de Marly. It pumped enough water each day to support the city of Paris but unfortunately it was pulled down too. The Parc de Marly still has plenty of water but it has no use except for joggers to run around.

Aside from jogging or having a picnic there isn’t much to do in the park although there are some quirky statues like this one of Daphne being chased by Apollo. Poor girl.

Original statues from the Chateau de Marly can now be found in the Louvre Museum in the Cours Marly including the famous Marly Horses.

While it is a pretty park, there are plenty of other day trips from Paris which I would recommend ahead of a visit to Marly-le-Roi.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: day trips, marly, paris, parks

Allo Allo {Deux Américains à Paris}

May 20, 2012 by Andrea 5 Comments

Allo Allo {Deux Américains à Paris} from Land of Nod Inc. on Vimeo.

Ah, Paris. Je t’aime.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: France, paris, video

European Night of Museums 2012

May 15, 2012 by Andrea 5 Comments

Each May museums in more than 40 countries around Europe open their doors to the pubic for a free night of events. This year it’s happening on the 19th May and many museums and galleries around the continent will be open until midnight or sometimes even later. You can visit the permanent collections of the museums as well as participate in special events created for the festival.

The Night of Museums was created in France 8 years ago and many of the events are held in and around Paris. The sound and light display at the Palace of Versailles is expected to be one of the most popular destinations as is the Louvre, Musée d’Orsay and the Rodin Museum. Search all the events by city or museum at the official website.

Thanks to I Heart Paris for reminding me the event is coming up.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: europe, France, museums, paris

Travel Photo: Opera Garnier

October 29, 2011 by Andrea 2 Comments

The opulent Opera Garnier in the 8th arrondissement of Paris was constructed in Beaux-Arts style in 1875. The Grand Foyer (pictured above) is where the audience sips on their champagne (what else would they be drinking?) during the intervals when at the ballet.

Filed Under: Travel Photos Tagged With: France, opera, paris, photography

Jardin du Pre Catelan

August 5, 2011 by Andrea Leave a Comment

The Pré Catelan is a small botanical garden found within the Bois de Boulogne, the woodlands to the west of Paris. It’s one of my favourite places to sit and read on the rare occasions in Paris when the sun comes out. It’s so quiet that it’s hard to believe you are only minutes from the Boulevard Peripherique, the main boulevard circling Paris.

The garden is mostly wide open space but some areas have small winding paths which you can explore. There is also the Jardin Shakespeare which has all the plants mentioned in Shakespeare’s works.

I’m not the only one who likes to sit and read in the park.

If you have kids, you can let them play on the grass (unlike in other Parisian parks), play on the swings, and/or take them to the Theatre de Verdure du Jardin Shakespeare to see one of the regular shows.

As for the garden itself, the flower displays obviously change with the seasons but in general, they aren’t anything special. You can see the tulips in spring but during the rest of the year the flower displays are quite subdued.

I don’t know what this is:

Wheelbarrow art?

If you are feeling hungry and want a full on foodie experience, you can try the Le Pré Catelan Restaurant run by Frederic Anton. You can read a very detailed review of the restaurant at Food Snob. It’s not for the budget conscious and the review is mixed but it would be quite an experience.

Lastly there is this copper beech tree which has been labelled as a ‘remarkable tree’ for both its age and the circumference of its trunk. It is believed to be more than 200 years old and is 5.60 metres in circumference.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: bois de boulogne, France, paris, parks

Square Lamartine – Paris 16th

August 5, 2011 by Andrea 2 Comments

Once you’ve had your fill of the the views of the Eiffel Tower from Trocadero you might want to escape the crowds and find somewhere quiet to relax. If your budget allows, you could sit in one of the cafes at Place du Trocadéro or sample a classically French patisserie at Patisserie Carette (WARNING: their website auto-plays hideous music). Granted, they are probably not the quietest of places to take a load off your feet. My preferred resting place near Trocadero is Square Lamartine, 10 minutes walk from Trocadero along Avenue Georges Mandel. It’s the ideal spot if you have kids, don’t mind screaming kids, or if you hate the smokers who occupy the terrace seats of cafes (I fit into the latter category). So get your patisserie to go and sit under the shady trees of the square.

This is an especially good place to stop if you have young kids as they can play on the swings and train. I love how the City of Paris is now labelling all the park playground equipment with recommended ages. I wonder if they did that after some kind of incident.

You don’t need to worry about buying water before you get here because you can get fresh water from the artesian well which has been here since 1855. I didn’t try the water but there was a queue of people filling up water bottles with it so it must be ok to drink. Artesian water is supposed to be cleaner than river water so I say go for it. As a side note, did you know artesian wells are named after the former French province of Artois (in the north of France) where many artesian wells were drilled in the 12th century by monks? No? Did you need to know that? Probably not.

View Larger Map

Filed Under: France Tagged With: France, garden, paris, square

Travel Photo: Paris

August 5, 2011 by Andrea Leave a Comment

The Statue of Liberty in Paris, France.

Filed Under: Travel Photos Tagged With: France, paris, photography, travel photo

The Most Beautiful Chateau in the World

August 4, 2011 by Andrea 5 Comments

Living in the west of Paris means the most beautiful chateau in the world is only 15 minutes from my doorstop. I didn’t include it on my list of great day trips from Paris because it’s really just a suburb of Paris. You can easily visit Versailles for lunch or afternoon tea or just to wander around the stunning chateau gardens (for free!). Of course if you want to visit inside the chateau and see where Louis XIV and his successors slept then you would probably want to allow for a full day to visit and push your way through the crowds.

Crowds are not my thing so on my most recent trip I stuck to exploring the town and relaxing in the palace gardens. I also got to test out my new 135mm camera lens which I’m very, very happy with.

The royals obviously weren’t shy about using gold. It’s everywhere!

Looking down towards the main boulevard past the weird modern art sculpture.

I think I prefer the original decorative features like this water spout.

More gold.

The formal garden as seen through my 135mm lens. I will have to remember to take a wider lens next time.

Flowers and tourists:

More modern art can be found throughout the gardens.

The chapel missed out on the gold touch.

This trip to Versailles was also the first time I got to take my new baby out for a spin. She loved Versailles!

Filed Under: France Tagged With: chateau, France, paris, versailles

Hector Guimard in Paris

August 3, 2011 by Andrea 2 Comments

Hector Guimard is well known in Paris as the designer of the beautiful Art Nouveau metro station entrances seen around the city. He was also a prolific furniture designer and architect, particularly in the lower 16th arrondissement in Paris. It just so happens this is my neighbourhood and I have walked by these buildings on many occasions, often without knowing it was his work. In recent weeks I’ve stopped by each of his buildings to get a good look at his designs, some of which are easy to spot as they have the characteristic curved lines he made famous while others are quite plain and unremarkable.

1891 – Hôtel Roszé 34 rue Boileau

It’s difficult to get a good look at Hôtel Roszé as it’s surrounded by a high fence and large trees. This was designed and built well before the Art Nouveau movement became popular in France.

1893 – Villa Jassede 41 rue Chardon Lagache

The unusual Villa Jassede was one of the first to combine stone and ceramics in the facade.

1894 – Hôtel Delfau 1 rue Molitor

I walked by this brick building many times without knowing it was Guimard’s work. It’s located just next to Metro Chardon-Lagache.

1894 – Atelier Carpeaux 39 boulevard Exelmans

1895 – Ecole du Sacré-Coeur 9 avenue de la Frillière

You can just make out the beautiful art nouveau pillars in the first photo below but not the interior decoration which includes an Art Nouveau staircase.

1898 – Castel Béranger 14 rue La Fontaine

Castel Béranger was described as ‘deranged’ by his contemporaries. It was one of the first Art Nouveau buildings to have been built outside of Belgium where the style began. The gate is a stunning example of Art Nouveau art. Each of the 36 apartments here have their own unique design.

1903 – Immeuble Jassedé 142 avenue de Versailles

There are actually two different buildings here, one facing Avenue de Versailles designed for bourgeois clients (pictured below) and the more modest building around the corner.

1907 – Hôtel Deron-Levent 8 villa de la Réunion

The Hôtel Deron-Levent is located just behind Villa Jassede on a private road. It’s described as being ‘guimaresque’.

1909 – Immeuble Trémois 11 rue Millet

This beautiful building is in a quiet street just off Rue La Fontaine.

1909 – Hôtel Mezzara 60 rue La Fontaine

Hotel Mezzara is a stunning Art Nouveau house and one of my favourites.

1912 – 17 and 19 Rue La Fontaine and 43 rue Gros

These 3 separate buildings take up the entire corner block on Rue La Fontaine.

1912 – Corner of Rue Agar et 21 Rue La Fontaine

Another Guimard designed building on Rue La Fontaine.

1913 – Hôtel Guimard 122 avenue Mozart

This was Hector Guimard’s home for some time until he moved to 18 rue Heine, a couple of streets away.

1922 – 3 square Jasmin

Hidden away on a small private square, this black and white house is unlike his other work.

1924 – Villa Flore 120 avenue Mozart

This building and those built after it aren’t in the Art Nouveau style but the Villa Flore plaque uses the typical Art Nouveau font (similar to the one on Rue Agar).

1926 – 18 rue Heine

This was Guimard’s last home in Paris before moving to the United States with his wife in 1939 to avoid the Nazi occupation. He died in New York a few years later in 1942.

1928 – 36-38 rue Greuze

Guimard’s last known work as an architect. Unlike the other buildings mentioned here, this is not in the lower 16th arrondissement of Paris but up near Trocadero.

Below is a map of Hector Guimard designed buildings in the 16th arrondissement of Paris if you wish to see them with your own eyes. I particularly recommend visiting Castel Béranger and the other Art Nouveau buildings on Rue La Fontaine. You can see even more of Hector Guimard’s Art Nouveau designs at Pere Lachaise cemetery.

View Hector Guimard in a larger map

Thanks to lartnouveau.com for the list of dates and names of the buildings.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: architecture, France, hector guimard, paris

Travel Photo: Paris

July 23, 2011 by Andrea Leave a Comment

View of the Eiffel Tower and the modern architecture in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, France.

Filed Under: Travel Photos Tagged With: France, paris, photography, travel photo

Picnic Time in Paris

July 7, 2011 by Andrea 2 Comments

Now that ‘summer’ has finally arrived in Paris (it’s 18 degrees at 12pm as I write this, hot!) it’s picnic/drinks by the Seine time in Paris. I am very anti-social and don’t usually go to these events but this week I went to two and they were actually a lot of fun!

Picnic by The Seine

If you live in Paris and are not friends with Leesa then you are missing out on all the great expat social events! Get to know her and you’ll get an invite to Picnic by The Seine or maybe even to Disney. This weeks picnic at the demi-lune near the Jardin des Plantes was a mix of old and new (to me) faces and a little dancing (not by me). Special thanks to Jean Paul for bringing so much food! All pics stolen from Facebook.

Aussie Expat Meetup

Picnic by The Seine was followed up by the Aussie Expat Meetup which was held on the Pont des Arts, at least until the fun police arrived and ushered us off the bridge. I didn’t get why we weren’t allowed to have alcohol on the bridge but it was ok to go down by the ~~very stinky~~ beautiful Seine and drink there. I also didn’t get why the 100s of other people drinking on the Pont des Arts were allowed to stay. Speaking of the Pont des Arts, am I the only one who hates the ‘love locks’ on the bridge? I am obviously not a hopeless romantic who thinks it’s sweet. I think it’s an eyesore. Thanks to my good Aussie friend Ali for organising the meetup. You can join the Aussie Expat group here to be notified of future events.

I didn’t get any photos of the champagne drinking Aussies but did get a few of the surrounds.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: champagne, meetup, paris, picnic

Grand Palais Paris

June 9, 2011 by Andrea 2 Comments

I’ve just started using Instagram which is a cute little iPhone app which enables you to quickly take a photo, add a filter to it, and share it on Twitter or Facebook or wherever. It’s great for when I go for my evening walk when I don’t bother to take my camera with me and I can just snap and share photos as I go. I’ll probably get bored of it soon but for now I’m loving it. This is a photo I snapped earlier today of the Grand Palais in Paris.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: France, instagram, paris, photography

Virtual Visit: Paris

May 30, 2011 by Andrea 3 Comments

I love playing around with Google Street View and the other day I came across this photo of a guy painting Notre Dame Cathedral from the Pont de la Tournelle which I thought was so very French (although he was probably foreign). So I thought I’d have a bit of a look around Paris via Google and put together this ‘virtual visit’ of my favourite city.

Le Musée du Louvre:

Opera Garnier (I highly recommend visiting inside this magnificent opera house):

The Arc de Triomphe from the Champs-Elysees:

Hotel de Ville in le Marais:

Basilique du Sacré Cœur in Montmartre:

The Pantheon in the 5th, near Jardin du Luxembourg:

La Tour Eiffel with Trocadero in the background:

Filed Under: Virtual Visits Tagged With: France, google street view, paris, virtual

Travel Photo: Paris

March 9, 2011 by Andrea Leave a Comment

The Louvre and Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.

Filed Under: Travel Photos Tagged With: France, paris, travel photo

5 Great Day Trips from Paris

January 11, 2011 by Andrea 8 Comments

I don’t think you can ever run out of things to do in Paris but if you feel like you need to get out of the city for a while there are many great day trips from Paris.

Monet’s Garden

Monet’s Garden is open from April to October and is an easy hours drive from Paris. I went last year at the beginning of April which was a huge mistake as very few of the bulbs were in flower. It didn’t really matter because there were cherry trees in bloom as well as some annuals and daffodils but it would have been so much more beautiful later on when the tulips, irises, wisteria, and so many other plants are in flower. You can see the flowering calendar here.

Whenever you go though, it’s still amazing to see the garden which inspired the Impressionist painter. The highlight is the Japanese water garden where you can see the famous Japanese bridge and water lilies depicted in his paintings.

Monet’s Garden is a little tricky to get to using public transport so I suggest hiring a car to get there.

Chantilly

The town of Chantilly is most well known for being the birth place of Chantilly cream. The French both invented and perfected Chantilly cream and if you’re anything like me you’ll enjoy it at every opportunity when in France. Of course I’m not suggesting you go to Chantilly to spend the day indulging in cream, the reason to take a day trip there is to visit the Chateau de Chantilly.

The chateau is just plain adorable. It’s surrounded by a moat and extensive formal and informal gardens. You can easily spend hours wandering around the woods and that’s exactly what I did.

Chantilly is easy to get to by both car and train so there’s really no reason not to go.

Chartres

Chartres is one of the most relaxing day trips you can do from Paris. There aren’t loads of thing to do so there is no need to rush around. Take your time to visit the famous cathedral and then wander around the old town. My favourite thing to do when visiting towns like Chartres is to pick a nice little cafe to sit in where I can people watch or read my Kindle and then move along to the next little cafe and rinse and repeat. There’s not much to do but enjoy a long lunch, do a little window shopping, and cafe hop. What more do you want from a pretty town one hours drive from Paris.

Fontainebleau

The Chateau de Fontainebleau is free to visit on the first Sunday of every month so that’s the perfect time to visit. Of course half of Paris has the same idea so you might want to pick a different day if you want to avoid the crowds.

The interior of the chateau is decorated in typical ornate, over the top style you see in many chateaux in France. Depending on how interesting you find that kind of thing will determine if you stroll through the many, many rooms or if you push through the crowds to find the exit, taking a few snaps along the way. I’m not saying which category I fall into.

After the visiting the chateau, it’s well worth spending some time to explore the town which has plenty of shops, cafes and restaurants.

Brussels

I sometimes forget that Brussels is only an hour from Paris on the Eurostar. Although the Belgian capital warrants more than a day visit, you can certainly see all the major sites in one day but if you feel that’s a bit rushed you can at least enjoy some of the best food (and of course chocolate) in Europe.

You may as well start your visit at the centre of it all, the Grand Place de Bruxelles. Many people describe it as the most beautiful square in the world and although I haven’t visited every square in the world, I’m going to have to agree. Beauty is in every direction and although the cafes in the square are overpriced it’s well worth the expense so you can sit back and enjoy the view and watch people go by.

When you’ve had enough of the crowds, I suggest going on a bit of a ‘chocolate crawl’ (you know, like a pub crawl but for chocolate). Visit all the popular chocolate shops like Godiva and Neuhaus as well as the higher end chocolatiers like Pierre Marcolini where you can pick up a few (or more than a few) edible souvenirs.

Not far from the Grand Place is Place de l’Albertine and Jardin du Mont des Arts which can provide you with a few good photo ops. A bit further along is another famous square, Place Royale, where you can visit one of Belgian’s top museums or you can head around the corner to see the Palais du Roi. Just opposite the Palais du Roi is the Parc de Bruxelles which is the perfect place to have a picnic or just relax until you have to get your train back to Paris.

So that’s my top 5 day trips from Paris. Where would you recommend going?

Filed Under: France Tagged With: day trips, France, paris, top 5

River Cruise on The Seine

December 27, 2010 by Andrea 10 Comments

Living in Paris means I don’t do what I’d consider to be ‘touristy’ things very often. I usually avoid places like the Eiffel Tower, Montmartre, and Notre Dame because I don’t want to get trampled in the tourist crush. But the other week Groupon had a 50% discount offer for cruises with Vedettes du Pont-Neuf. A one hour cruise for 2 people was 12 euros instead of 24. Bargain!

It was raining the day we went so I didn’t get any good photos (I took them from behind glass) but winter is definitely a good time to go because you can easily see all the buildings and monuments through the bare trees.

The cruise starts just below the oldest bridge in Paris, le Pont-Neuf.

We then headed under the pedestrian only Pont des Arts.

The Assemblee Nationale is France’s parliament building and of course you can see la Tour Eiffel in the distance.

One of my favourite museums in Paris is the Musee d’Orsay which not too long ago was a train station.

We then went past the magical Eiffel Tower without having to endure the crowds.

Then the boat turned around and we went under the beautiful Pont Alexandre III.

Next up was the Place de la Concorde with La Grande Roue which I have yet to go up.

Le Louvre is not one of my favourite museums but is definitely one of my favourite Parisian monuments. I love walking around what was once the King’s palace.

Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris was beautiful even with the rain and grey clouds.

Notre Dame from past the Pont de Sully:

Last up is another of my favourite buildings, the Conciergerie. I love the turrets. It needs a good clean though.

There were only about 10 of us on the boat that day so it was quiet and relaxing. I definitely recommend the Vedettes du Pont-Neuf if you want to take a break from the crowds and relax for an hour as you are taken along the Seine. It would also be a fantastic walk if you have the time and energy and wanted to save a few euros. I think I’ll walk it next spring and see if I can’t get some better photos.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: France, la seine, paris, river cruise

Pere Lachaise Cemetery

December 13, 2010 by Andrea 13 Comments

If you want to get away from the hustle and bustle of central Paris, take a side trip to Paris’s most famous cemetery, Pere Lachaise. Not surprisingly, it’s one of the most peaceful places in Paris and a beautiful area to wander and admire the final resting places of the city’s former residents.

I always thought it was strange to visit a cemetery just to admire the surrounds but Pere Lachaise isn’t like any other cemetery. You can visit to check out the celebrity residents like Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, or Oscar Wilde (amongst many others) or to commemorate those who lost their lives for their country. Or you can just admire the fascinating and unusual tomb art work on display.

To get to Pere Lachaise, take metro line 2 or 3 and get off at station Pere Lachaise. Before you go in, pick up one of the maps at the entrance (for a couple of euros) to help you find tombstones of interest and to reduce your chances of getting lost in this massive cemetery.

Jim Morrison is probably the most famous person to be buried at Pere Lachaise and no doubt the most visited.

Oscar Wilde is also buried here and his tombstone is one of the most unusual. Women (I assume it’s women) say goodbye to Mr Wilde with a kiss.

Much loved Frenchie, Edith Piaf has a simple gravestone:

If it’s unusual you want, check out these two memorials:

There are many memorials dedicated to those who fought in the great wars and were part of the Resistance in Paris. Other memorials are for those who were killed in Nazi concentration camps like Auschwitz and Ravensbruck:

I was lucky enough to have Karin guide me around the cemetery and she explained many of the stories behind the graves and memorials.

Abelard and Heloise – forbidden love kept these two physically apart for 20 years but they kept their love alive by correspondence. They were moved to Pere Lachaise by Josephine Bonaparte who was moved by their romantic story and wanted to see the lovers reunited for eternity.

Wall of the Federalists – The Paris Commune of 1871 – where around 200 Parisian insurgents were lined up and shot.

Designs by Hector Guimard – the architect famous for Paris’s art nouveau metro stations also designed a number of tombs in the cemetery.

There’s lots more to see, depending on what your interests are. It’s definitely worth visiting if you want to get off the beaten path in Paris.

Filed Under: France Tagged With: France, paris, pere lachaise

Belleville

November 3, 2010 by Andrea 11 Comments

I haven’t spent that much time in the 19th and 20th arrondissements of Paris, only really because I live on the opposite side of the city. I have read how it’s a rapidly changing area and is becoming more desirable than it once was ie. it’s not quite so dodgy.

I was fortunate enough to have a friend offer to show me around so I made the long journey to metro Jourdain where we wandered down to Belleville and then over to Pere Lachaise, Paris’s most famous cemetery.

It was a great relaxing walk through beautiful parks and little streets where local graffiti artists had left their mark. Definitely a place worth exploring if you want to get away from the touristy parts of the city.