St. Medard it is. Blvd St Marcel is the next street over that I refer to - I am just a confused individual :)

All (and when I say "all" I mean 3) the Parisian hipsters I've met lately (and when I say "lately" I mean in the last year or so) live in the 13th. Could one of the Paris dwellers on this board clarify? It's a large arrondisement, isn't it?

Just curious.

I lived for 3 years around the corner from rue Mouffetard. It is very central and has lots of locals about. If the apartments are equal, m², floor elevator concierge etc the one in the 5th should be cheaper. My favorite area to live is the 15th but only because the commute to work is easiest.

Go for rue Mouffetard it's less touristy and has great bus routes near by.

April, i.e. Easter holidays starts the tourist season -- there will be tons of them everywhere.

moxie, the Butte aux Cailles in the 13th is one of the original alternative neighborhoods in Paris. More recently, it has become chic to move into the heart of Chinatown and feel as though you are living on the other side of the planet.

Well I certainly appreciate all the advice and thoughts - I think I have a pretty good idea. I have been to Paris before - 11 years ago! and swore I'd be back for longer, not just as a backpacker passing through at 18. Look how long it's taken me. Back then I spent, as far as I remember, a majority of my time in the Latin Quarter, but I was just so in love with the whole of Paris I don't particularly remember which parts were where exactly, and I imagine things have changed since then anyway. It does seem that the areas around the Bastille, Oberkampf/Republique and Canal St. Martin would suit me best- but since I'm only going to be there for 3 months (ah the days when that seemed an eternity) I'd like to be centrally located, because frankly I will be doing quite a bit of touristy things myself (I could probably spend a week in the Louvre, no problem.) Those "hipper" areas have also proven to be twice as difficult to find suitable apt's, are just as expensive beleive it or not, and though I agree checking into a hotel for a week and looking would be ideal, it's simply not an option for a number of reasons. Ultimately the beauty is that no matter where I live I'm hardly stuck in that neighborhood, everything is so ridiculously close and easy to get to, either by foot or metro, especially compared with Los Angeles! Thanks to all for chiming in. If only all choices in life were this "tough."

Oberkampf is still riding the edge of being trendy but the part of the 12th from Gare de Lyon to Bastille is also a good option.

freeclarence, you may have forgotten what an incredibly compact city Paris is and the fact that you can be "central" within 10-15 minutes by bus or metro from about 80% of the city. Also, the number of tourists has increased about 300% since your last visit, so it's something to think about before choosing the tourist center.

Well, in any event, will you let us know where you end up and how things are going for you in Paris?

From the Republique or Gare de l'Est metros you can be anywhere in Paris within 10-20 minutes...

All of which means that freeclearance can be out of the Latin Quarter and to the Bastille or Republique quickly. The trains run both ways.

Have a good time, freeclearance!

If you spread out a map of Paris, pick up a compass, put the point on the Cathedral of Notre Dame - arguably the "center" of Paris- and draw some arcs, you'll find that parts of the 11th arrondissement are closer to that center than parts of the 5th arrondissement.

Logic and geography aside, as many who posted on this string have suggested, your own "living history" points, in Paris, toward the glorious, vibrant, youthful east.