Surfergirl

Ok, everyone is giving up great ideas, and one place I have never heard anyone mention on any thread, and in fact, in the 20+ times I've been to Paris, I've never been (truth to tell, because I only recently heard of this) fulfills both your objectives -- La Ruche

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Ruche

The Beehive.

Fascinating history. Whether it turns out to be a bust or fabulous just based on the great people who stayed there, I will report, since this is "something new" on my summer hit list for Paris.

kelsey22

I love all the suggestions. I am making note of all of them.

kelsey22

Another question - I would like to do the L'Orangerie and then go to Giverny. Has anyone taken this day trip - is it an easy enough trip to do on one's own or should I book a tour? If booking a tour, which one would you suggest?

annhig

kelsey - it's not an obvious day trip, certainly.

is there any reason why you would have to do them on the same day? I would prioritise getting to Giverny on whatever day you have allotted, then fit the Orangerie into the rest of your trip as and when.

annhig

oops - i realise that I may have misunderstood you kelsey. did you mean that you wanted to do both the orangerie AND Giverny on the same day? [which is what I thought and responded to].

giverny is a popular day trip and reasonably easy to do; what I meant was that to do them both on the same day would be unusual and unnecessary.

zeppole

kelsey,

I hope you don't take my question amiss but:

If you are an art and literature lover, don't you already have a too long list of artworks, buildings and places from novels or movies set in Paris you've been wanting to see ever since you first came across them?

If not, and if you love art and literature, why don't you head to the library and dive into Balzac, Hugo, Hemingway, Henry Miller, Gertrude Stein, check out a few books on Monet and Van Gogh or Picasso, go to IMDb (the international movie data base) and look up movies shot in Paris). Read up on Abbot Suger, Bernard Palissey, Antonio Canova, Rodin.

Then you can meet Paris on a more personal level and see it through the eyes of artists who have come to mean something to you, see what they saw.

kelsey22

zeppole - no offense taken. I have an extensive background in literature. I have a list. I come to these forums to glean a bit more information to add to my travels. I have met some people who have the same interests and I have been able to find some great links and information. Thank you for your addition.

easytraveler

kelsey: I think I know what you want to do, because my friend who lives in Paris once took me on a walking tour of places that the "great names" had lived at, drank at, etc. at one time or another.

Unfortunately, there are just too many "great names". I'd suggest you focus on either French "great names" or foreign - English, American, German - great names. Make a list and see if you can group some of the addresses together.

For example, you could start with the Pantheon and move around the 5th and 6th from there:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panth%C3%A9on,_Paris

Or you could start in Montmartre where many artists, writers, and other "great names" took up residence. There's also a very famous bar (on a slightly off-the-center street) where the painters used to gather (the name escapes me for the moment).

The above two focus on French names.

Or you could start out looking at "The Beat Generation" of Americans who found their home in Paris.

Or, start with a more international site like Les Deux Magots:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Deux_Magots

This could be a very long list and go on forever! But you get the idea - think of what interests you most and go from there. You will not be able to see it all in one trip. Don't be surprised if the residence of XYZ turns out to be a nondescript door - if something dates back to the 15th/16th century, it's a wonder it's still standing! The French are also very helpful, as you'll find many placards marking historical locations.

Have a great time in Paris, as I know you will!

kelsey22

Keep the ideas coming - I know I appreciate all the suggestions - and if I don't use one or two, I am sure someone else might benefit (and appreciate) them.

StCirq

You might want to do a daytrip to the château at Chantilly, which has an interesting gallery of small portraits. You can easily combine it with a trip to Senlis, which is a gorgeous little medieval town with a good art and archaeology museum (http://www.senlis-tourisme.fr/pdf/gr...see-senlis.pdf). It has some of Séraphine de Senlis's paintings in it (if you don't know her - google; very interesting) You didn't say when you were going to Paris, but do note that the art museum is closed until sometime in June of this year. And be sure to check opening times (I still have a photo of me standing outside the gates of Chantilly 30 years ago, with a huge FERMÉ sign behind me).

easytraveler

Ah, I found it! Isn't the internet wonderful?!

The Montmartre cabaret is called "Au Lapin Agile":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lapin_Agile

Here's an interesting walking guide to Montmartre which I found during the course of looking for the name of that cabaret. It has some excellent suggestions for "great names":

http://www.aparisguide.com/montmartre/index.html

StCirq

I love Au Lapin Agile, but it's quite different from a bar. It is, I believe, the oldest cabaret in Paris, and the deal is the same, night after night: You go into a dark, candlelit,cavernous, stone-walled room and order cherry brandy and get a song sheet. Locals wander in, someone plays the piano (and sometimes other instruments), and you sing...mostly old French drinking songs, like "Chevaliers de la Table Ronde." It's fun if you know old French drinking songs and speak French. If not, it's an interesting event, but maybe not quite so appealing.

Apres_Londee

I recommend the Blue Guide Paris. It has fairly detailed historical information on artists, the art museums, and the collections, and there are good maps of the inside of the larger museums.

A good example is the section on the Louvre- the maps are excellent and clearly labeled, and the different areas of the Louvre are broken down (French School, Northern School, Greek Antiquities, etc.) and every room and gallery within each area is discussed in some detail.

The maps of the city are really good too (Blue Guide maps are the best I've ever seen any guidebook) and there are walking tours of places many tourists don't always think off, like la Butte aux Cailles, Canal St Martin, and Belleville.

easytraveler

Great suggestion, Apres_Londee!

I love the Blue Guides, they are so detailed and so accurate.

StCirq: That's it! I was thinking of it more for its historical interest than for its - ah- drinking environment.

There is also a restaurant/cafe in the Place du Tertre, Montmartre, which lays claim to being the first "bistro". There's a plaque high up in front of the establishment telling the story of how the Russian soldiers, who occupied Montmartre in 1814/5 because it's the highest hill in Paris, kept shouting "bystro! bystro! (quickly! quickly!)" which is the origin of the French "bistro". It had a red awning in front...