Archive for March 24th, 2023

March 24, 2023

Up close and personal in my eternal Paris !!!

I was home on a cold Sunday getting up at 3C and now 7C and became nostalgic of my working life in my eternal Paris, Looking back ,I had mentioned about the job but felled needed to tell a bit more on the streets that were part of my life for several years, Therefore, let me tell you about the Rue du Mont Thabor, and the Rue Rouget de l’Isle located in the Place-Vendôme quartier or neighborhood 4 of the 1éme arrondissement or district of Paris (today all under Paris Centre) Hope you enjoy the tales as I.

The Rue du Mont Thabor is a bit longer going from Rue d’Alger to the Rue de Mondovi that takes you to the rue de Rivoli and the Place de la Concorde , Interesting it crosses the Rue de Castiglione (where I worked) that takes you to the Jardin des Tuileries or the Place Vendôme, However, closer to the Rue Rouget de L’isle you come more to my neighborhood with the fine Hotel du Continent ,Le Cosy restaurant ,Le Mont Thabor restaurant, and the Le Soufflé restaurant, Also, parfums Frédéric Malle. I had at one time or another visit all of them on business and/or pleasure. Sublime Paris !!

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This street was named in honor of General Bonaparte’s victory at Mont-Thabor during the Egyptian campaign on April 27, 1799 over the Turks. This street, is parallel to Rue Saint-Honoré, was partly opened in 1802 on the site of the Convent of the Assumption and the two gardens, the large and the small, of the Capuchin convent where it ends. forming a bend with rue de Mondovi.

Some of the interesting things to see here are at the corners of Rue du Mont-Thabor, Rue Cambon and Rue de Mondovi, the location of the hotel of the King’s bodyguards on foot. On the even side of rue du Mont-Thabor was a secondary entrance to the Cirque-Olympique, which was installed from 1807 to 1816 in the hippodrome (1801) on rue Saint-Honoré by the Franconi family of squires. At No 6: home and place of death of the poet Alfred de Musset. At No. 34: Arsène Lupine hides there under the alias name of Louis Valméras.And the newer Renaissance Paris Vendôme Hôtel at no 4.

The Rue Rouget-de-L’Isle is a short street between the Rue du Mont Thabor and the Rue de Rivoli, It bears the name of the soldier and composer Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, author of La Marseillaise, because of the proximity of the Salle du Manège where the sessions of the National Convention were held during the French revolution.

The street, opened under the name Rue des Feuillants in 1878, on the site of the former Ministry of Finance which burned down during the Paris Commune of 1871, and it took the present name in 1879.

The street runs along the back of the 4-star Westin Paris Vendôme hotel (ex InterContinental hotel where I worked see posts) and leads to the Jardin des Tuileries gardens. The street also hosts another 4-star hotel by the name of Hotel Mayfair Paris at No. 3. Other interesting spots here are the Maison Chamberlain (shoes) at No 5 , exchange office at No 1, and the Café l’Imperiale Rivoli which has entrance on rue de Rivoli as main, and was my lunch central when needed to get air from work.

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There you go folks, another memorable post in my blog, This was/is my eternal Paris that we enjoyed so much in with the family and many trips and even stays overnight, Paris is indeed a mouvable feast, and I am glad was a small part of it, Of course, working in Paris is a game, fully enjoyable if only the transport behaves, Again, hope you have enjoy the post on my two memorable streets above as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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March 24, 2023

The Lycée Henri IV of Paris !

Let me bring you back to my eternal Paris; where it is always a mouvable feast indeed. Enough to write a book on my blog but I like to take you to some emblematic places , off the beaten path of my Paris.  This is a new found picture and new text/links on a not typical tourist spot, the Lycée Henri IV of Paris, Hope you enjoy it as I.

One beautiful area of my eternal Paris and a great historical monument often bypass is the Lycée or High school Henri-IV  , located at 23, rue Clovis in the 5éme arrondissement of Paris, in the Latin Quarter . The story goes that after the victory of Vouillé on the Visigoths which opens the rich Aquitaine, the king of the Franks Clovis founded around 506 the Royal Monastery of the Holy Apostles, dedicated to the apostles Peter and Paul. Clovis was buried there in 511. The following year, the Basilica, continued by Queen Clotilde, acquired an additional prestige by receiving the relics of St. Genevieve. The rue Clovis and rue Clotilde  are now flanked by the Lycée Henri-IV, and rue Clotaire is adjacent to their son, King Clotaire I. The abbey protects the border door of the enclosure of Philippe Auguste wall  at 50 rue Descartes. Part of the wall is visible on the path leading from the school to  5-7 rue Clovis, and at end of 48-50, impasse Jacques-Henri-Lartigue. The square of the neighboring Place de la Contrescarpe takes its name from this military function.

On June 24, 1667, the copper coffin of Descartes is deposited there under a marble monument. rue Descartes now borders the Lycée Henri-IV. King Louis XV vowed in 1744 to build a new monumental church at the abbey. The abbot of Sainte-Geneviève blessed the land in 1758, the king laid the first stone in great ceremony on September 6, 1764. This new church designed by Jacques-Germain Soufflot will become at the French revolution, the Pantheon of Paris.(see post)  The canons are burned during the French revolution: their abbey is declared national property in 1790. The Central School of the Pantheon is replaced by the Lycée Napoléon, the first high school of the French Republic. The abbey church was razed between 1801 and 1807 to pierce rue Clovis. During the Restoration (monarchy Louis XVIII) , the school is renamed Royal College Henri IV. It is a high school of the elite, frequented by the sons of king Louis-Philippe and the high aristocracy. The high school regained its Napoleon name under the Second Empire,(Napoléon III) , and in 1870, with the proclamation of the Third Republic still changes its name, for the Lycée Corneille. But in 1873, the government of President Patrice de Mac Mahon, royalist legitimist, and the assembly of the Moral Order renamed the high school the name  the only Republican Bourbon appreciated, “the good King Henry” Lycée Henri-IV as it is today.

Today, do not confuse the middle school and high school Henri IV, they have different procedures that goes beyond this post. For me, the most significant and beautiful to see is the tower. The Tour Clovis tower is the remnant of the old bell tower of a church disappeared between the high school and Church Saint-Étienne-du-Mont (nearby see post ) In 1803, the breakthrough of rue Clovis and the construction of the facade of the school cleared the religious complex. Since then it sounds a distinct chime every quarter of an hour, and announces the hours. The base of the tower, with arched windows dates from Philippe Auguste. This same king makes the monastery of St. Genevieve the guardian of the south gate of Paris, in the current rue Descartes. Pieces of Philippe Auguste’s enclosure wall can be seen on rue Clovis (going down the metro Cardinal-Lemoine) (see post) ) and rue Jacques-Henri Lartigue (from the Bibliothèque des littératures policières or Library of Police Literatures). The name of the Place de la Contrescarpe, meeting place at noon of  high school students, shows the ditches of the wall. The warheads of the first and second floor date from the 14C. The coronation of the Flamboyant Gothic tower, rebuilt after 1483.

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paris rue clovis old wall philippe auguste feb14

And further ,part of my eternal Paris in the Quartier Latin  is the rue Clovis  a street in the 5éme arrondissement  or district of Paris located mostly in the Sorbonne quartier or neighborhood. This road that connects the Place du Pantheon and the rue du Cardinal-Lemoine is located in the Saint-Victor and Sorbonne neighborhoods or quartiers  of the 5éme arrondissement or district of Paris. The breakthrough of the road in the 19C requires the demolition of the Church Abbey Sainte-Geneviève, of which only the bell tower known as the Tour Clovis or Clovis tower  remains in the premises of the Lycée Henri -IV, located at No. 23 rue Clovis  Near the 5-7 rue du Cardinal-Lemoine, remains a remnant of the wall of Philippe Auguste which was restored in 2010.

The official Lycée Henri IV on its historyhttps://lycee-henri4.com/presentation/histoire/

The Paris tourist office on the Latin Quarters :https://en.parisinfo.com/transport/73228/Quartier-Latin

There you go folks , hope you enjoy the walks and history bits of my eternal Paris! The world comes over and nobody does it better!!! Paris , what other title do you need! Again, hope you enjoy the post as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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March 24, 2023

Again by the Gare Montparnasse of Paris !!!

Well, again looking at my vault of pictures realise that had some not yet posted in my blog! And this was/is my entry point to Paris from my Morbihan breton by train ! I have taken plenty of train rides here and always looking forward to return, eventually, There is plenty in my blog on the train station, but again always worth it bringing back the memories and the excuse of more pictures, Therefore, hope you enjoy the Gare Montparnasse of Paris !!! as I

The name itself brings out the artsy, vibrant, gaiety of the Paris we came to love and enjoy , and still do. I was lucky to worked by this area and enjoy all its splendor and many good restaurants and bars lol! I like to tell you a bit more of the train station I used so much,  From my newer train stations first in Auray and later Vannes to Montparnasse !!  And several times of the usual train delays that is so famous by now on the TGV Atlantique runs with as much of 45 minutes yikes !!! Welcome to public transports and train travel in France for the regulars that knows.

paris gare montparnasse Place Raoul Dautry, by tour montparnasse jul16

With 77 million travelers and 550 daily connections, 220,000 passengers per day , it ranks fourth among French stations. And expected to be at 90 millions by 2030, It is the northern Terminus of the TGV Atlantique (mine), and connected to the west and south-west of France as well as to Spain. It has 15 platforms and 28 tracks, it is also served by the TER Normandie, the TER Centre-Val de Loire and the N line of the Transilien, operated by the SNCF. Thus, the Gare Montparnasse is two hours from Nantes, three hours from Bordeaux and six hours from Irun, on the Spanish border. It is also about 3 hours from me at Vannes , The Gare Montparnasse is open 365 days a year, from 04h30 to 01h15, Wifi access is free and unlimited , Automatic lockers are available at Hall 1 on level 2 (wharf 24). You can leave your luggage there every day of the week from 07h to 23h.

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paris gare montparnasse main hall 1 to metro jun18

The Gare Montparnasse briefly is layout as such Hall 1 Level  -1: Main line access, connection to metro line 4, 6, 12, 13, Hall 1 Level 0 : Grand access, bus connection and noctilien (night bus), Hall 1 Level 2 : Exit rue Mouchotte, metro connection, line 13, Hall 2 Level 3 : Outdoor parking, Ile-de-France train access, TGV boarding, Hall 3 Vaugirard Waiting area, group point and access to tracks 1 to 24 (mines).

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The Gare Montparnasse is only a 15-minute walk from the Avenue de l’Observatoire and its garden of great explorers. From its imposing Quatre-Parties-du-Monde fountain, designed by Carpeaux and executed by Davioud, a remarkable view of the Luxembourg Gardens opens up. All you have to do is climb above the tracks of Gare Montparnasse. At this place, the jardin Atlantique or Atlantic garden awaits travelers.It is reached by the metal staircase, direction Pasteur car park at the level of the main lines, just before track n°1.

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Today the Gare Montparnasse is completely renovated with redesigned spaces and a refurbished shopping mall. The old blind walls have been replaced by large windows open to the city. And in the large Vasarely hall, the yellowed plastic cover has been replaced by a technique of transparent air cushions that let the sun in. To facilitate the flow of passengers, around fifteen additional escalators have been installed, as well as two panoramic elevators. Access to the metro (lines 4, 6, 12 and 13) has been thoroughly reviewed for arriving passengers, although the signage is not yet very clear. It has distribute the 102 screens indicating train departures and arrivals along the entire length of the waiting room, in order to avoid crowds. In fact, the average waiting time is 46 minutes in this station, of which 65% of the traffic is on the main lines, and only 35% on the so-called “commuter”, i.e. the suburbs. Fifteen waiting areas have been set up. The number of seats has therefore increased from 450 to 1,200. As for shops, there are now 120 when there were only 57, and restaurants 40 when there were only 13. There remains the question of toilets. Admittedly, their number has been increased but their access remains chargeable for 1 euro entry. Consolation, the entrance ticket entitles you to a reduction of 90 cents on a bottle of water charged at 1.90 euros.

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paris gare montparnasse parvis market day may16

The main Gare Montparnasse ,11 rue de l’Arrivée 15éme, It is served by the following metro lines: M4, M6, M12, M13, L’Open Tour ,Bus lines  28, 58, 88, 91, 92, 94, 95,and  96. Noctilien night bus lines: N61, N62, N63 , Possible transfer to Gares de Lyon and Austerlitz.

The official SNCF station and connections on the Gare Montparnasse : https://www.garesetconnexions.sncf/fr/gares-services/paris-montparnasse

The regional Transilien network on the gare Montparnasse: https://www.transilien.com/fr/gare/paris-montparnasse-8739100

The private practical better guide to the Gare Montparnasse: http://:https://www.garemontparnasse.paris/

The Paris tourist office on the Gare Montparnasse:  https://en.parisinfo.com/transport/73403/Gare-Montparnasse

There you go folks, my sentimental train station, so many trips, and always looking forward to return, eventually, Again, hope you enjoy this newest post on my wonderful Gare Montparnasse of Paris !!! 

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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