I have made several trips to this town mostly on business but eventually got around to be with the family for a bit, However, found these older pictures mix in with another post and decided to give a post of their own for the memories of always on Neuilly sur Seine, This is nice chic Neuilly-sur-Seine in the Hauts de Seine dept 92 of the Île de France region of my belle France , This was one of my typical runs to/from Paris almost every month, I like to tell you a bit more on I was by Neuilly sur Seine !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
On this particular trip was a business one, not mentioned many but did a lot over the years, I went back to my dear Paris again, and this time to my ultra chic quartier des sablons in Neuilly-sur-Seine. I was to attend a convention of my company and they chose the nice Théâtre des Sablons to hold it, So I went inside finally after passing by several times, This theater is located at 70 avenue du Roule. Inaugurated in 2013, the Théâtre des Sablons is at the heart of the city’s cultural action. A multidisciplinary place, it has been hosting shows, conferences and exhibitions dedicated to all audiences for over 10 years. A multidisciplinary program is offered and thought for all audiences: theater, dance, opera, music, circus, conferences. A bit of history tell us that on May 16, 1864, the Sainte-Anne retirement home opened its doors. Held by the Sisters of Charity of Nevers, the establishment aims to welcome elderly women who do not have the means to live alone. The establishment closes in 1981 and was bought in the mid-1990s by the city of Neuilly-sur-Seine.
In the exteriors you can see the Sainte Anne chapel. It is inspired by models of the French and Italian Renaissance. The main facade indeed recalls that created by Pierre Lescot in the Louvre in the 16C, by its general arrangement and the use of rounded pediments. On the other hand, the ornaments, in particular the large falls of plants, evoke more the architecture of the second half of the 19. The facade of the chapel is decorated with a relief which represents the education of the Virgin by Saint Anne. The presence of the book and the Rouet evoke education and the domestic values transmitted to the Virgin by Saint Anne. The interior of the chapel presents a coherent decorative set characterized by its ornamental richness and its polychromy. The decoration mixes elements of Byzantine inspiration , very colorful pilasters and very stripped Doric style columns. Finally, a painting inspired by the Italian Renaissance overlooks the location of the altar. The frieze that overcomes the windows includes several Marian symbols ; notably the “M” of Mary and the Lys Fleur, symbol of purity, as well as the figures of Saint Joseph (SJ), Sainte Anne (SA) and the abbot Deguerry (GD). The stained glass windows were made in 1863, in the workshop of Antoine Lusson, a very famous artist in the second half of the 19C. Those located on the wall on the left of the altar represent in the Jesus center presenting his sacred heart, on the left holy Anne, on the right the Virgin. The fresco painted on the vault is the virgin holding Jesus on her knees, surrounded by Saint Anne, Saint Joseph and Saint Joachim, husband of Saint Anne. The above description taken from the offical theater site below translated by yours truly,
The official théâtre des Sablons : https://www.theatredessablons.com/le-lieu
Other than the above theater, some things to see I like ,and some shown in my other post on the City ,are : The parish Church Saint-Jacques, located at 167 boulevard Bineau, was built in 1936. The parish Church Saint-Pierre, located at 90 Avenue du Roule (Avenue Achille-Peretti), was built between 1883 and 1914. It includes a Grand-Orgue Mutin-Cavaillé-Coll from 1898. The castle of Neuilly, currently a convent of the sisters of Saint-Thomas-de-Villeneuve, located at 52 boulevard d’Argenson. Of the castle destroyed in 1848, remains today only the north wing, known as the pavillon of Madame-Adélaïde ( younger sister of Louis-Philippe d’Orléans,king of the French) . This wing was acquired in 1907 by the sisters of Saint Thomas de Villeneuve, and a chapel and a building attached to the municipal hospital relying on the ruins of the castle. Park of the Folie Saint-James, this park, located at 34 avenue de Madrid, and the Park of the Convent Saint-Thomas de Villeneuve, this park, located at 52 boulevard d’Argenson.
For the memories of always this was my routine for the trip to the theater of Sablons as above. I went by TGV train from Auray to Montparnasse, and then took metro line 13 to my hotel, at Grand Hôtel du Calvados, (no pic too late!) next to the Saint Lazare train station at 20 Rue d’Amsterdam, 9éme. The official Grand Hôtel du Calvados : https://www.hotelducalvados.fr/en/
However, before reaching the hotel ,I stop for dinner at Restaurant Le Carré (now the Le Maresquier same owners) at 12 pl Saint Augustin; wonderful modern ambiance and inventive fusion food, tops, chic, class, well done. The area seems lively, good ambiance, more crowded by 21h !!( wobbling hands sorry for the pic! ) The official Le Maresquier (old Le Carré )restaurant : https://www.lemaresquier-paris.com/en/
Next day ,off I went to the theater of Sablons or Théatre des Sablons,taking bus 43 right at the Pasquier-Anjou stop across from the Chapelle Expiatoire monument to Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette many missed. The bus dropped me off at Chartres just next to the theater. Then, in the evening, I took bus 82 right at Chartres stop too, and it goes all the way to Gare de Montparnasse in rue des departs, wonderful right to some of the best spots in Paris such Tour Eiffel! At Gare Montparnasse had my late night snack at the Ekki Porte Océane (the old brasserie porte Océane closed missed it !), and took my TGV back to Auray. The parking there is free, so very nice indeed. It is ,also,, the closest to my house now about 20 minute car ride. Reaching home by almost midnight and ready to work next day lol !! on a very light day…..
Let me tell you a bit on the town of Neuilly-sur-Seine ! The town is bounded on the east and south by Paris (from east to south: Porte de Villiers, Porte des Ternes, Porte Maillot, Bois de Boulogne), to the west by the Seine river ( La Defense, on the towns of Courbevoie and Puteaux) and north by the town of Levallois-Perret by rue de Villiers. It includes a large part of the island of La Jatte (with the exception of its northern point attached to Levallois-Perret), and the northeastern end of the island of Puteaux, whose part in NSS is also known under the name of Ïle du Pont ( bridge Island). The national road N13 in Neuilly SS takes the name Avenue Charles-de-Gaulle, formerly Avenue de Neuilly. It is an extension, to La Defense and the west of the Paris area, of the Avenue des Champs-Elysées and the Avenue de la Grande-Armée in Paris.
A bit of history I like tell us that a crossing point or ford will later turn into a port and this port is a gap of Clichy, built on the wharf of the abbey of Saint Denis. The name will then turn into the port of Luny, port of Nully (1346) then Neuilly. Until 1700, the strategic importance of the bridge established on this place on the Seine river is such that it was call the Pont-Neuilly. A wooden bridge is built following the fall of the ferry carriage of Henry IV and Marie de Medici in June 1606. In 1772, under Louis XV, a stone bridge 219 meters long was built, the bridge is this time in the historical axis and no longer in the extension of the current rue du Pont. In 1942, a metal bridge replaces it as the current Pont de Neuilly bridge. In 1992, the bridge was widened to allow the surface crossing of the extension of line 1 of the metro to La Défense.
King François I, on his return from prison in Spain in 1529, built the castle of Boulogne, on the edge of the forest of Rouvray ( Bois de Boulogne is the part that remains today) which, under Louis XIII, took the name of Château de Madrid . It is demolished in 1793, during the French revolution. It was located approximately around 31 Boulevard Commandant-Charcot. No vestige remains. Only a few traffic routes keep the name, such as the driveway, the villa or the avenue de Madrid. In 1777, Claude Baudard de Vaudésir of Saint Gemmes General Treasurer of the Navy of Louis XV, who will be dismissed for embezzlement, had built and develop a domain planted with trees and shrubs sought after, la Folie Saint-James (madness Saint-James) . In July 6, 1815 Wellington comes to Neuilly where he establishes his headquarters at the Folie Saint-James and leaves on the 8th, to come to Paris
It is in 1786 in Neuilly, under Louis XVI, that the apothecary Antoine Parmentier will try the first cultures of the potato in the plain of Sablons. At the French revolution, Port Neuilly becomes a town , February 7, 1790, The castle of Neuilly built from 1751 and modified by Joachim Murat who bought it in 1802, is the favorite residence of King Louis-Philippe I ,and his family from 1830 to 1848. The castle of Neuilly was burned during the revolution of 1848 (February revolution and the 3rd since the monarchy was put down in 1789) . Only one wing remains, located at 52 boulevard d’Argenson, occupied today by the Congregation of the Sisters St. Thomas of Villeneuve.
In 1859, the district of Ternes is detached from the town to be included in the new Paris of Haussmann. Before that date, Neuilly, with its hamlet of Ternes, extended to the Place de l’Etoile, bounded on the east by the current Avenue Kléber and Avenue Wagram . In 1866, the vicinity of the Porte de Champerret gate will also be detached to form part of the new town of Levallois-Perret (see post) . An extension of the Treaty of Versailles, the Treaty of Neuilly between the Allies and Bulgaria is signed, November 27, 1919, in the hall of the city/town hall. In 1929, the town of Neuilly-sur-Seine gives the city of Paris its share of the Bois de Boulogne and a hexametric band along the 17éme arrondissement.
The City of Neuilly sur Seine on its heritage : https://www.neuillysurseine.fr/tunnel/decouvrir-neuilly
The Hauts de Seine dept 92 tourist office on Neuilly sur Seine : https://destination.hauts-de-seine.fr/promenade-urbaine-neuilly-sur-seine.html
There you go folks, an oasis of tranquility and class just bordering Paris, the off the beaten path, Neuilly sur Seine. Worth the detour me thinks , and wonderful stores or go into the bois de Boulogne by the boulevard des Sablonsinto the Jardin d’Acclimatation! (see post), Again, hope you enjoy this post on I was by Neuilly sur Seine !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 