I have the Rick Steves book (borrowed) but I am not a big fan of following the hoards of tourists around recently unauthentic streets so I was wondering if anyone had taken or seen an exceptional walking tour of the Latin Quarter.
My day in the LQ will be like this...
-LQ Walking Tour
-Lunch at Le Pre Verre
-Luxembourg Gardens
-Walk Rue de Rennes
-Montparnasse
We are staying on Isle de la Cite and would like to start near there if possible. Can anyone help? Thanks so much in advance for your time.
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oh and I don%26#39;t mean organized tour but like Rick Steves has recommended walking path...something I can chart on a map and follow. Anyone have ideas?
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brlattim
I don%26#39;t know if this is what you have in mind?
francetoday.com/articles/2009/01/22/walking-…
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You can try Frommers 24 great walking tours of Paris, #19%26amp;20 cover parts of the latin quarter. #24 covers Montparnasse. It gives you starting points (which is usually the nearest metro station) distance start to finish, how much time to allow and what to see along the way, with 3 restaurant recommendations.
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Basically just looking for take this street to this street. The research I can find myself (great posts so far and thank you very much).
I can probably not overanalyze and just walk around I guess I just didnt want to waste time, back track or get lost.
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Don%26#39;t miss the Cluny museum, it%26#39;s right on the way. The Unicorn tapestries are breathtaking.
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Places not to miss on several walks of LQ:
Place St. Michel...down rue de la Huchette,
St.Julien-le-Pauvre oldest church in Paris, on the right is the Sq. Rene-Viviani,
If you go left at coner of rue St.Julien-le-Pauvre is Shakespeare and Company,
Also there is Musee des Collections Historiques de la Perfecture de Police, Musee de Cluny, the courtyard and galleries of La Sorbonne are open to the public.
Exit the Sorbonne and walk to Pantheon, on the right is St.Etienne-du-Mont (spiral staircase,16-17c rood and stain glass windows,relics of Saint Genevieve).
One can walk to Arenes de Lutece and into Jardin des Plantes (Zoo, botanical garden, rose garden, several Natural Musee.
Near is also the Institute of the Arab World (nice musee and great place to have lunch).
Mosquee de Paris nice stop for lunch or pastries and Turkish coffee.
Leaving the mosque walk up to Mouffetard Market for displays of fruits, cheeses, meats, pastries, lunch etc.
Then onto Luxembourg Gardens where one can spend several hours exploring and relaxing....
Of course there is so much more of upper 5e to see...such as : Gobelin Tapestry Factory, Val de Grace Quarter, and many wonderful Churches such as St.Jacques du Haut Pas.
I never tire of exploring the Latin Quarter and I hope you also enjoy the suggestions.
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wow thank you so much for taking the time to post that. Greatly appreciated. i am printing these off.
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did get this recommendation too...so two latin quarter walks for anyone that is reading this and interested...i have no idea which is better so I wont even comment
You should take yourself to the St-Michel metro station. Arriving there, as you emerge onto the Place St-Michel and look to your south, you will see what is to my mind a spectacularly ugly 19th century fountain of immense proportions. When you see it you will understand why, some years ago, some comedian climbed to the top of the figure at its center and spray-painted the word %26quot;Conan%26quot; above its head. (It is in fact St. Michael in the act of slaying the dragon. And you though it was St. George that did that. I guess dragon-slaying was quite the thing back then. That%26#39;s why there aren%26#39;t many of them around now...)
To your left, along the rue de la Huchette, one of the oldest streets in Paris, and once home to a disregarded army officer by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte, is the ancient church of St-Julien-le-Pauvre, which sits next to a lovely little park. It was here that the University of Paris was founded in the 12th century when 3,000 students followed theologian Pierre Abelard across the river from Notre Dame cathedral, he having fallen afoul of the church authorities. Since the common language of faculty and students was Latin, the area became known as the Latin Quarter.
To your south, along the rus St-Jacques, the beginning of the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago da Compostella (St. Jacques = Santiago = St. James), is the St. Severin church, begun in the 13th century but much changed over the centuries, not least by the cousin of Louis XIV. There is some lovely stained glass in the church. In the courtyard (once a burial ground) the world%26#39;s first successful gall stone operation was performed in 1474 at the behest of Louis XI. The fortunate (?) subject was a condemned man who survived the operation and was granted his freedom.
Further south is the Sorbonne, once the center of the University of Paris, now simply Paris University IV. Within the quadrangle is a chapel (almost always closed, it seems) where cardinal Richelieu is buried.
Just to the north-west of the Sorbonne is the Hotel de Cluny, one of the oldest non-ecclesiastical buildings in Paris, built in the 15th century and now housing the National Museum of the Middle Ages, including the magnificent 15th century Unicorn tapestries. The Hotel was built atop the ancient Roman baths. (The remains of the arena lie further to the east.) You can see some of the excavated baths inside the museum precincts and outside on the west (blvd St-Michel) side. Behind the museum is a delightful %26quot;medieval%26quot; garden.
That%26#39;s pretty much the Latin Quarter except for just wandering and exploring the streets and alleys of the area. Further south, atop the Montagne Ste-Genevieve, are the Pantheon, the wonderful church of St. Etienne du Mont, and the Lycee Henri IV, one of the best-known high schools in Paris, but those are, strictly speaking, outside the Latin Quarter proper. And in the same general area but to the west of the blvd St-Michel are the Luxembourg Gardens and the palace built by Marie de Medici that now houses the French Senate.
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bri
here is another link to ten different DYI walking tours that hit the highlights
www.paristoolkit.com/whattodo/paris_walks.htm
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awesome...good karma sent your way :-) thanks so much
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