As I've probably written before, Miles and I love the opportunity to see both the A list of Paris (major sites/museums) but also the lesser-known places which turn out to be such gems.
This week was no exception. Last Sunday we went to Parc Monceau. The park is unusual in France due to its English style: its informal layout, curved walkways and randomly placed statues distinguish it from the more traditional French-style garden. It includes a collection of scaled-down architectural features or follies. We hit a beautiful day and the park was filled with families. One local told me the parks are often very full because Parisian apartments are small and this is a way the families can have outdoor space.
On another day, we took the Metro to Parc de Bercy, a public park located along the right bank of the Seine. It was created in 1994-1997 as one of the major architectural projects of French President Francois Mitterand on the site of a former wine depot. It is composed of three different gardens on different themes connected by foot bridges. A portion of the garden is in memory of Yitzhak Rabin:
Adjacent to the park is Bercy Village, a paved courtyard bordered with white stone warehouses and quiet terraces. Today it is filled with shops and restaurants, but in its heyday (19th and early 20th century) the Cour Saint-Emilion and its 42 warehouses were the Bercy storage areas that for over a century held the largest wine market in the world.
The main corridor
A magnificent chandelier at the other end of the corridor
View of courtyard
Paths in the courtyard
Yes, this in IN the courtyard
One of numerous sandy paths
Boulder in the forest
More boulders
Interesting geological split
Fun boulders to climb
A fish? A dinosaur?
A face?
Weird sea creature?
Aliens?
We had an epic day and walked about 15 miles: from the
Fountainebleau-Avon train station to the forest and then IN the forest
and back to the train station at days end (fortunately before getting caught in the forest after sundown). Our legs were tired, but
what an adventure!
This week was no exception. Last Sunday we went to Parc Monceau. The park is unusual in France due to its English style: its informal layout, curved walkways and randomly placed statues distinguish it from the more traditional French-style garden. It includes a collection of scaled-down architectural features or follies. We hit a beautiful day and the park was filled with families. One local told me the parks are often very full because Parisian apartments are small and this is a way the families can have outdoor space.
Rotunda in Parc Monceau
Corinthian pillars along the lake
Chinese bridge
Green mounds and autumn trees
Families enjoying the park
On another day, we took the Metro to Parc de Bercy, a public park located along the right bank of the Seine. It was created in 1994-1997 as one of the major architectural projects of French President Francois Mitterand on the site of a former wine depot. It is composed of three different gardens on different themes connected by foot bridges. A portion of the garden is in memory of Yitzhak Rabin:
Sign To Yitzhak Rabin Garden
Parc de Bercy footpath
Pond
Parc de Bercy statue
This building in the park houses a botanical library
Adjacent to the park is Bercy Village, a paved courtyard bordered with white stone warehouses and quiet terraces. Today it is filled with shops and restaurants, but in its heyday (19th and early 20th century) the Cour Saint-Emilion and its 42 warehouses were the Bercy storage areas that for over a century held the largest wine market in the world.
Bercy Village
Notice the abandoned train tracks that were used to transport wine
Now back to a major site. We were just walking along the Seine when I remembered that the Petit Palais is free, so we just marched right in and squeezed in a quick hour before closing. What a find! The palais itself is extremely grand and is worth seeing (besides the art exhibits).
A magnificent chandelier at the other end of the corridor
There is also a beautiful inner courtyard:
Back to nature: after a first attempt to hike in the Fountainebleau Forest a month ago (we were rained out and went to the Chateau instead--not a disappointment!), we finally got a chance to go back, this time on an amazingly warm and beautiful day at the end of October.
We found out there are endless hiking trails and the main area we wanted to visit were the gorges of the Franchard Trail. These are called gorges, despite the fact that it is has no canyon. There are a lot of trees, a mixture of sand and earth on the ground, and numerous boulders around.
So many of the boulders look like animals--your imagination goes wild. We saw lots of kids scrambling on the rocks and having a blast.
The forest is also well-known for mushrooms. Here's a sample:
On our walk back to the train station, we passed this house with red leaves. Fall is definitely here!
Oh my goodness. You certainly covered a lot of territory between the elegant Parc Monceau, then Parc Bercy, (French families certainly enjoy their green spaces) then the forest of Fontainebleau. Impressive! Loved your descriptions and photos. What gorgeous Fall leaves you captured.
ReplyDelete