5 & 6 ARRONDISSEMENT

For those who love bohemian Paris, these two neighbourhoods are the centre of intellectual and student life, as well as an enchanting blend of museums, churches, gardens, charming streets, shops, restaurants and side-walk cafes. An ideal place to get lost.

SLEEPING

HOTEL ST. SEVERIN  30-40, rue Saint Severin. Metro: St. Michel. A very nice hotel on a pedestrian street of the Latin Quarter.  Price range 81-108 Euros.

HOTEL GRANDES ECOLES  75, rue Cardinal Lemoine. Metro: Cardinal Lemoine.  Three star hotel, in a picturesque street of the Saint Genevieve Hill, near the Pantheon and the Sorbonne. Price range 120 – 150  Euros.

HOTEL d’ ANGLATERRE  44, Rue Jacob. Metro: St. Germain de Pres, Saint Michel.  Breakfast in the inner patio is unforgettable, as well as its warm and spacious rooms which are individually decorated.  Price range 180 – 280  Euros.

HOTEL d’ AUBUSSON   33, rue Dauphine. Metro: Odeon.  Spacious rooms, charming lobby and inner courtyard.  Price range from 315 Euros.

FOOD & DRINK

POILANE BAKERY  8, rue du Cherche Midi. Metro: St. Germain de Pres.
Since 1932, Poilane is considered one of the best bakeries of Paris, at the Cuisine Bar next Door you may have lunch and a glass of wine at economical price. Loaves of this quality bread are distinguished with the monogram of a P.

PATISSERIE PIERRE HERME  72, rue Bonaparte. Metro: St. Germain de Pres.

RESTAURANT HELENE DARROZE   4, rue d’Assas. Metro: St. Sulpice.   A 2 star Michelin Guide french cuisine restaurant, next to the Luxemburg Gardens.  Menus from 85 Euros.

POLIDOR   41, rue Monsieur le Prince. Metro: Odeon.  Traditional french bistro cuisine on a budget.  Menus from 22 Euros.

CAFE DE FLORE  172, Boulevard St. Germain. An icon of Paris, the Cafe de Flore is a must see, try to find a place upstairs, the pavement terrace is classy, but always overcrowded.  Breakfast there  is more than enjoyable, early in the morning you may find a place outside and have the typical Parisian breakfast, that is, café crème, pain au chocolat, croissants and oeufs a la coque (boiled eggs, but in french every word sounds  a bit more sophisticated).

CAFE LA PALETTE  43, rue de Seine.  Metro:  Odeon, Mabillon.  The very nice thing about this charming café and bistro is the unique terrace available both in summer and in winter.

RYST-DUPEYRON  79, rue du Bac. Metro: Rue du Bac. Best known for its Armagnacs, the store founded in 1905, specialises in vintage wines and has one of the largest vintage collection of about 100 different years from 1850.

L’AVANT COMPTOIR  6, Carrefour de l’Odeon. Metro: A narrow standing room serving only hors d’oeuvre and wine bar. A good place to share the pleasures of food and drink with other people.

ZE KITCHEN GALERIE  4, rue des Grands-Agustins Metro: St. Michel-Pont Neuf. Studio, restaurant and gallery near the bouquinistes, along the Seine, asian specialties. Menus from 30 Euros.

LE MONTANA  28, rue Saint-Benoît. Metro: St. Germain de Pres. “In” bohemian Bar & Club for beautiful people and late nights in Paris.

SIGHTSEEING

PANTHEON  Metro: Cardinal-Lemoine.  Situated on top of the Montagne Sainte-Genevieve,the building  was commissioned by Louis XV, who in 1744 vowed that if he recovered from an illness he would replace the ruined church of St. Genevieve Abbey with a magnificent building.

HOTEL DEL CLUNY  National Museum of Middle Ages. 6, place Paul Painleve. Metro: Cluny-La Sorbonne.
Built on the ruins of ancient thermal baths of Paris, the Hotel de Cluny, former home of the medieval abbots of Cluny, is one of the three remaining private medieval residences. The museum has the largest collection of Medieval Art in the world.

PALAIS DE LUXEMBOURG  Corner of Bd. Saint Michel and rue de Medicis. Metro: Odeon, Mabillon.  The palace was built in the early 1600s by Marie de Medicis, today it houses the French Senate. The Luxembourg Gardens surround the palace and is an enchanting park covering 22hs which features many attractions as well as magnificent flower beds, paths and lawns.

ST SULPICE CHURCH  Place Saint Sulpice. Metro: Odeon. Once a parish church St. Sulpice was rebuilt many times,the building of present church began in 1646 and was completed thirty-four years later. The mention of Saint Sulpice in the novel of Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code, has brought more fame to it. Baudelaire and the marquis de Sade were baptized here. Other reason to visit the curch is the grand pipe organ and the music free concerts that are held weekly. The frescoes in the Chapel of the Angels and the Chapel of the Madonna are impressive.

SAINT GERMAIN DE PRES CHURCH  Is the oldest church in Paris built on the remains of a Benedictine abbey, founded in 558.

Sainte-Sulpice   by nico 78

SIGHTSEEING    My Special Places

JARDIN DES PLANTES  57, rue Cuvier. Metro: Jussieu.  At the Jardin des Plantes you will find not only the most popular botanical garden of Paris but also a small zoo and the Natural History Museum.

RUE MOUFFETARD  Metro: Place Monge.  To experience the pleasure of today life in Paris.  On Sundays the southern part of the street is closed to traffic. The street market is between rue Medard and ru du Pot de Fer. After a stroll along the market, stop at the Cave la Bourgogne, a small bistro to have a glass of wine and a typical french dish.

THE BOUQUINISTES   The bouquinistes are second hand booksellers of old books, journals, stamps and souvenirs.  They have shops along the Seine river, from the Qaui de la Tournelle to Quai Voltaire.

SHAKESPEARE & CO  37, rue de la Bucherie. Metro: St. Michel-Notre Dame. Probably the world’s most famous bookstore and reading library. The bookstore also houses young writers who earn their keep by working in the shop for a couple of hours each day.

Another great bookstore in the neighbourhood with an interesting choice of art and photography books is La Chambre Claire, 14, rue St. Sulpice.

Shakespeare & Co. Bookstore by Samantha Decker

SHOPPING

MARCHE SAINT GERMAIN   3, rue Clement. Metro: Odeon, Mabillon, Saint-Sulpice. Small shopping centre.

LE BON MARCHE   24, rue de Sevres. Metro: Sevres-Babylone.  The Bon Marche is the biggest and oldest department store in the Rive Gauche, opened in 1852.

SHOPPING STREETS   rue de Rennes, rue du Bac, rue de Rosiers (a narrow street left of the rue Vieille du Temple) Boulevard Saint-Germain, rue de Grenelle, rue du Cherche Midi, rue du Four, rue de Sevres, rue du Vieux Colombier.

Dior window Le Bon Marche  by Journal des Vitrines