Just a walk in Paris

We have a favorite walking route that pretty much covers the heart of Paris:

From our apartment on rue Poliveau in the southeastern part of the 5th arr. we walk up rue St. Hilaire to the Jardin des Plantes, entering through the south gate by the Museum of Natural History. Continue on and stroll the length of the gardens toward the Seine.

Leave the gardens and cross the Quai Saint Bernard, walk down to the quai itself, and bear left, past the river police headquarters on your right, and stroll along the imaginative musee de sculpture en plein air, the museum of open air sculpture overlooking the river. Walk along the left bank all the way to Notre Dame, taking in the spectacular views of both the Isle Saint Louis and the Isle de la Cite.

Pass under the Pont de la Tournelle and the ramrod straight statue of St. Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris and then leave the quai at the Pont Archeveche. Crossing over the Isle de la Cite turn right and then go to the end of the island and down the steps to the Memorial de la Deportation. (There may be a guard there so be prepared to open your bag. Closed during the lunch hour.)

Walk up and out of the Memorial stroll over to Notre Dame, and from there walk the length of the island along the Quai des Orefevres to the Pont Neuf, turning right cross onto the right bank. Stroll along the Seine past the bouquinistes to the Louvre.

Cross the street at rue de Admiral de Coligny and then turn left walking down Quai Mitterand. After a hundred meters or so turn right and enter the Louvre proper, cross into the cour caree, the courtyard of the original fortress (return at night when the lights have been turned on). Turn left through the entrance into the central "courtyard" of the Louvre where you can find with little difficulty, the glass pyramids.

Skirt the pyramids and the tourists queuing to get inside, and walk to the Place du Carrousel -- a useful diversion into the huge underground complex of shops, restaurants, theaters, all of which lie just a few meters beneath the Place. Here you can find great bathrooms, food to go, a huge Virgin megastore, Metro connections and another entrance to the Louvre museum.

From here stroll the length of the Jardin des Tuileries. Once an enormous palace complex that connected the two vast wings of Louvre, the Tuileries palace was destroyed during the Siege of Paris and the Commune in 1870-71.

Stroll down the central artery of the gardens, past the artwork, stone and human, found milling about the gardens, and don't hesitate to wander off toward the fringes for there are surprised lurking everywhere here.

As you near the end of the Tuileries look to your left and you'll see the box-like Musee l'Orangerie, home to Monet's enormous "Water Lillies" as well as many other works of art.

Directly ahead as you exit the gardens you will be confronted with the daunting and challenging, if not life threatening Place de la Concorde. Near the the location of the 3500-year-old Egyptian obelisk, is where the revolutionaries lopped off the heads of Marie Antoinette and her husband the king of France. If you aren't careful you might lose your head as well, since the traffic here during the weekday can be ferocious and the Place bears careful analysis before attempting to cross.

Once across you and tens of thousands of others can then stroll casually (or down) the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe, where you will find both a delightful view of the city (at the top) and the tomb of the unknown soldier (at the bottom).

From the Arc you can then take the nos. 1, 2 or 6 metros or the RER A line. We like to the take the no. 6 to the Trocadero (only two stops) and get off to catch the lights of the Eiffel tower to round out the evening. Anyway you can plot your own course for dinner, home or wherever; you're on your own now.