Introduction
Begin: Métro PassyEnd: Métro La Muette (if you stop after the musée Marmatton) or Métro Rue de la Pompe (if you go into the bois de Boulogne)Time: About three hours (not including time in museums). If you do the whole thing, this is quite a long walk. If you decide not to go into the bois de Boulogne, you may return to La Muette métro stop after visiting the musée Marmatton. Take a bottle of water, and wear good walking shoes. There are restrooms in the Passy Plaza, but it’s closed on Sundays.IntroductionOù habitez-vous à Paris?Oh, j’habite le seizième.Living in the Seizième arrondissement in Paris is a big deal! And depending on whom you’re talking to, Oh, j’habite le seizième might be considered a snobbish response. The Seizième arrondissement is different, more laid back. Some say it is the only bedroom community inside the boulevard périphérique. During this walk, you will see some beautiful buildings and get a feel for an area of Paris that visitors rarely go to, except to see Claude Monet’s paintings in the Marmatton Museum.At the beginning of the twentieth century, what is now the sixteenth arrondissement of Paris was two villages: Passy and Auteuil. This area of Paris is interesting today, because Passy and Auteuil offered room for expansion at a time when people with money could commission avant-garde architects to design functional buildings—usually multi-family dwellings or apartments—that were at the same time innovative and exclusive. Today, we see the results: buildings that are pleasing to look at as well as to live in. While some streets in the sixteenth arrondissement are quite commercial, for the most part, the area has retained the feel of an urban village. It is an area where people still walk to their local stores, restaurants, and cafés; however, they leave the area to go to work. In comparison to most areas of Paris, the sixteenth arrondissement is surprisingly sleepy. During this walk, you will see the pleasing architecture of Hector Guimard and many others. As you walk around and look at the buildings, you will notice that many of the architects (some called themselves achitecte d’art) have signed and dated their work—look for their “signatures” on the buildings.
#1 Allée des Cygnes
Your first destination is the allée des Cygnes (swans), a long, narrow, artificial island in the middle of the Seine. This is a pleasant stroll (except in the pouring rain or in winter snows) and worth the ten or fifteen minutes it takes to complete it. Leave the métro and walk down the stairs toward the river. Walk up the steps onto pont de Bir-Hakeim (the only bridge in Paris for cars, métros, and pedestrians) and cross over the busy avenue du Président Kennedy. Stay in the middle section of the bridge with cars zooming by on both sides and the métro tracks overhead. As you walk toward the center of the bridge, note the view of the tour Eiffel on your left—a photo op! On your right in the center of the bridge are the stairs leading down to the allée des Cygnes. Now, enjoy your stroll down this peaceful, tree-lined walkway toward pont de Grenelle at the far end of the island.The allée des Cygnes was built in 1825 as a dyke to protect the port de Grenelle (Grenelle Harbor) on the rive gauche (left bank)—the tour Eiffel side of the river. This dyke and the harbor to your left both point to the important transportation and industrial role the Seine has played for centuries.
#2 Statue of Liberty
As you take the ramp up to pont de Grenelle and the maison de Radio-France (the modern, round building to your right), you will see a "miniature" Statue of Liberty facing downstream.Read the plaque to learn how this miniature Statue of Liberty is related to the full-scale version created by Auguste Bartholdi—the version the République Française gave to the United States to commemorate its first hundred years as a nation. Don’t you find it ironic that a gift from France has become one of the most recognizable symbols of the United States?
#3 La maison de Radio-France
Next, cross pont de Grenelle and walk toward the maison de Radio-France.La maison de Radio-France, inaugurated in 1963, houses the main offices of Radio-France, plus sixty studios and a museum. You may come back later to visit. For now, your real destination is Castel Béranger.
#4 Art nouveau
Keeping to the right, cross the busy Place Clément Ader toward the maison de la Radio. Now, with your back to the maison, cross rue de Boulainvilliers and start up rue Gros. Follow the sidewalk as it takes a sharp right turn. You should now have Square Henri Collet on your right. (If you’re on avenue Théophile Gautier, you missed the turn.) Go around the corner to Castel Béranger.Pause here to learn a little about art nouveau and the reasons why Castel Béranger is worth walking this far to see. Art nouveau is a style of art that peaked in popularity between 1880 and 1914 and influenced architecture, interior design, lighting fixtures, furniture, jewelry, etc. Highly stylized, flowing, curvilinear designs that often incorporate floral and other plant-inspired motifs characterize the art nouveau style.Hector Guimard became the symbol of art nouveau in France. In 1894, Guimard designed a multi-family apartment building called Castel Béranger that made him famous, resulting in many commissions, including the design of several entryways into the Paris métro system (See Walk 2). Today, most of Guimard’s buildings remain inaccessible to the public, and there is no museum devoted to his works. However, you’ll see several of his works during this walk.At 43 rue Gros, notice the entrance, balconies, and windows. Hector Guimard also designed the facades you see at 19 and 21 rue Jean de la Fontaine. Do you see the influence of art nouveau—stylized, flowing, curvilinear designs?
#5 Castel Béranger
Now to Castel Béranger. With your back to where the café and bar was located, cross the street and go to 14 rue Jean de la Fontaine.Castel Béranger is a masterpiece of art nouveau architecture. Note the graceful, asymmetrical wrought-iron entry gate and the cast-iron accents. The building is not open to the public, but you may peek into the allée Hameau Béranger on the left. Look for the stained-glass windows that follow the stairwell. In addition, the carvings in the stone next to the gate are art nouveau. Some have called Castel Béranger a poem, and I agree!The next destination is maison de Balzac (Balzac’s House) a short, but interesting, walk. It will help to keep the map open to consult as you walk so you don’t get lost on some unintended adventure.
#6 Rue Berton
With the allée Hameau Béranger on your left, walk down rue Jean de La Fontaine toward the maison de la Radio, staying on the left-hand sidewalk. Cross place du Docteur Hayem, and walk behind the maison de Radio-France on rue Raynouard (Radio France will be across the street on your right). Cross the intersection at rue du Ranelagh, and continue up rue Raynouard to rue des Marronniers and then rue des Vignes—both smaller streets on your left. Immediately after rue des Vignes, use the pedestrian crossing just before #70 to go to the right-hand side of the street. Walk down a few steps and turn immediately left onto rue Berton—a narrow, cobblestone street. (Do not cross avenue de Lamballe.)As you go onto rue Berton, you are actually walking in the direction of the Eiffel Tower. You will see the tower beautifully framed by the buildings at the end of the street—a nice photo opportunity. Rue Berton has hardly changed in the past two hundred years! As you walk down the narrow street, note the short pillars along the walls called “chasse roues.” Their design keeps carriage drivers from getting too close to the walls. The double doors on the left mark the back entrance to the maison de Balzac, but you’ll have to walk around the block to get to the front door.
#7 Maison de Balzac
Continue to the end of rue Berton; it exits onto rue d’Ankara and Avenue Marcel Proust (Ankara is the capital city of Turkey). Turn right and immediately take a peek into the beautiful private park that is now the Turkish Embassy. Go back to rue Berton and take its continuation, avenue Marcel Proust. Go up the three flights of stairs on your left (avenue du Parc de Passy). At the top of the stairs, turn left on rue Raynouard and walk to Number 47, the entrance to la maison de Balzac.As you walk down rue Raynouard toward la maison de Balzac, notice the interesting architecture of the buildings—you might even see a signature or two. The stone entry to Balzac’s house and yard is on the left side of the street, just past a little jog in the sidewalk; you can’t miss it—the house is down a little hill. The house is worth the visit—especially for those who are familiar with his writings. This is where Balzac wrote some of his famous novels, such as Le Cousin Pons (1847). There are self-guided and paid tours. During a paid, one-hour guided tour, you will see photos, a few of Balzac’s manuscripts, and some of his letters to the Comtesse Hanska (yes—a nice love affair). If you decide not to go down the stairs for the tour at this time, you will still get a nice view of the house and yard by walking a little further down the street and looking through the wrought-iron fence. Nice place, n’est-ce pas?Note: the museum is closed for renovations until summer 2019.
#8 Passy Plaza
Is it time for a break? Right across the street from the entrance to Balzac’s house is rue de l’Annonciation. Go down this old street a short distance. On your right is the modern Passy Plaza.Inside Passy Plaza, there are nice toilettes down on Level 2. In this mini-mall, you will also find a grocery store and shops where you may buy a sandwich or a snack. Not far from Passy Plaza is the jardin du Ranelagh and the musée Marmatton—the next destination.
#9 Jardin du Ranelagh
After your short rest, continue down rue de l’Annonciation through the pedestrian zone to place de Passy. Go straight across the square and turn left on rue de Passy, a busy street with many shops and businesses. Stay on the left side of rue de Passy and walk straight to the jardin du Ranelagh, carefully crossing the busy streets and intersections along the way. You will recognize the entrance to the park by the small, old redbrick train station, now a restaurant. Walk in front of the station, and turn left into the park on Chaussée de la Muette. Keep going straight through the park and onto avenue du Ranelagh.This little park, the jardin du Ranelagh, was the site of some nice royal parties! One of these parties included rides in hot air balloons—you might recall the hot air balloon scene from the movie the Three Musketeers. Today the park is a great place for kids to play and watch puppet shows. As you walk on, you will see a statue of Jean de la Fontaine where the Chaussée de la Muette becomes avenue du Ranelagh. Do you recognize the fable being played out in front of Monsieur La Fontaine?
#10 Musée Marmatton
At the end of avenue du Ranelagh, you will exit the park onto avenue Raphaël. Turn right on Raphaël and walk in front of the apartment buildings a short distance to rue Louis Boilly. The musée Marmatton is right there on the corner.The wonderful musée Marmatton houses numerous paintings by Claude Monet and other renowned painters such as Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Auguste Renoir, Jean François Millet, and Eugène Delacroix. This is truly a “do not miss” museum! There are inexpensive guidebooks, a nice shop, and restrooms inside. Make sure you take a few minutes to sit and contemplate Monet’s water lilies; they’re in the large room downstairs. You can also see Monet water lily paintings at the musée de l’Orangerie on the place de la Concorde.
#11 Bois de Boulogne
After a nice visit with Monet and some of his contemporaries, you may be out of energy and ready to head home. If this is the case, and you don’t want to go into the bois de Boulogne (by far, the largest “park” in Paris), then retrace your steps back through the jardin du Ranelagh to rue de Passy. At the intersection of rue de Passy and avenue Mozart you will find La Muette métro station. If, however, you wish to take a short walk in the bois de Boulogne, turn right when exiting the musée Marmatton and walk to the little square (park) at the end of the street. If you’re worn out and want to go home, go back to La Muette métro stop.Pause for a few minutes in the Square des Écrivains Combattants morts pour la France to get ready for your walk in the park; there are a few benches where you may sit. The bois de Boulogne (woods) was a royal hunting forest for several hundred years beginning with the Merovingian kings—Clovis was the first king of France in 481. It has also been the hiding place for bandits and those fleeing the French Revolution. In 1815, the Russian and English armies set up camp in the woods—historians say they left a real mess. Napoleon III gave the park to Paris in 1852, and Georges-Eugène (Baron)Haussmann set out to turn it into an enormous park. He tore down walls, landscaped, built lakes, and created winding paths. He even built Longchamps (the horse-race track). Today, the bois is the capital’s main recreation area. There are restaurants, two racetracks, two lakes, a children’s zoo, an amusement park, picnic areas, strolling paths, soccer fields, and several museums.
#12 Corps diplomatique
Across the square, turn left on avenue du Maréchal Maunoury.The trees and bushes across the street from the little park mark the edge of the bois. Check out the license plates on the cars parked around the upscale, contemporary apartment buildings on your left. "CD"on the plate indicates the owner is a member of the corps diplomatique. Many representatives of foreign governments live in this beautiful area.
#13 Chemin de Ceinture du Lac Inférieur
When you arrive at place de la porte de Passy, turn right and go into the bois. Stay to your right on the walkway (crossing over the boulevard périphérique) until you come to Chemin de Ceinture du Lac Inférieur where you will turn right. Cross the roads with care—cars move quickly through the bois! Walk on the left side of Chemin de Ceinture, along the walkway that goes along the lake.While walking on the left side of the Chemin de Ceinture du Lac Inférieur, if you feel adventurous, several paths lead down to the water’s edge. There is one on your left about one hundred yards up from where you started walking along the lake.Where the Chemin de Ceinture meets avenue de Saint-Cloud (a lazy turn to the right), cross the road and follow avenue de Saint-Cloud toward La Muette—there is a little sign on the corner with an arrow. (Place de Colombie is also called porte de la Muette.) Cross this busy place (going through several stoplights). Turn left when you reach the fence on the other side, and then turn right down avenue Henri Martin. At the bus stop, you may take bus #63 to Trocadero and beyond. If you prefer, you may walk to the rue de la Pompe métro station further down the street.Cross Place Tattegrain, where you’ll see a gas station on the right and an RER station on the left, and continue two more blocks to the Maire du XVIième Arrondissement and rue de la Pompe métro station. La fin!
The End
Where the Chemin de Ceinture meets avenue de Saint-Cloud (a lazy turn to the right), cross the road and follow avenue de Saint-Cloud toward La Muette—there is a little sign on the corner with an arrow. (Place de Colombie is also called porte de la Muette.) Cross this busy place (going through several stoplights). Turn left when you reach the fence on the other side, and then turn right down avenue Henri Martin. At the bus stop, you may take bus #63 to Trocadero and beyond. If you prefer, you may walk to the rue de la Pompe métro station further down the street.Note that the center section of avenue Henri Martin is a car park—valuable real estate in this bedroom community.Cross Place Tattegrain, where you’ll see a gas station on the right and an RER station on the left, and continue two more blocks to the Maire du XVIième Arrondissement and rue de la Pompe métro station. La fin!After the WalkIf you didn’t take the time during the walk, you must return to visit the Marmatton Museum (métro La Muette), but remember that it’s closed on Mondays. Also, if you’re really into radio, return for a tour of the maison de Radio-France, but remember it’s closed on Sundays (as always, check their websites for information on opening times, tours, etc.). Finally, if you want to see more of the bois de Boulogne, you might want to go to the Parc d’Acclimatation (métro Les Sablons). Also, the bois is a great place to go running—but do not go alone, for any type of activity.
