Normandy, Brittany & the Best of the North_ With Paris (Fodor's) - Fodor's [120]
Commerce aside, the Grands Boulevards are a cultural destination anchored by the Palais Garnier, the magnificent opera house commissioned by Napoléon III. The neighborhood is also home to some of the city’s best small museums, all former private collections housed in 19th-century maisons particuliers (mansions) that alone are worth the trip. The exquisite Musée Jacquemart-André plays host to an impressive collection of Italian Renaissance art, while the jewel box Musée Nissim de Camondo remembers one family’s tragic end.
TOP ATTRACTIONS ON THE GRANDS BOULEVARDS
Cimetière du Père-Lachaise (Père-Lachaise Cemetery).
As far as cemeteries go, this one is a powerhouse—a veritable necropolis with 118 acres of sedate cobbled avenues and tombs competing in pomposity and originality. Rocker Jim Morrison of the Doors still draws pilgrims three decades after his death, as does the tomb of scribe Oscar Wilde, covered in lipstick kisses. If puckering up isn’t your thing, bring a red rose for the “little sparrow” Edith Piaf. The famed medieval lovers Héloïse and Abélard are here, along with composer Chopin; artists Ingres and Georges Seurat; playwright Molière; writers Balzac, Proust, Colette, and Gertrude Stein, sharing a grave with lover Alice B. Toklas. Named for Pére François de la Chaise, Louis XIV’s confessor, Père-Lachaise has some political history attached to it—it was the site of the Paris Commune’s final battle on May 28, 1871, when 147 rebels were lined up and shot against the Mur des Fédérés (Federalists’ Wall) in the southeast corner. Buy a map on the street before you enter; you’ll still get lost but it’s well worth it. | Entrances on Rue des Rondeaux, Bd. de Ménilmontant, Rue de la Réunion, Père Lachaise | 75020 | 01–55–25–82–10 | www.pere-lachaise.com | Easter–Sept., daily 8–6; Oct.–Easter, daily 8–dusk | Station: Gambetta, Philippe-Auguste, Père-Lachaise.
Galeries Lafayette.
The stunning Byzantine glass coupole, or dome, is not to be missed—just wander to the center of the perfume and cosmetics department on the main floor and look up. Next door, the excellent Lafayette Gourmet food hall, on the second floor of the men’s store, has one of the city’s best selections of delicacies. Try the apricot-pistachio bread at Eric Kayser or a green tea éclair from Japanese-French baker Sadaharu Aoki. | 40 bd. Haussmann, Opéra/Grands Boulevards | 75009 | 01–42–82–34–56 | www.galerieslafayette.com | Mon.–Wed., Fri., and Sat. 9:30–8, Thurs. 9:30–9 | Station: Chaussée d’Antin, Opéra; RER: Auber.
Musée Jacquemart-André.
Perhaps the city’s best small museum, the opulent Musée Jacquemart-André is home to a vast collection of art and furnishings lovingly assembled in the late 19th century by banking heir Edouard André and his artist wife, Nélie Jacquemart. Their midlife marriage in 1881 raised eyebrows—he was a dashing bachelor and a Protestant, and she, no great beauty, hailed from a modest Catholic family. Still, theirs was a happy union fused by a common passion for art. Their collection favored the Italian Renaissance, but they also amassed works by French painters Fragonard, Jacques-Louis David, and François Boucher, and Dutch masters Van Dyke and Rembrandt. Immortalized in the Oscar-winner Gigi, the Belle Époque mansion itself is a star attraction. You can tour the separate bedrooms—his in dusty pink, hers in pale yellow. The former dining room, now an elegant café with an outdoor terrace, has one of the mansion’s several stunning ceilings by Tiepolo. Don’t forget the free audio guide in English. |