Paris_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Lonely Planet [78]
PARC DU CHAMP DE MARS Map
Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel or École Militaire
Running southeast from the Eiffel Tower, the grassy Field of Mars (named after the Roman god of war) was originally used as a parade ground for the cadets of the 18th-century École Militaire (Military Academy; Map), the vast, French-classical building (1772) at the southeastern end of the park in the 7e, which counts none other than Napoleon Bonaparte among its graduates. The wonderful Wall for Peace memorial (2000; www.wallforpeace.com) of steel and etched glass facing the academy and the statue of Maréchal Joffre (1870–1931) are by Clara Halter.
On 14 July 1790 the Fête de la Fédération (Federation Festival) was held on the Champ de Mars to celebrate the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille. Four years later it was the location of the Fête de l’Être-Suprême (Festival of the Supreme Being), at which Robespierre presided over a ceremony that established a revolutionary ‘state religion’.
The Marionettes du Champ de Mars ( 01 48 56 01 44; allée du Général Margueritte, 7e; École Militaire) stage puppet shows (€3) in a covered and heated salle (hall) in the park at 3.15pm and 4.15pm on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.
MUSÉE DU QUAI BRANLY Map
01 56 61 70 00; www.quaibranly.fr; 37 quai Branly, 7e; adult/18-25yr & student €8.50/6, permanent collections free for under 18yr & after 6pm Sat for 18-25yr, 1st Sun of the month free; 11am-7pm Tue, Wed & Sun, to 9pm Thu-Sat Pont de l’Alma or Alma-Marceau
Opened to great fanfare in mid-2006, the architecturally impressive (Click here) but unimaginatively named Quai Branly Museum introduces the art and cultures of Africa, Oceania, Asia and the Americas through innovative displays, film and musical recordings. With Là où dialoguent les cultures (Where cultures communicate) as its motto, the museum is one of the most dynamic and forward-thinking in the world. The anthropological explanations are kept to a minimum; what is displayed here is meant to be viewed as art. A day pass allowing entry to the temporary exhibits as well as the permanent collection costs adult/concession €13/9.50; an audioguide is €5. And don’t miss the views from the 5th-floor restaurant Les Ombres.
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top picks
EIFFEL TOWER AREA & 16E ARRONDISSEMENT
Eiffel Tower
Musée du Quai Branly (opposite)
Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine
Musée Guimet des Arts Asiatiques (right)
CineAqua (opposite)
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FLAME OF LIBERTY MEMORIAL Map
Alma-Marceau
This bronze sculpture – a replica of the one topping New York’s Statue of Liberty – was placed here in 1987 on the centenary of the launch of the International Herald Tribune newspaper, as a symbol of friendship between France and the USA. On 31 August 1997 in the place d’Alma underpass below, Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed in a devastating car accident along with her companion, Dodi Fayed, and their chauffeur, Henri Paul, and the Flame of Liberty became something of a memorial to her, decorated with flowers, photographs, graffiti and personal notes. It was renovated and cleaned in 2002 and, this being the age of short (or no) memories, apart from a bit of sentimental graffiti on a wall nearby there are no longer any reminders of the tragedy that happened so close by and had so much of the Western world in grief at the time.
MUSÉE D’ART MODERNE DE LA VILLE DE PARIS Map
01 53 67 40 00; www.mam.paris.fr in French; 11 av du Président Wilson, 16e; temporary exhibits from adult €5-9, 13-25yr, senior & student €2.50-5.50, permanent collections free, under 13yr free; 10am-6pm Tue, Wed & Fri-Sun, to 10pm Thu; Iéna
The Modern Art Museum of the City of Paris was established in 1961. The museum is housed in what was the Electricity Pavilion at the time of the 1937 Exposition Universelle, and displays works representative