Conserving abandon
The Jardin d’Agronomie Tropicale on the edge of the Bois de Vincennes is a curious relic of France’s colonial past. Yesterday I joined Adam of Invisible Paris for a guided … Continue reading
Curiouser and curiouser
If you’re interested in exploring hidden treasures, curiosities, and esoterica, you may want to join in the second international “Obscura Day.” On April 9th, a host of tours and events … Continue reading
A nursery for Le Nôtre
In the 8th arrondissement is a street called rue de la Pépinière, literally the street of the plant nursery. Today it is a busy commercial thoroughfare, with a dedicated Hello … Continue reading
Rond point, Champs-Elysées
Recently I wrote an article for Gardens and People on Bernard Lassus and his extraordinary (and never-realised) proposals for the Jardins des Tuileries. I struggle to describe the range and … Continue reading
Nuit Blanche
Tomorrow, October 2nd, is Nuit Blanche in Paris, a city-wide contemporary arts festival that takes place over the course of a single night. Installations, performances and videos will spring up … Continue reading
Jardin Atlantique
The City of Paris has just completed a customer satisfaction survey, which showed that 98% of visitors to the city’s parks were happy with their experience. The top reason given … Continue reading
A real jardin anglais in Paris
The hôtel de Charost in the 8th arrondissement of Paris was built in the 1720s and was subsequently the home for 11 years of Pauline Borghese, favourite sister of Napoleon … Continue reading
A gay old (s)park
Tucked away in the heart of Paris, the Square du Vert Galant sits on the western tip of the Ile de la Cité. Its name – which my dictionary amusingly … Continue reading
Cool plants for hot days
The gardens of the Hotel Biron are currently a sea of creamy hydrangeas and soft green foliage. A few weeks ago I posted on the lush roses and paeonies that … Continue reading
Rainbows and daisies
At one of the side entrances to l’Eglise Saint Germain des Prés in the 6th arrondissement are four little box-edged flower beds. This summer, one of them is thickly planted … Continue reading
Ecole des Beaux-Arts
The Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts was established in the seventeenth century and, in its heyday, was an enormously influential school for architects, painters and sculptors throughout the world. Its … Continue reading
Tennis à l’anglaise
With Wimbledon in full swing, I am reminded that there is a solitary grass tennis court in Paris. It is located, perhaps not surprisingly, in the gardens of the British … Continue reading
Promenade Pereire
Created in 1989, this linear park runs along the middle of boulevard Pereire in the 17th arrondissement. It may not be on a par with the great parks of Paris, … Continue reading
Roses and Rodin
Someone asked me the other day about “secret” places in Paris, where it would be fun to take visitors. One of my suggestions was the garden of the Hôtel Biron … Continue reading
La Petite Ceinture
Today we walked a mile-long nature trail in the heart of Paris. La Petite Ceinture (“the little belt”) was a Victorian train line that once circled the city, used mainly … Continue reading
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