In front of the Embassy of Texas in Paris with Kristina

Kristina - Alexandre III bridge - "La fillette à la coquille" (the girl with the shell), sculpted by Léopold Morice

9:55 AM - Kristina lives just in front of Manhattan (New York). We ran and discovered Paris on a beautiful morning of May.
The magnificent Alexandre III bridge presents numerous groups of statues. Some evoke diverse representations of the Fame, others, France in various periods of its history.
The girl with the shell, which we can see on the photo above, is a member of numerous statues bound to the marine world (the Nereid, the child and the fantastic fish, dolphins and other shells).
It is a pity people hung on to it padlocks (look at the hands of the statue by enlarging the photo)..

Very close to the place where we started our running, Place Vendôme, we met the Embassy of Texas!

Kristina - "Embassy of Texas"

Embassy of Texas?
Yes, read the plaque which we can see on the building behind Kristina:

It is written:
"Embassy of Texas. In 1842-1843 this building was the seat of the Embassy of the Republic of Texas in Paris. With the Franco-Texan Treaty of 29 September 1839 France became the first nation to recognize the Republic of Texas, an independant state between 1836 and 1845."

A little farther, after having run in the magnificent Garden of the Tuileries,

Kristina - Jardin des Tuileries

It is in front of another place of political representation that we stop:

Kristina - Palais de l'Elysée - "La Grille du Coq"

The Palace of "Elysée", official residence of the President of the French Republic.
Look at the railing which closes the garden of the Palace south side: it is the Railing of the Gallic cockerel. Remember, we had spoken about this cock here.

By continuing our road towards the Eiffel Tower, we pass by a street the name of which evokes a city well known by Kristina:

Kristina - Avenue de New-York

In 1918, this way is named Avenue of Tokio (with one "i" as it was the custom at the beginning of the 20th century). At the end of the World War I, the avenue receives this name because Japan was an ally of France.
In 1945, the avenue of Tokio is renamed avenue of New York, the most populated city of the United States, the country which participated in the France liberation (Japan having become an enemy during the World War II).
The Palace of Tokyo, very close, built for the World Fair of 1937, kept its name.

We were lucky! By going to the Eiffel Tower, the cannons of the garden of Trocadéro throw their powerful water jets:

Kristina - Jardin du Trocadéro

Merci Kristina !

The route of the tour:

In front of the Commercial court of Paris with Dave

Dave - Bridge Notre Dame - In the background, on the left, the Commerce Court of Paris and on the right, the Conciergerie

Thursday 1st May - 8:03 AM, Monday 12th May - 8:01 AM - Dave comes from the beautiful city of Ottawa in Canada. 
Two mornings to discover Paris in a sports way. A dive through the different layers of history which offers Paris.
Paris is a city which was never destroyed contrary to Berlin (at the end of the war in 1945), Lisbon (earthquake of 1755) or London (fire of 1666), other leading cities. 
Paris can thus present as well Roman vestiges as buildings of the Middle Age either the numerous royal creations (among others!). Succession of architectural fashions, urbanistic traditions and most of the time a research for urban harmony.

See, for example, above, the Commercial court ("Tribunal de Commerce"), in front of which we stopped. Let us look at it just in front:

"Tribunal de Commerce" of Paris

Something bizarre, no? 
The dome is not in the center of the building but on the right side!
Architect's whim? No, will of urban harmony. The dome is so placed to close on the South side the perspective of the Boulevard Sevastopol (perspective ended in the North by the train station of "Gare de l'Est").
The Commercial court is finished in 1864 while the Boulevard is inaugurated in 1858.

Look at the precise alignment of the boulevard and the court:

"Tribunal de Commerce de Paris" and Boulevard Sébastopol

Let us pursue our running in the Middle Age Paris, with the magnificent Abbey of Cluny, now the National Museum of the Middle Age (and its Lady and the Unicorn famous tapestries):

Dave - "Abbaye de Cluny"

and the two old houses of the street François Miron:

Dave - "Rue François Miron"

Look at the wooden beams of the facade. These facades are rare in Paris. In fact, some old Parisian Middle age houses are hidden by renovations of facade.
In 1967, The timber framings which we see here were cleared of the plaster which recovered them.
Look at the buildings at the beginning of the 20th century:

Indeed, in 1607, protective measures against the fires were decreed, in particular the obligation to cover with plaster timber framings (these measures were strengthened in 1667 because of the big fire of London in 1666!)

Now, let us admire the beautiful perspective offered by the Soufflot street:

Dave, "Rue Soufflot" (in the background, the Senate and the Eiffel Tower far off) - At the top of the Soufflot street, the Pantheon (The street name is the one of Jacques-Germain Soufflot, architect of the Pantheon)

Merci Dave !

The routes of the tours: