In front of the invisible pyramid with Molly and Saul

Saul and Molly in front of the Pyramid of the Louvre

9:00 AM - With Molly and Saul from California, we crossed by running Paris from west to east to make an attractive tour of more than 16 km (10 miles).

We made a small stop in front of the Louvre and, what a surprise, the Louvre Pyramid seems to have disappeared by leaving a grey halo!
Is it a photomontage? No, not at all, the pyramid was made invisible by the artist JR by a astonishing anamorphosis.

A look aside makes us understand a little better the trompe-l’œil effect:

We began our race near the "Palais de la Découverte" to join quickly the river Seine at the level of the "Pont de l'Alma" (bridge of Alma). A important number of photographers had assembled near the Zouave, who has become again an attraction because of the important flood of the Seine, this June 2016:

"Pont de l'Alma"

Find the zouave and the usual level of the Seine here.
This flood is impressive and offers surprising views:

"Zouave - Pont de l'Alma" - Lizard of the "Pont Alexandre III" - Passage towards the banks (footbridge Senghor)

By the way, let us take back the photography of the Bridge of the Alma and the Eiffel Tower, don't you notice anything new in this Parisian landscape? The new Russian Orthodox Church in Paris:

Russian orthodox spiritual and cultural center

From the "Pont de l'Alma", we climb the avenue of President Wilson to join the hill of Chaillot and the beautiful views of the Eiffel Tower since the Trocadéro:

Molly and Saul - Eiffel tower from the Trocadéro
Notice the ball above the first floor of the Eiffel Tower, it is the ball of the Euro of Football/Soccer 2016 (during the Roland Garros tennis tournament, we get a tennis ball)

Later, we cross again the Seine by the bridge Alexandre III:

Molly and Saul - "Pont Alexandre III"
See the completely flooded bank (usually, we can run there)

We alternate then the beautiful routes, right bank and left bank with the pleasure of running in the Latin Quarter in the street Rollin, lined with buildings of the XVIth and XVIIth centuries where lived, in particular, the philosophers Pascal and Descartes:

Saul and Molly - Rue Rollin

Merci Molly, merci Saul !


The route of the tour:

Under the Eiffel tower with Rachel

Under the Eiffel Tower - Far off the Palais de Chaillot and the garden of Trocadéro

7:32 AM - Rachel, from Wales, is a regular runner with very good results... After the running tour in Paris, she arrived recently second woman of a half marathon.
At present, she prepares for the next London Marathon.
In this beginning of March, the sun is with us for an attractive tour of Paris by running.

Look at the photo above, we are just under the Eiffel Tower. Early morning in March, the place is very quiet. Compare with the crowd that we can find on Easter Mondays for example or on a summer weekend there... Running early morning in Paris is a delight!

Far off, on the other side of the Seine, we can recognize the majestic "Palais de Chaillot" which was built for the World Fair of 1937, last World Fair in Paris.

The Palace of Chaillot replaced the Palace of Trocadéro built in the same place, that time for the World Fair of 1878:

Aerial view of the "Palais du Trocadéro" - 1934

By the way, do you know what "Trocadéro" means?

It is a fort which is situated in Cadiz in Spain and the place of a French victory; France came to help Spain to restore the absolute monarchy in 1823 (the king Louis XVIII reigns at that time in France).
The Palace of the Trocadéro built in 1878 (and then the "Place du Trocadéro") owes its name to a royalist victory!

We went for running early, accompanied by the rising sun which lit for us the magnificent monuments of Paris:

The Arc de Triomphe. We are in his shadow, the sun beginning to light the Champs-Elysées

Palais Galliera
Museum of the fashion with until, August 23rd, 2015, the exhibition dedicated to Jeanne Lanvin

The Eiffel tower - We are at the "Palais de Chaillot"!

The Alexandre III bridge with in the back the statue symbolizing the France of the Renaissance. At the top  of the pylon, one of the four Fames: The Fame of the War. 
These four statues were covered with gold leaves in 1989.

The Bridge of the Arts and in the back, the "Galerie du bord de l'eau" of the Louvre - The "Pont des Arts", known these last years for all the padlocks which where put there by the loving tourists, is at present protected by wooden panels. These panels covered by graffitis spoil a little the beauty of the place. It should be temporary.

The Palais Royal and its famous Columns of Buren ("Les deux plateaux"). The "Théâtre Ephémère" (short-lived theater) now disappeared. This wooden theater had welcomed temporarily the troop of the "Comédie Française" during the works of the "Palais Royal". We can see again the garden of the "Palais Royal" through the columns.

The Garden of the Tuileries - Our shadows are still very long!

Merci Rachel ! 
We wish you a great London Marathon!

The route of the tour:

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:

Discovery of the symbols of Paris with Emily

Emily - Alexandre III bridge

9:03 AM - With Emily, from Ohio (USA), our sports route crossed the seventh and eighth districts of Paris, known in particular for the big works and monuments we can find there. It is here that we shall meet the constructions which stayed after the 19th and 20th centuries World Fairs: the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Chaillot, the Palace of Iena, the Palace of Tokyo, "Petit" and "Grand Palais" and of course, the Alexandre III Bridge.

Had you noticed that on the Alexandre III Bridge are the symbols of France and Paris?

Alexandre III bridge - France and Paris Symbols

On the basis of most of the candelabras surrounding the bridge, you will find various representations of the symbols of France and Paris:

• On the left photo above, you can read "RF", which means French Republic. All the public buildings in France show these letters RF. A little farther, for example, on the left bank, at the east of the bridge, you will find these letters on the blazons of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
• In the middle, the Gallic cockerel ("Coq Gaulois") which is the national symbol of France, even if it is not as formalized as the bald eagle, national bird of the United States..
• Finally, on the right photo, you will find the blazon of Paris, the ship of the powerful Gallic corporation of the Nautes. The motto of Paris is bound to this blazon: "Fluctuat nec mergitur", Latin expression which means "It floats but does not sink". You can see this blazon on most of the public buildings of Paris. Moreover, we find it in big on the bridge again:

Alexandre III bridge - West side

We thus left the area of the Champ de Mars to go around the Invalides :

Emily - "Hôtel des Invalides" - South side

Emily - "Hôtel des Invalides" - North side

Meanwhile, we were able to admire, since the street, the Rodin museum and its beautiful garden:

Emily - Rodin museum : the garden, the museum and the The Burghers of Calais statue

To go on the right bank, we crossed the footbridge Léopold-Sédar-Senghor, with, by leaving the bridge, a beautiful point of view on the "Musée d'Orsay":

Emily - Orsay museum

By going back up the Champs-Elysées, we made a small detour to find again our symbols, the Gallic Cock and the letters RF:

Elysée palace - "Grille du Coq" (Railing of the Gallic cockerel)

If there is a place where we have to see these symbols, it is the Elysée Palace ("Palais de l'Elysée"), the residence of the President of the French Republic (equivalent to the White House for the USA), here on the Railing of the Cock which is in the South of the Palace garden.

By crossing the "Petit Palais", very Parisian monument, it is, this time, the Ship that we found again:

Emily - "Petit Palais" - Blazon of the Nautes

By entering the "Petit Palais", by raising the head towards the ceiling, we find once more the blazon, where we can even read it the motto " Fluctuat nec mergitur ":

Ceiling of the entrance of the "Petit Palais"

By leaving the "Petit Palais", here is again the Alexandre III Bridge and in the background the "Hôtel des Invalides" (in fact, the bridge was created to connect the Champs-Elysées to the "Invalides"):

Emily - Alexandre III bridge (right bank side) and left bank, in the background, the Invalides

By the way, do you know what represents this other symbol, a double-headed eagle, that we can also see at the bottom of the Alexandre III bridge lampposts? ; )

Merci Emily !

The route of the tour:

In Paris, under the pink morning light with Amy

Amy - Pont du Carrousel (Bridge of the Carrousel)

7:03 AM - Amy, from Florida, chose to make an early morning Paris Running Tour in this beautiful day of March 9th. The light was magnificent, giving a beautiful pink aspect to the landscape. At this hour, on Sunday morning, nobody in streets, very few cars, Paris for us alone and some other morning runners.

Look at the first picture above, from the "Pont du Carousel", look at the pink gradation which goes with the sunrise and shines on the river Seine and the buildings of the Louvre.

Admire the sight from the "Pont de la Concorde", on the east side:

Amy - Pont de la Concorde - In the background, from left to right : the Tuileries, the Sainte-Chapelle,
Notre-Dame, the Institute of France and the "Musée d'Orsay"

then, on the west side :

Amy - Pont de la Concorde - In the background, a big iron tower ;), the new banks
and the "Pont Alexandre III"

On Sunday morning, we can even stop in the middle of the road in front of the Champs-Elysées to take a photo without being afraid of cars:

Amy - "Place de la Concorde" - The Champs-Elysées, in the background, the "Arc de Triomphe"
and far, the "Grande Arche" of "la Défense"

While going back to the east, we stop at the entrance of the garden of the Tuileries, to make a small salute to the "Statue of the Fame" which sounds the triumph of the sun in Paris!

Amy - Garden of the Tuileries with in the background, from left to right, the copy of the Statue of the Fame, the "Grand Palais", the Obelisk of Louxor in the center of the "place de la Concorde"

A perfect weather, a beautiful light, ideal to run in Paris!

Merci Amy !

The route of the tour:

Snapshots of a first visit in Paris, with Melinda

Melinda - On the bridge of Austerlitz. In the distance, Notre-Dame and Saint Louis Island beautiful houses

Monday 27th May - 12:51 PM, Wednesday 29th May - 6:57 PM - First time in Paris for Melinda from Miami (USA) ! 
What better choice than to start a first stay in Paris doing a visit by running (with Paris Running Tour)? A good way of unwinding legs after a long travel by plane and a first discovery of Paris getting directly into the life of the city.

And why not begin again two days later to discover new paths through Paris?
We thus ran by following two routes which mainly crossed the disctrict of "Le Marais", the Left bank, the island of "La Cité" and the center of Paris around the Seine.

Here is the route (numbers indicate where the photos of this article were taken):

We took numerous photos during our running:

1) "La rue des Barres" (Street of Bars). This name comes because formerly, in the 10th century, on the location of the street, a wall, a fence of wooden bars, constituted a wall protecting Paris:

Melinda - "Rue des Barres"

2) "L'Hôtel de Sully" (The Hotel of Sully). The Duke of Sully, Minister of Finance of king Henri IV, lived in this noble mansion at the end of his life. By crossing the Hotel of Sully, we passed directly from the street Saint Antoine to the "place des Vosges".

Melinda - "Hôtel de Sully"

3) The "bassin de l'Arsenal". Having crossed the place of the Bastille, we met the Basin of the Arsenal, port and canal connecting the river Seine with the Saint Martin canal and which, formerly, was a ditch which filled the moats of the castle of the Bastille.

Melinda - "Port de l'Arsenal"

4) "Pont d'Austerlitz" (Bridge of Austerlitz). See the picture at the beginning of the article.

5) "Cour du Commerce Saint André". Another place which is situated on the plan of the former surrounding wall of Paris, the wall of king Philippe Auguste. This passage, opened in 1776, allows to reach the Café Procope (1686), one of the oldest cafés in the world.

Melinda - "Cour du Commerce Saint André"

Second tour :

6) "Le Tribunal de Commerce de Paris" (Commercial court). This building presents the peculiarity to have a dome placed not in the center, but on the side, in a way that the dome is visible from the Boulevard Sevastopol. The dome closes the perspective of the Boulevard by the South.

Melinda - On the bridge Notre Dame. We can see, on the island of "La Cité", successively,
the Hôtel-Dieu (Hospital), the "Tribunal du Commerce de Paris" and the Conciergerie.

7) On the "Pont Neuf" ("New" Bridge). 

Melinda - Pont Neuf. On left, the "Institut de France", the Eiffel tower and, on right,the "Musée d'Orsay"

8) Colonnade of the Louvre. Summit of the French classicism, the Colonnade of the Louvre was realized at the request of king Louis XIV. The Colonnade of the Louvre served as model to numerous famous buildings, in particular, the Capitol of the United States in Washington, Metropolitan Museum of art in New York and San Francisco War Memorial Opera House.

Melinda - The "Colonnade du Louvre"

9) Alexandre III bridge. The widest bridge in Paris. Built with the "Grand" and "Petit Palais" for the World Fair of 1900. The bridge offers a direct link between the "Invalides" and the Champs-Elysées.

Melinda - the Alexandre III bridge - In the distance, the "Invalides"

10) The Champs Elysées.

Melinda - Champs Elysées, at the end, the "Arc de Triomphe" and far off, the "Grande Arche" of "la Défense"

11) The equestrian statue of Joan of Arc, place of the Pyramids. She is situated not far from the Gate Saint Honoré, where Joan of Arc tried to cross Charles V's surrounding wall to reconquer Paris, occupied at the time by the English. She was hurt by an arrow in the thigh there.

Melinda - Equestrian statue of Joan of Arc, of Frémiet and inaugurated in 1874

12) The Puget courtyard in the Louvre.

Melinda - Puget Courtyard, situated with the Marly Courtyard on both sides of the passage
which connects the Louvre Pyramid to the street of Rivoli

13) Stravinsky fountain. This fountain, fountain Stravinsky or fountain of automatons, was created by the couple of artist Nikki de Saint Phalle and Jean Tinguely in 1983 and evokes the work of the composer Stravinsky.

Melinda - the "Fontaine Stravinsky", on the right George Pompidou Center

Interesting and beautiful discoveries, isn't it?
Merci Melinda !

The route of the tours: