#please reblog this though i shirked my school responsibilities for it

[njolras]

les mis walking/metro tour of paris

first of all i can’t even start this post without giving the biggest thank you to whoever is behind chanvrerie.net, because their website is truly where i found all of these details. i just pieced them together in a way that covered more ground, but they also have a marais walking tour if you want a smaller area, and more sites that i left out for various reasons. regardless of if you’re even going to use my guide, though, you should still check out the site. it goes into a lot more detail about the history of all the sites in question, although i’ll fill some in here too, and in general about how the paris of les mis became the paris of today.

that being said, parts of chanvrerie are sadly outdated -- the website doesn’t seem to have been updated since 2014 -- and when i went on earlier this week no pictures would load on the site. i had already wanted to do a walk around some of the most famous sites from the novel, but i thought i would try to make it something i could pass on to others as well due to that. read on if you’re interested!

this tour will probably take you about an hour and a half. it can be done either by paying 1€90 for a metro ticket at one point or by walking the distance, which is certainly doable as well. the picture above isn’t EXACTLY the route i describe here, because google maps is dumb, but it’s close enough that you can get a general idea of what you’re looking at. the RED on the map is the walking route -- the bulk of what you’re going to see. the place where there is no red is where you can either choose to walk or take the metro.

at the end of the post, i will go into a bit of history that you can read if you’re interested, and i also at some point will probably make a second post with tips for the metro stops and other places you can see along the way which aren’t necessarily les mis-related but are cool anyway.

the tour starts at the metro station sainte-françois xavier, which is on line 13.

PART 1 - LEFT BANK/LATIN QUARTER

Stop 1: Rue Plumet (Rue Oudinot)

When you exit the metro station, you will come out on a triangle of sidewalk in the middle of the street facing the church Saint-François Xavier. Cross the street to your left, so that you end up on the left side of the main wide street (Boulevard des Invalides) and continue to walk in the direction you were facing when you came out, keeping the church on your right side until you pass it entirely. Directly on your left, you will pass high black fences with gold ornaments at the top. The Rue Oudinot, which is the modern location of the Rue Plumet, will be a left turn right after that black fence ends.

(Unless otherwise noted, all quoted material will be from the Chanvrerie website.)

There’s a rue Plumet in modern-day Paris, but it’s way off in the 15th arrondissement. The street Hugo had in mind has been renamed the rue Oudinot, though many of the surrounding streets–including the rue du Babylone–still exist under the same names.

Sadly, the rue Oudinot is only on one side of the street and the numbers begin in the mid-20s and count down -- therefore, there’s no number 55. On Chanvrerie the author says that Theodule’s barracks are still visible, but also mentions a cul-de-sac at the end of the street, and I could find neither of those things. There is a public garden with an entrance on the rue Babylone, one street over, if you’re wanting a moment to lift up your skirts and run dramatically through some greenery, or perhaps two hours to bonk your head against a tree, but due to restructuring and continued urbanization, none of the current houses have yards that are accessible save for a small private garden in front of a modern apartment building.

Corner of the rue Oudinot from the Boulevard des Invalides, just before you should turn

View looking down the rue Oudinot from the corner

Stop 2: Faculte de Droit (Law School)

This is where you have a few different options.

The first choice, which I would recommend if it’s really hot, really cold, raining (like it was when I did this), or if you get tired easily or can’t walk very long distances, would be to get on the metro. To do this, when you reach the end of the rue Oudinot, turn right onto rue Vaneau. Continue until the end of that street, then turn right again. The metro station Vaneau, on line 10, is right around the corner, clearly marked with metro signs. There’s also a big Egyptian-style statue in a niche in the wall next to it. 

Signs marking the Vaneau station (sorry it’s so blurry)

Go down onto the metro (you will need to purchase a ticket if you don’t have one, which costs 1€90) and head in the direction of Gare d’Austerlitz. You will ride for 5 stops, and then get off at Cardinal Lemoine.

From Cardinal Lemoine station, exit onto the street with the same name (if you recognize it, Hemingway lived on the street for a few years while in Paris) and walk up the hill until you hit rue Clovis, which will be a right turn. Continue on the same street -- if you get confused at all, you can just follow signs that point towards the Pantheon. Shortly, the Pantheon will become visible, and you will pass Saint-Étienne-du-Mont church on your right after a few blocks, at which point the rue Clovis will turn into the Place du Pantheon. (Victor Hugo, along with a lot of other famous French people, is buried in the Pantheon.) As soon as you pass said Pantheon, the Faculty of Law is right up ahead -- it’s a big building with columns out in front and “Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité” emblazoned over the entrance. You can go inside the courtyard if you’d like, and there’s a small plaque out front explaining the building’s history -- albeit in French. Unlike a lot of the other buildings on this tour, the Faculty of Law was built in the 18th century, so the building that stands today is as Hugo pictured it.

Your second choice for reaching this building if you’re up for a longer stroll or want to see more of Paris is to walk. There are a bunch of different routes you can take and it really depends what you want to see, but by and large it’s a little over a half an hour to walk to the Faculty of Law from the rue Oudinot. Definitely doable, especially in nice weather. Heads up, though -- depending on how you walk from there to here, you may end up backtracking on your way to the next stop. Another reason why I recommend the metro!

The building as viewed from the Place du Pantheon

A closer view

Stop 3: Cafe Musain

As one could probably expect, the Cafe Musain’s location is pretty close to the rest of the university. To get there from the Faculty of Law, just continue onto the main road that goes ahead from the Pantheon, which is called the rue Soufflot. Don’t cross the street; you’ll want to be on the same side as the Faculty of Law. It’s a really nice walk towards the Jardin du Luxembourg -- the sidewalks are very wide and there are a lot of little shops and such. When you’ve gone as far as you can and are looking at the traffic circle in front of the entrance to the gardens, look left, and that’s the site of the Musain. Across the street from a McDonald’s... a beautiful view of the Jardins... okay yeah it’s a Burger King. Sorry. :-(

Hugo tells us the Café Musain was on the Place Saint-Michel, but the spot that bears that name nowadays was called the Place du Pont-Saint-Michel back in the 1830s and the Place Saint-Michel itself was by the Jardin du Luxembourg. It’s now called the Place Edmond Rostand.

This from Chanvrerie is, I’m assuming, true, but also, the street that makes a right angle with the rue Soufflot is, in fact, the Boulevard Saint-Michel. 

The former Cafe Musain

PART 2: RIGHT BANK/LE MARAIS

Stop 4: Javert’s Suicide/Quai de Gesvres

At this point, you’re going to cross the Seine and the Isle. If you’re facing the Luxembourg Garden, turn right from the rue Soufflot onto the Boulevard Saint-Michel. From there, it’s a straight shot out through the Saint-Michel neighborhood, across one side of the Pont-au-Change (the bridge that the boulevard becomes at the river), over the isle, and across the other side of the bridge. The part of the walk alongside the river on the other side from where we’ve been for the past few stops -- known as the Right Bank, as opposed to the Left Bank -- on the right side of the bridge is the site of Javert’s suicide. Specifically we’re talking about the area between the Pont-au-Change and the Pont Notre-Dame, which is officially called the Quai des Gesvres. There’s a little walking trail below street level, some picnic tables. It’s pretty nice.

Javert did not, as is commonly believed, throw himself off a bridge–he jumped off the embankment on the side of the river, into a part that’s placid enough right now but had nasty rapids back in 1832. Before he jumped, he left several notes for the good of the service at the Place du Châtelet police station, which still exists opposite the Pont Notre-Dame.

Funnily enough, due to the absolutely miserable weather when I was taking these pictures, the Seine looks pretty ominous here. If you turn to your right once you get to the other side of the river, you will reach the station.

The ill-fated site, as seen from the Pont-au-Change

The Châtalet police station, with the sign for Quai des Gevres visible. Again, sorry for the picture quality. At this point the weather drove me home because it was becoming impossible to hold my umbrella and my phone at the same time, so the pictures from here on out are going to be sunny.

Stop 5: Courfeyrac’s apartment (16 Rue de la Verriere)

After you reach the station, turn left at the corner onto the rue Saint-Martin, then walk until you reach a big intersection. From here you want to walk down the diagonal road that’s at about a 2-o’clock from where you’re facing. It’s called Rue de la Coutellerie. Once you get to the end of this street, you’ll be on the rue Rivoli. Turn right and walk in the direction of the giant building you’ll see -- this is the Hôtel de Ville, the Paris city hall. You’ll also be able to see the BHV across the street on your left side, which is a department store. Both are big, recognizable, and clearly marked. Keep walking on the rue Rivoli in the same direction until the BHV ends; then go one more block until you can turn left. As of June 2019, it was a Starbucks on the corner where you should turn. The street is the rue des Mauvais-Garçons. Walk down it for one block, and then it’s another left onto the Rue de la Verriere. Courfeyrac’s apartment where Marius crashed with him on occasion was the number 16, which currently houses a fancy pastry shop on the bottom level.

Another one that hasn’t changed or been renamed. Courfeyrac moved out of the Latin Quarter and into the rue de la Verrerie to be in the part of Paris “where insurrection liked to install itself,” and indeed was only a few blocks away from Saint-Merry.

A few blocks away is a little generous, as you’ll see in a second, but regardless it’s definitely closer than the Latin Quarter.

The current number 16 rue de la Verriere, with a pastry shop on the bottom floor and apartments above

Stop 6: Jean Valjean’s Apartment on the rue de L’Homme-Armé (Rue des Archives)

Continue walking left on the rue de la Verriere until you reach the corner, at which point you should turn right; this is the rue des Archives. You should walk on this road until you reach a large stone building on your right.

The section of the rue des Archives between the rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie and the Clos des Blancs-Manteaux used to be the rue de l’Homme-Armé. There’s a plaque on no. 40 indicating the former name of this part of the street, though it should be noted that this is not where Valjean’s apartment would have been–no. 7, rue de l’Homme-Armé would have been the fourth building on the other side of the street.

Number 40, now a nursery school, does indeed have a plaque giving its address as being on the rue de l’Homme-Armé. And assuming that there were no odd numbering issues on the street, counting the fourth building on the other side of the street (from the start of the original road) would make Jean Valjean’s apartment’s current address 25 rue des Archives, on the corner of the rue du Plâtre. The bottom floor is an upscale boutique.

The plaque on the nursery school

25 rue des Archives

Stop 7: The Barricade

Saved the best for last, and thankfully it’s also a simple walk. The streets of the Marais can be a little confusing at times since it’s such an old neighborhood, but this one is not so hard. Just walk in the same direction, away from the river, along the rue des Archives until you come to an intersection where there’s kind of a kink in the road and it doesn’t continue on exactly straight. Ahead on your right you’ll see a big, very old-looking building which is the French National Archives. Here, you want to turn left onto the rue Rambuteau, and again, it’s a straight shot. You will see the Centre Pompidou, the big building with all the pipes on the outside, after a few blocks. At this point the rue Rambuteau widens and becomes a very walking-friendly area. Just keep going the same way. Pay attention to the side street names. It’s easy to get confused or miss what you’re looking for. 

The climax of the novel takes place in the redoubt of the ill-fated barricade in the rue de la Chanvrerie. Hugo describes its precise location amidst the tangle of streets between the Halles and the rue Saint-Denis, but reconstructions in the mid-19th century obliterated the original maze of slums and alleys: the rue de la Chanvrerie was not so much renamed as swallowed up by the rue Rambuteau. Nevertheless, many of the original streets survive–even if Corinthe has been replaced by a lingerie shop.

Les Halles, though it used to be a market, is now a mall, and the streets are much much wider than they were during the June Rebellion. Take a look at this map with the site highlighted in red, again of course from Chanvrerie, and you’ll see that technically the barricade occupied the space on what is now the rue Rambuteau from the rue Saint-Denis to the rue Mondetour. The “front” of the barricade, or at least one of them, would be located at the current intersection of the rue Rambuteau and the rue Mondetour. It is no longer a lingerie shop -- as those of you with REALLY sharp eyes or strong devotions to George Blagden probably noticed from his Drink With Me video, it’s occupied by a bistro. However, I’m pretty sure that the bistro is now up for sale, so don’t count on that one hundred percent.

The approximate location of the barricade in June 1832 (my picture, June 2019)

The same intersection in a screenshot from George Blagden’s video (June 2016)

END OF TOUR!

if you or anyone you know actually does this, please send me a message and let me know how it went! also just in general, if you have any questions let me know. i would also still urge you to visit the great chanvrerie site for more history and sites that i didn’t include on this tour!

enjoy :~)

[everythingthemoontouches]

Hola my loves 💙 this is a quick energy check in for whenever you see this timeless reading. Made with lots of love and care, I wish you a great day / week😚 💖✨

🎨🎭Moodboards for each Pile coming soon - turn on notifications to know when it's up☺️

🦋💕Pick a cards list 🎴✨

Cake Pile 🎂💖

I see you emerging victorious. You may get some good news soon. Be wary of people who seek to benefit off your success.

Keep your inner circle close and confidential.

🐍Be on the lookout for betrayal. A friend or supposed well wisher could be secretly jealous.

When you're successful people will immediately want to cast their lot in with yours but the mob will quickly turn against You if you mess up. Be wise. Don't let success go to your head🧠 Stay calm, and confident. Enjoy your wins for you've earned them ❤️

💫Star Pile

Everyone bitches about the boss. Don't take it personally - Matthew to Amy

I see you taking greater control of your life and incorporating more structure and discipline. Learning to be firm with your time, resources and boundaries. Doing what's best in the long run even if you have to make some sacrifices along the way. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. Responsible people are the least liked but that's why there's only one king for a population of thousands. Do your duty without worry if being liked. Best not to make enemies along the way but be firm and be righteous. Divine masculine energy. Authority. Power and control. Good judgement. Law abiding figure. Strict moral and legal code. You might wanna keep an eye on the expenses.

I once knew a man who was heir to the throne of a great kingdom, he lived as a ranger and fought his destiny to sit on a throne but in his blood he was a king. I also knew a man who was the king of a small kingdom, it was very small and his throne very humble but he and his people were all brave and worthy conquerors. And I knew a man who sat on a magnificent throne of a big and majestic kingdom, but he was not a king at all, he was only a cowardly steward. If you are the king of a great kingdom, you will always be the only king though you live in the bushes. If you are the king of a small kingdom, you can lead your people in worth and honor and together conquer anything. And if you are not a king, though you sit on the king’s throne and drape yourself in many fine robes of silk and velvet, you are still not the king and you will never be one.

- C. JoyBell C.

🌈Rainbow pines

Sneaky business going on with you? Do you feel uneasy around some people? Trust your gut. Is there something you're hiding? I'd originally intended to pick out ribbons for this Pile but heard rainbow - some of you could still be in the closet and feeling more discontent about having to lie? A parent or authority figure may be concerned about you - is there someone you could confide in? Just be responsible and discerning if you're a minor still living with your parents if you think it could go downhill.

If this sneakiness refers to shirking off duties for school or work, your absences are not going unnoticed.

Be forewarned. Stop doing sneaky shit and use your wits. For some of you this could also be a message that some of the memories of pain you're carrying are doing more harm than good and it's best to ditch those memories in the past. Get rid of the excessive baggage. Cut some cords. You may be called to let go of some self destructive thoughts and self sabotaging behaviors. The subtle art of not giving a fuck is an excellent book to pick up if you haven't read it yet

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Jahn 💖

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