Because I clearly loved it the first time around, I decided to spend another weekend exploring more of Le Marais! and let me just say that each time I come here, I fall more and more in love with the old charm and character of this neighborhood... Hopefully by the end of this blog post, you'll see why :-)
For your viewing pleasure, I've decided to share a few great finds from my afternoon stroll today... Of all of them, I'd have to say that, by far, my favorite highlight would have to be Place des Vosges! For my history buffs out there, you'll be intrigued to hear that this beautiful Parisian oasis happens to be the oldest planned square in Paris!
Bienvenue au Marais. Pavillon du Roi. Love the architecture. | Rue de Birague, 3e arrondissement
Place des Vosges | 3e arrondissement
Being the nerdy little me, I've always been fascinated about hearing the stories behind people, places, and things--and so after I came home tonight, of course, I had to give myself some fun, extra little homework to brush up on my Jeopardy trivia about this place :-) Quite an interesting story indeed--I must say reading up on its background definitely brought the beautiful old square more back to life!
Admittedly, many times at school I've been called the "Queen of All Nerds." So, rather than bore many of you with a full history lesson on what I learned about Place des Vosges today, I shall resist the temptation and leave my fellow nerds to rely on my best friend Mr.
Wikipedia to educate you all. Meanwhile, without any further delay, I'll let the rest of you go on and enjoy my visual delights below :-)
Statue de Louis XIII | Place des Vosges
Pavillon de la Reine. Il fait du soleil! | Place des Vosges
If only it wasn't winter, I'd spend my weekends reading here... | Place des Vosges
Hmm, I've noticed that the French love to trim all their trees flat... | Place des Vosges
Maison de Victor Hugo in the far corner. | Place des Vosges
Arcardes lining the park. Feel like I've travelled back in time... | Place des Vosges
A few more lucky gems I came across this afternoon!
To start with, this cool concept store Merci, which my sister actually told me about a few years ago. Tucked away in a courtyard off Boulevard Beaumarchais, this lovely, quirky
magasin solidaire was launched awhile back by the founders of chic children's brand
Bonpoint and would be what I'd describe as the perfect one-stop shop for cool little things to make life more fun :-)
Merci | 3e arrondissement
J'adore cette voiture rouge! | Merci
Inside you'll find a delightful selection of books, fashion, shoes, kitchen accessories, furniture, bikes, etc.--all artfully displayed to tempt even the most casual window-shopper to come in and take a peek :-) The best part about this store, though, is that 100% of profits from your purchases at Merci all go to charities! Hmm, now with a good cause like that, how can you resist indulging in some retail therapy?!
