Montparnasse & Southern Paris - Paris - page 547

Visiting Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Serge Gainsbourg at Cimetière du
Montparnasse .
Strolling the tree-lined Île aux Cygnes from the Statue of Liberty replica towards the
Eiffel Tower.
Catching superb exhibitions at France's national library, the book-shaped Bibliothèque
Nationale de France .
Explore: Montparnasse & Southern Paris
Tour Montparnasse is an unavoidable sight, but its observation deck offers an unrivalled
spot for getting to grips with the lay of the land. At its feet are the cafes, brasseries and
backstreets where some of the early 20th century's most seminal artists and writers hung out
- albeit now swathed by urban grit. The area's tree-filled cemetery is a peaceful spot to es-
cape to - and to visit the graves of many of those same visionaries.
West in the gentrified 15e, take in more great views by strolling the Île aux Cygnes or
boarding a balloon 'flight' in the Parc André-Citroën, one of the capital's most innovative
open spaces.
To Montparnasse's east, the ever-regenerating 13e is home to the country's national lib-
rary as well as Paris' largest Chinatown. No matter where you end up for dinner in this
sprawling southern sector of Paris, head back to the river to dance until dawn on the floating
bars/nightclubs moored on the Seine's quays.
Local Life
Street life Join locals shopping for flowers, cheese, charcuterie and more along tradition-
al market street rue Daguerre.
Track life Explore Paris' former steam railway line on the newly reopened Petite Cein-
ture du 15e.
Breton life Take a crêperie crawl through Montparnasse's 'Little Brittany'.
Book life Browse secondhand books at the wonderful Marché Georges Brassens.
Fashion life Find bargain designer seconds, samples and last season's stock on the 14e's
rue d'Alésia.