Beautiful Parisian passages with Arnaud
Like Arnaud de Pézenas (city of Molière), come and discover Paris by running with Paris Running Tours, very beautiful sites and also less known but just as splendid passages. Thank you Arnaud! If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who will take you on the best sightrunning routes in Paris and who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
Thank you to our visitors for these great moments shared in 2018!
If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who will take you on the best running routes in Paris and who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
Contemporary art in one of the oldest companies in the world. With Daniela.
Daniela came from Switzerland to rediscover Paris with Paris Running Tours. During our race, we went from one surprise to another, discovering both very old institutions and very recent artistic innovations, as Paris knows how to propose them very frequently. The city perfectly combines modern art and historic buildings. We can cite many examples, the sculpture Réséda by Jean Dubuffet at the “Caisse des Dépôts”, the Saint Merri Church and the Stravinsky Fountain, the Louvre Pyramid… Today, it is within the “11 Conti Monnaie de Paris” (Paris Mint) that we discover a very original work, created by the artist Suboh Gupta. Indeed the “Monnaie de Paris” regularly exhibits the works of contemporary artists. It is however one of the oldest companies of the world still in activity. Created in 864 by Charles II, said “Le Chauve” (the Bald), to realize the currency of Paris. It has been minting French coins for over 1150 years, and still today… the Euros we have in our pockets! The “Monnaie de Paris” is located 11 quai de Conti, in a neo-classical palace built in 1775 and rebuilt identically after being burned down during the Paris Commune in 1871. See the 11 Conti – Monnaie de Paris, whether for its architecture, the visit of its museum which offers breathtaking views of its art workshops, or its exhibitions of contemporary art. Paris Running Tours recommends it. We continue on our way (Daniela is more used to mountain races and yet we run at good speed on the Parisian pavement) and surprise, we meet another work of Contemporary Art very recently installed: This time, it is the very old “Conciergerie” that houses a new installation, “Détournement” of Stéphane Thidet, who diverts part of the water from the Seine to bring it into the Conciergerie (in a controlled way… if we think of the floods that have invaded the place). The water is then returned to the Seine via the waterfall that we see on the photo. A little later, we cross the Palais-Royal and admire nature exploding in spring: The Royal Palace also presents Contemporary art works, the famous “Columns of Buren”(see here), too modern for some in 1986 (the creation caused a scandal)… It is also where the “Conseil Constitutionnel” (Constitutional Council) sits: Running does not prevent us from passing through the beautiful covered galleries of Paris, here the Galerie Vivienne completed in 1823 (and which, a little degraded, is being restored): After the oldest company, we stop in front of the oldest house in Paris, the house of Nicolas Flamel and his wife Pernelle : If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
Follow this Paris Running Tour
Thank you Claire, François and Patrice for this nice run in Paris! If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
Memories of 2017, very good moments with our visitors (3/3)
This last article in the serie reminds us some of the tours done end of 2017. Difficult to choose, we love all the tours we do with the runners who come to follow us. Here, we recall the tours made with Heidi, Angela, Nicole and Katherine from New York, end of September, with Sarah from England, beginning of October, with Alicia and Brooke from California and very recently, in the cold of December, with Jessica from Connecticut. Photos remind us of these good times. Photos and also some little curiosities… On the way, some very Parisian surprises (our guides will explain to you all these curiosities which mark out our routes): Sarah ran with us four times. It is always with a renewed pleasure that we share new aspects of Paris with this experienced runner: At the beginning of November, we had the joy of running with Alicia and her daughter Brooke who came to join us a second time: More recently, we welcomed Jessica. The cold of December does not scare the runners: If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you. Enjoy an original private tour, tailor-made for you:
Memories of 2017, very good moments with our visitors (1/3)
So many good times spent with our fellow runners from all over the world in 2017. Even though we have many tours in this month of December, we take a little time at this end of the year to share some of the good memories that each tour gives us: three end of the year articles evoke some of these moments. The photos speak for themselves (with some text to comment on). Here, at the end of August, a few strides of the visit with Melissa and Chris from Washington DC (Thanks Chris for the pictures!). More simple, a little character awaits us when we return to the hotel: Merci Chris ! Merci Melissa ! If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you. Enjoy an original private tour, tailor-made for you:
A personalized tour? What shall I discover of Paris? Known and unknown sites
Here is a question that is often put to us: “I would like to see monuments and sites very well known in Paris but also places less touristic … What am I going to visit with Paris Running Tours ?” Of course, during the run, our guides will make you discover the iconic sites of Paris (with total peace of mind, before the crowd). However, during the same run, our guides, authentic Parisians, will take you to other magnificent places less known and rarely visited by tour operators, AirBnB tours, large groups or standardized tours. We take time before the run to prepare your custom-made tour: you will understand Paris in a unique way. Running allows us to grasp many aspects of Paris, and to discover alternatively the prestigious monuments and also places less known sites by the general public but equally exciting. At Paris Running Tours we know how to lead you there 😉 Here is a panel (a quite small sample) of what you can visit with Paris Running Tours (click on the picture to enlarge them): Thank you Helen and Mike from New Zealand, Catherine from Australia, Kristine from New-York, Chrissann and Michael from New-Jersey, Nicole from Australia, Melissa and Chris from Washington, who ran recently with us and all the other runners we are happy to welcome on our tours. We love to share with you the beauty of the prestigious sites of Paris and the charm of other lesser known places… 😀 If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
How many Arcs of Triumph in Paris? With Adam and Bridget
Adam and Bridget (Philadelphia) began their vacations in Paris with a sport discovery of the City. Paris Running Tours prepared them a tour which included well-known historical places and also spots and buildings less famous but still fascinating. Running while visiting offers the possibility of seeing many district and understanding numerous aspects of the city. The photo above is taken at the start of what we call the “Historical Axis of Paris“. Do you know where exactly is the spot which starts this perspective? We already spoke about this axis during the visit of Juliana and Pedro in 2012. You can also directly look at the track of this axis in the image we created (Click on it for all the details). So, how many Arcs of Triumph in Paris? We can already count one in the photo above: the Arc of the Carrousel. Now let us enlarge the Arc of the Carrousel in the axis of the perspective: What do we see in its center? The Arc of Triumph of Charles de Gaulle square (“Place de l’Étoile”), it gives two Arcs. These two Arcs were built at the request (and for the glory) of Napoleon 1st. If we get closer to the Arc of Triumph, for example in the middle of the Garden of the Tuileries and we look at the center of the Arc of Triumph, we can see far away another Arc, newer this time, The “Grande Arche de la Défense”. It gives three Arcs. Look, in the right of the first photo of the article: This separation marks the city wall of the King Charles V. If you continue on the track of this wall you will join what we call the “Grands Boulevards”. It is precisely the place we are going with Bridget and Adam. The “Grands Boulevards” replace this protective wall created by Charles V and then completed on the West by Louis XIII. Later, the King, saying that he was able to defend his country (and even more…), had this wall destroyed to give what will become “les Grands Boulevards”. To replace the entrances in the North of the City, the Doors of Paris, he had two Arcs built, the “Arc de la Porte Saint-Martin” and the “Arc de la Porte Saint-Denis“: Two additional Arcs, it gives 3+2 = 5! 5? The “Grande Arche de la Défense” not being in Paris, it gives 4. Therefore we have Four arcs of Triumph in Paris. But, by the way, who is this King who built these two “Doors”? You can read “LUDOVICO MAGNO“, Louis the Great, Louis XIV, the Sun King! Admire the sculptures, all for his victories and his glory. He dominates his enemy, buried under the ground, or the defeated peoples come to give him the keys of their cities: Not far from the Grands boulevards, we discover a nicely decorated pediment, with in the vignettes, the five continents and lower, the Prudence which holds the mirror of the Truth: But what is this building? A Bank! Merci Bridget ! Merci Adam ! If you too, you come to Paris, we will be very happy to run with you. Join us and discover Paris with authentic Parisians guides who always have tons of secrets to share with you:
Running 25 km under the sun of Paris, with William
William – Sunrise from the bridge Alexandre III 6h55 – William comes from Dubuque, Iowa. Long distance runner, William chose to run 25 km (15.5 miles) to discover a lot of aspects of Paris. We left early to see the rising sun, magnificent sun which accompanied us during the run and gave us beautiful images of Paris. 25 km allows to see full of beautiful Parisian places, in particular: The Alma bridge and its “zouave” – Remember this visit with Lotte, where we speak about the “Zouave” and the river Seine. William – “Pont de l’Alma” The garden of the Trocadéro and the Eiffel tower William – “Tour Eiffel” The “Invalides” – We also went there during this tour with Sharon. We had evoked the history of these cannons. Look, a small rabbit hardly hidden by the cannons came to greet us. William – “Esplanade des Invalides” – On the right, a little rabbit from the Invalides The Arc of the Carrousel – The “Arc du Carrousel” comes to us from Napoleon the Ist (We had discussed it with Kristy) and the horses are copies of the horses stolen by Napoleon in Venice (their story had been told during the tour with Ingrid). Carrousel? A merry-go-round? Actually, this name is connected to an equestrian show which took place at the time of the king Louis XV. William – “Arc du Carrousel” The French National Museum of Natural History (“Muséum Naturel d’Histoire Naturelle”) whose head office is in Paris, here in the magnificent Garden of the Plantes (“Jardin des plantes”). William – “Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle” – “Jardin des Plantes” The Square of the “Hôtel de Ville” of Paris (The City hall of Paris). Look at the drawing at the ground. We can see a ship. It is the Paris coat of arms. If there is a place where to see the symbol of Paris, it is here, at the “Mairie de Paris”, the Paris city hall! To know more about it about this blazon, read the explanations which we left to describe the running tour with Emily. William – “Hôtel de Ville de Paris” The famous bookshop “Shakespeare and Company”, the Mecca of the Anglo-Saxon culture in Paris, in particular, a meeting place for the American and Anglo-Saxon writers as Woody Allen evokes it in the movie “Midnight in Paris” (see the photo of the movie where we see the character interpreted by Owen Wilson in front of the bookshop): William – Shakespeare and Company – Wallace fountain The magnificent banks of the Seine: William – Saint-Michel bridge – To the left: the island of “La Cité” with Notre-Dame, to the right: the left bank of the river Seine Merci William ! The route of the tour:
Some small secrets of the Parisian landscapes, with Kara
Kara – Bridge of the Carrousel 8:01 AM – With Kara, who comes from Atlanta (USA), we ran on an attractive route of more than 9 km and took advantage of the magnificent landscapes offered by Paris, emphasized by the sun which accompanied us this morning: splendid urban landscapes of Paris, buildings and monuments which revealed us small secrets during our running. For example on this photo of the Louvre taken since the bridge of the Carousel: do you see the lantern stands of the Pavilion of Lesdiguières which is at the right of the photo above? Let us look closer: Lantern of the Pavilion of Lesdiguières Golden “N” decorate the balcony of the lantern as on the one of the pavilion which faces it, the pavilion of Rohan. These “N” placed in the end of the Second Empire in the middle of the 19th century, honor the Emperor Napoleon III. But here, on the pavilion of Lesdiguières, these “N” are back to front! We think that the worker who put them, would have inverted them because of his hostility to Napoleon III! This small secret was discovered during the restoration of the Louvre museum in 1985, more than one hundred years after their installation! On the left, the lantern of the Pavilion of Rohan – On the right, the one of the Pavilion of Lesdiguières Not far from there, the famous Bridge of the Arts. Some tourists call it henceforth the “Love Padlocks” bridge*1… Kara – Footbridge of the Arts It is true that it is about one of the most romantic places of Paris, it would be only by its sight on the Island of the “Cité”. But what do we see if we get closer to the Island, behind the place Dauphine? A bird… A bird… It is one of the Imperial Eagles of the Justice Palace of Paris (Imperial Eagles dear to Napoléon the 1st, notice the “N” under the Eagle…): By pursuing our running in the Louvre, we decide to make a photo in the very beautiful squared courtyard (“Cour carrée du Louvre”): Kara – Cour carrée du Louvre Under our feet you can find the first Louvre, the Medieval Louvre, a fort protecting the West of Paris by strengthening the Outer wall of king Philippe Auguste. If you visit the basements of the Louvre, you can see the foundations of the medieval castle. Here is its representation and a photo of its foundations: Medieval Louvre – Foundations By leaving the Louvre, we go through the garden of Tuileries and its numerous statues: Kara – Garden of the Tuileries Notice for example, on the right-hand side of the photo above, the Statue of the Oath of Spartacus: By continuing along the historical axis of Paris, we arrive Place of La Concorde, magnificent place which really deserves a stop. Kara, “place de la Concorde” – In the axis, the Champs-Elysées with the “Arc de Triomphe” To the right, in the entrance of the Champs-Elysées, a rearing horse: one of the Horses of Marly. A copy of which the original is in the Louvre, original now protected from the vibrations provoked by the heavy machines of the National day military parade. Remember this article: Passing in front of the horses of Marly with Mary If we take a close look, we distinguish green flags. They are the flags of the Paris Marathon that took place five days earlier! Merci Kara ! The route of the tour: *1 The City hall of Paris recently decided to forbid the pose of these padlocks on buildings or bridges of Paris because they threaten and damage these Parisian heritage. Artists are requested to find a respectful replacement to these wild poses (Article France 3 – in French).