{"id":13337,"date":"2012-03-16T12:45:35","date_gmt":"2012-03-16T01:45:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/?p=13337"},"modified":"2013-07-12T16:23:09","modified_gmt":"2013-07-12T06:23:09","slug":"getting-lost-in-le-marais","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/2012\/03\/16\/getting-lost-in-le-marais\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting lost in Le Marais"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Coco
\n Mus\u00e9e Carnavalet<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Paris\u00a0is remarkable at face value but its\u00a0true\u00a0character comes out only when you take time to explore each of its\u00a0arrondissements<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Each arrondissement<\/em>\u00a0has its own personality\u2014the young, lively, and professional\u00a0crowd\u00a0filling up bars in the Bastille; the artsy bohemians hanging out in caf\u00e9s around Montmartre; the students and backpackers finding the best bars to spend the night in the Latin Quarter; the trendy and chic searching for fashion and glam along the rues<\/em> of Saint-Germain-des-Pr\u00e9s\u2014and each one can appeal to a different part of you.<\/p>\n

You can have your\u00a0very own part of Paris that suits your personality best. For me, it is Le Marais.<\/p>\n

Le Marais, which is situated in the 3rd and 4th arrondissements<\/em>, is rich in history and culture. The small, medieval streets are home to not only chic shops, but also delicious food, unique bars, and fantastic museums.<\/p>\n

\"Coco
\n Modern shop with old sign from a boulangerie in Le Marais<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Le Marais mixes all the best of Paris\u2014old and new, young and old, traditional and modern. Men with gray, flowing beards wearing black fedoras can be seen walking down rue des Rosiers with their prayer book, right next to a happy couple entering a bar with a proudly displayed rainbow flag hanging in the window, or a young French woman wearing the newest fashion carrying several shopping bags. It is an area that has held on to the past but embraced the present.<\/p>\n

People who know good food in Paris come to endure the long line at L\u2019As du Falafel\u00a0to enjoy a 5\u20ac falafel. Le Marais is also the place to flock to on Sundays. While the rest of sleepy Paris is closed down for its day of rest, the streets of Le Marais are wide awake and lively. The day can be spent enjoying a caf\u00e9 cr\u00e8me<\/em> on a terrace,\u00a0lounging\u00a0in the Place des Vosges, shopping on rue\u00a0Saint-Paul, exploring Paris history in the Mus\u00e9e Carnavalet, or meandering along the small streets woven into the neighborhood.<\/p>\n

\"Coco<\/span>
\n Place des Vosges<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

This is the oldest and best preserved area of Paris with a long and colorful history. Although at the height of splendor in the 17th century Le Marais was the place to be, the creation of Versailles resulted in the nobility moving away from the area,\u00a0leaving Le Marais neglected\u00a0and\u00a0unappreciated. It quickly\u00a0became\u00a0a slum and Jewish ghetto\u00a0that underwent severe damage during WWII.<\/p>\n

In the 19th century, when Baron Haussmann started one of the greatest urban\u00a0construction\u00a0projects ever seen, Le Marais was left\u00a0untouched\u00a0due to his lack of interest in the area. Therefore, Paris got its grand squares and large boulevards and Le Marais was left with its small passages and ancient buildings.<\/p>\n

However, due to the growing grandeur of Paris, the real estate in Le Marais started to become more appealing. Soon decrees were passed to protect the area and prevent demolition. With much time, the problems caused by years of\u00a0neglect\u00a0were\u00a0rectified and Le Marais became the bustling neighborhood it is today. Much of the preserved history adds to the charm of Le Marais\u2014modern shops found in old p\u00e2tisseries<\/em> still proudly display the old signs above their doors.<\/p>\n

Le Marais is one of the neighborhoods that brings Paris to life. Food, art, culture,\u00a0and history can all be found, making it the perfect place to explore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The small, medieval streets are home to not only chic shops, but also delicious food, unique bars, and fantastic museums. Le Marais mixes all the best of Paris\u2014old and new, young and old, traditional and modern. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":875,"featured_media":64268,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[1098,1089],"tags":[436,573,172,213,237,281,366,368,384],"class_list":["post-13337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-expat-experience","category-vie-francaise","tag-things-to-do","tag-an-american-in-paris","tag-culture","tag-france","tag-french-history","tag-in-english","tag-paris","tag-paris-guide","tag-places-to-go"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/875"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13337\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}