Promenade Plantée | Paris Travel

Panorama of Paris as seen from l'Arc de Triomphe.

Our Silver Paris

Welcome to my Paris travel journal,

where I share our experiences of our special journey to Paris.

Please use these posts as a guide for your own travels

to this amazing and wonderful city!

Or simply read, and dream...

With a day like the day before--our anniversary--we needed a slower, gentler day.  We were grateful for our boulangerie and for Advil (for my aching back) and Tylenol (for Fernando's knees)!  We were determined to take it slowly and enjoy a lesser-seen side of Paris.

The beautiful blue doors to our building.

After a very leisurely Thursday morning, we left our appartement and headed southeast, past l'Opéra Bastille and into avenue Daumesnil.  A few steps more and we walked up a set of stairs to the promenade Plantée, also known as la Coulée Verte.  Here is the scene that greeted us:

 La promenade Plantée, a beautiful raised walkway that was once a railway.

The promenade Plantée is a beautiful raised walkway which was built to replace old railway tracks.  In fact, a railway station once stood where l'Opéra Bastille stands now.  The railway tracks were raised because the trains passed through a densely populated area.

We spotted a church spire rising from behind trees as we walked on the promenade.

There are signs that informing joggers that although they are allowed along the walkway, they must not hinder the right of pedestrians to walk along and enjoy the promenade.

We also passed this long and narrow appartement building.

La promenade Plantée will take you a few miles out of the city and into the Bois de Vincennes, a forest/park area.  Since this was supposed to be a pleasurable walk for us, we descended the stairs after just a bit and backtracked, at street level, along the path we had just come down above.  Under the old railway tracks, le Viaduc des Arts is another wonderful window-shopping experience, with cafés, shops, and workshops.  We looked into windows where traditional crafts, including pottery, painting, glass blowing, weaving, the restoration of furniture, textiles, and musical instruments are practiced and sold.

The shops in the viaducts underneath le promenade Plantée.

A specialty shop with unique lighting. The ship is a chandelier!

Furniture, mirrors, and a unique "tree" bookshelf are displayed in this shop.  I love that bookshelf!

Hand-crafted, and on sale for 3.500 euros!  (Almost $4,600 American dollars.)

Wedding shop.

Pottery, plaques, and pictures in this pretty shop.

One last image--and I wished I would've taken the time to put a filter on my camera for this one.  The reflections are just a little much, but I think you can still see this artist, who was peacefully painting and oblivious to the photographer on the sidewalk trying to capture her picture.

• Nearest Métro station:  Bastille (lines 1, 5, and 8)
• Cost:  free
• What to look for:  Raised tree-lined walkway along avenue Daumesnil with benches for relaxing.  Pretty trees and arbors along the promenade.  Also, beautiful, exclusive shops along the viaducts underneath the walkway.  A great window-shopping opportunity!
• Combine with:  Place de la Bastille.

Treasuring life's moments,
Christine

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