I have never hidden the fact that I don't really like Paris. This has shocked quite a few people, but there were also many people sharing the same opinion. I have visited the city a few times in the past and it was always too crowded, dirty and smelling badly. There was nothing romantic about that, and let's be honest the Eiffel tower is just a lot of steel, nothing more. And when you want to see Mona Lisa in Louvre, get ready for peeking through many people in front of you at a tiny painting behind the glass.
Our friends kept asking us to visit them in Paris for a few years. We kept postponing it, hoping that they would forget, but they didn't. Recently, they told us they will be moving to Italy soon and that they would really appreciate if we would visit them in Paris before. Well, it didn't leave us much choice, so we booked our tickets and spent 4 days in Paris.
I must admit that this time I really enjoyed it. We only planned to walk around and avoid any touristy places. And let me tell you that Paris can be charming. We spent all day on Friday in Le Marais and it was amazing. You might say that Le Marais is quite touristy, but if you come here on a weekday it's really ok. We roamed the streets, visited a couple of cute cafes and patisseries, did some shopping in small boutiques, and simply enjoyed the day. We were meeting our friends in the evening, so we had the entire day for ourselves.
Even though we didn't plan to visit any museums we randomly walked in The National Archives Museum because we wanted to see its gardens. However, the gardens were closed and the museum entrance was free, so we changed our plan.
Let me take you around the museum!
It was a cold morning and we wanted to warm up in a café opposite the archives. The entrance was just across the street. When we came we were surprised to see two security guys checking the bags. We followed the instructions to get inside.
When we entered it looked rather empty. This was our first surprise of the day. I couldn't believe that there would be a free museum in Paris which wouldn't be overcrowded. But as I said we went there on Friday and it was also early in the morning.
I wanted to walk up the beautiful staircase right away, but we followed the tour which led us to the left instead.
We expected to see loads of documents, but instead we were welcomed by amazing representative rooms like this one. The archives are housed in the Hôtel de Soubise, and many rooms are beautifully preserved. This is the Prince's Salon which is leading directly to the gardens.
I liked the colour which I think is called 'sage', and I'm planning to use it for our new kitchen 😊 Also, look at those intricate sculptures on the walls...
The large study was used as a dining room, but today there are various objects placed here instead. The walls are covered in beautiful tapestries that enhance the luxurious character of the room.
This used to be the prince's bedroom, and it was used to receive visitors here too. It's kind of strange to want to receive your visitors in your bedroom, but I guess it's because of the grandeur of the room. I spent all the time looking at the ceiling decoration and that chandelier!
The small study room is decorated with wooden cupboards full with books. Later, it used to be an office for the National archives architects.
I found this room somehow calming and I could imagine working from there...
When you're there, don't forget to look up. There are some 'hidden' gems to be seen!
There is this large painting above the staircase. It's impossible to capture its size, but it is huge!
The view of the archives grounds from the first floor...
And the staircase again 😊
The exhibition on the first floor is very interesting. It doesn't only show how the archives' work, but it also gives a lot of information about different religions, acceptance of difference and other social problems.
And there are representative rooms too! These ones were the Princess' ceremonial rooms. The rooms are decorated according to princely customs and Versailles royal example, so they are simply stunning.
This is one of the less decorated rooms (or so they say) as it served as the princess' bedroom, so it was designed to respect the privacy and purpose of the room. Well, I want to see who else has a bedroom like this...
Look at those walls! From the bedroom we get to the crown jewel which is The princess' salon...
I can't find any words to describe this room, so let's just enjoy the photos...
Other rooms that we saw were not so grand, but still beautiful showing the French elegance in all the details...
And yes, we saw some archives items too 😊
We were trying to find where we were on the old map of Paris, but the only thing that we could find was the Notre Dame...
There were so many interesting objects that I could show you, but I don't want to turn this post into an encyclopaedia, so I'll show you one that I really liked. It's called shrine of St. Saint Stephen. It shows the devotion to him in the Middle Ages when many churches and cathedrals were placed under his patronage.
One more photo of the staircase before going for lunch..
BTW, when you come to Paris, make sure to visit the archives. It's an amazing place and it is for free! Museum tickets can get pricey, so enjoy the free version.
I hope that you have enjoyed the tour, and that you're ready for more Parisian posts 😊
See you next time!