Parc Montsouris

If you are looking for an English garden in Paris, look no farther than Parc Montsouris. Just hop on the RER B metro line, we started at Luxembourg Gardens, and go south to the Cité Universitaire stop. Exit the metro station, don’t follow the stream of people across the street just yet but instead, turn right. Walk down the sidewalk to the first park entrance you see. Be sure to wander through the park to the northwest corner to see Square Montsouris !

Stone Monolith

Near the entrance which is on rue Jourdan, you will see a huge stone monolith with an oculus piercing the top. Curiously it has carved in its side “Du rêgne de…..” and then clearly the name has been chiseled out! The missing name is Napolean I and was most likely chiseled out after the Restoration of the Monarchy. According to Paris secret et insolite  (French Edition) this was used as a sight line by astronomers at the Paris Observatory.

This sight line served to mark the Paris meridian line by which the longitudinal lines on all French maps were aligned between 1666 and 1884. After that point in time, France measured its longitudinal map lines by the Greenwich Observatory near London.

ARAGO Markers

A few meters from this stone marker you find the first of 135 medallions placed along Paris meridian line. The markers have ARAGO written on them because they are honoring François Arago who, in the 19th century, is attributed with having recalculated the accuracy of the meridian line location. This map  provides the location of the medallions if you are interested in “walking the line”.

 

 

There are so many paths to wander in Park Montsouris which was built in 1860 and it is so peaceful here. The students from the Cité universitaire really seemed to enjoy the space. It was a sunny warm October day and students congregated in groups surrounded by their books in the sun, mothers pushed strollers and  neighborhood residents wandered slowly down the paths.

 

 

 

 

Square Montsouris

We exited the park on the upper northwest side and visited Square Montsouris. Although the street is listed as Square Montsouris it is a private street that was created in the 1920s and1930s. Don’t worry, it is still open to pedestrians! This street is unusual in that Paris has predominately multi-family housing but the houses here are detached.

At #51 just at the bend of the street before you reach avenue Reille and the Reservoir, you find a house that is representative of the Cubism style of the 20s.  The photo was a disaster (You can’t predict bad sectors in a SD card!) so instead, enjoy these other houses on the street!

 

 

At #14 rue Nansouty (just across the street from the park), the house has a rooftop terrace and garden.

At #40 Square Montsouris is the home of sculptor Claude Bouscau (1909-1985). This house has been hardly modified since it was built in 1923 except for the addition of the wrought iron balcony which replaced a wooden structure. It was inspired by the half-timbered houses found in the Marais neighborhood.

 

Paris has many charming streets!

 

Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris

We wandered back through the park to the metro station. If you did not cross the street in front of the metro station when you first arrived, do so now! You don’t want to leave this part of Paris without visiting the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris. Every fall 12,000 students at the Masters and Phd level are admitted from 140 different nationalities. This campus is much like a park although not nearly as charming as Parc Montsouris.

Walking through the center of the above building we arrived at a vast expanse of green bordered by a lovely tree-shaded walkway.

We had such a lovely afternoon in Parc Montsouris  just for the cost of a short metro ride!