I had a tour client yesterday who worked in a plant nursery and she wanted to see an out of the way Paris garden. I immediately thought of the Bagatelle Garden in the Bois de Boulogne, a stunning garden just outside the city, easily reachable by metro and a short bus ride.
It was a warm, sunny, idyllic spring day and we strolled through the park soaking up the sunshine and delighting in all the plants and flowers that were blooming. I am not that knowledgeable naming plant and flower species and it was fun and educational having my client tell me the names of the trees, flowers, and plants in English and Latin.
My client stopped to admire the budding magnolia trees and pointed out how special and beautiful each bud was. I looked closely and each bud was in a different stage of bloom, from fully flowered to tiny little buds waiting to burst. Each one was like a little sculpture and I thought I must take some photos to show off springtime in Paris to you.
Jean Claude Nicolas Forestier created the Bagatelle Garden in 1905 and he also started the annual international new rose competition. The gardens now have over 1,000 species of rose bushes. The original property had an extravagant palace built for Comte d'Artois, the brother Louis XVI and brother-in-law of Marie Antoinette. The palace was built on a bet from Marie Antoinette that he couldn't complete it in less than 90 days, but d'Artois outsmarted her and had the palace finished in 63 days in September of 1777.
Bagatelle Gardens
Bois de Boulogne
Take #244 bus from outside Porte Maillot metro station and get off at Bagatelle-Pre-Catalan stop.
Open daily.
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In addition to my Eye Prefer Paris Tours, we now offer Eye Prefer New York Tours, 3-hour walking tours of New York's best neighborhoods including Soho, Meatpacking/West Village & Tribeca. Tours cost $195 for up to 3 people and $65 for each additional person.Come take a bit of the Big Apple on an Eye Prefer New York Tour!
Come experience my blog ìliveî with my Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I lead. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.Tours cost 195 euros for up to 3 people, and 65 euros for each additional person. I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris. www.eyepreferparistours.com
New! Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes
I am happy to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Cooking Classes. Come take an ethnic culinary journey with me and chef and caterer Charlotte Puckette, co-author of the bestseller The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (with Olivia Kiang-Snaije). First we will shop at a Paris green-market for the freshest ingredients and then return to Charlotteís professional kitchen near the Eiffel Tower to cook a three-course lunch. After, we will indulge in the delicious feast we prepared along with hand-selected wines.
Cost: 185 euros per person (about $240)
Time: 9:30AM- 2PM (approximately 4 1/2 hours)
Location: We will meet by a metro station close to the market
Class days: Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
Minimum of 2 students, maximum 6 students.
Click here to sign up for the next class or for more info.
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