Paris tales - part one, swanning about
I walk miles through the French capital, so you don't have to. Welcome to the first in a series of hidden/lesser-known places in Paris..
View along L'Allée des Cygnes at the point where the Pont de Rouelle crosses the island…
I have a complicated relationship with capital cities. I see them like a series of ex boyfriends - some good, some bad and not one of them a keeper (I am a proper country girl).
Vienna is the one that got away - kind-hearted, strong - a near-perfect match, but with something slightly missing. London is a coarse brute, who plays video games while only wearing underpants. Berlin is the popular boy that everyone else seems to fancy, but leaves me rather cold. And Paris is the most complicated of all - a violent, beautiful, manipulative creature, that you vow to keep away from, yet keep on fucking.
I try to go to Paris every month during spring and autumn. Recently I have made a point of staying in more residential/less popular areas, to escape the tourists and discover something new. I’ve had some hits and some misses. Staying around the corner from the Gare de l’Est was a mistake. I watched a group of men openly smoking crack together in the early afternoon, before one pulled a chain out of his pocket and started whipping his friends. The Canal Saint-Martin was populated with shouting freelance evangelists and people with appalling mental health. One morning a man grabbed me and roared in my face as I went to a bakery; the same evening an elderly woman shrieked “Pute!” at me as I walked along the waterside. Some people might enjoy that, I suppose, maybe think of it as a slice of life, but I find my mood as I wander around Paris, cycles from delight to terror repeatedly and it’s all a bit tiring.
One Sunday evening in February, shortly after getting off the Eurostar, I walked down from the Eiffel tower towards the residential district known as Javel. Located in the 15th arrondissement, this large, safe neighbourhood doesn’t attract many tourists. I was attending Vinexpo, a huge wine fair held in a convention centre right in the south of the city, very close to the Périphérique. I figured I could walk there from Javel fairly easily and would also have the chance explore a part of Paris that I had never visited.
One discovery I had made while researching the area, was the presence of a long, skinny, artificial island which could be reached by a flight of steps either from the Pont de Bir-Hakeim or the Pont de Grenelle. Called Île aux Cygnes (swan island), it was originally built to protect the Pont de Grenelle that runs across its southern tip. Unlike the other two islands in the city (Île de la Cité and Île Saint-Louis) it is uninhabited.
It was a dark and cold night. As I reached the staircase on Bir-Hakeim bridge, I was hit by a cloud of pungent weed smoke, rising up from a group of teenagers gathered at the bottom. The steps led down to a long narrow pathway called L'Allée des Cygnes, lined with trees and flanked by benches. Every bench was occupied by enthusiastically canoodling couples (possibly ones not married to one another, who were too cheap to pay for a Premier inn, unlike our British adulterers).
The black waters of the Seine lapped at the edges of the island, as I walked towards a climbing wall and outdoor exercise area. It was full of young people working out, completely unbothered by passers by.
The main reason I was on the island, was to discover an unusual landmark. A scale model of the Statue of Liberty stands on a plinth, looking out over the water. Donated to the city by the Parisian expatriate community in the United States, it was opened to the public on 4 July 1889. It’s not the only statue of liberty in Paris either, there are two in the Musée des Arts et Métiers and another one is knocking around somewhere - possibly in the Jardin du Luxembourg, or the Musée d'Orsay. This particular statue on the Île aux Cygnes is most impressive - and if you happen to be on a boat, you can get an amazing photograph with the Eiffel tower behind.
A few months later I returned during the day. This time the place was full of families and I did notice the occasional tourist. It was lovely to walk along L'Allée des Cygnes, with a cool breeze tempering the unseasonal heat. It’s a remarkably peaceful spot, given its proximity to some serious tourist sites and an ideal place to escape the crowds and relax.
Île aux Cygnes is easy to find - the nearest metro stations are either Bir-Hakeim or Passy. Don’t try to access the island from the bridge that runs across the centre, the Pont Rouelle, as it doesn’t have stairs down. There are also no facilities on the island - so bring a picnic or seek out a cafe afterwards. Île aux Cygnes is open 24/7 and is free to visit
Statue de la Liberté, Île aux Cygnes