History of the hotel : the building was erected in 1840. It was among the very first to be constructed along the future boulevard. It was converted into a hotel in 1913-1914. The cherrywood furniture in some of the rooms dates back to that period. Several painters have stayed here. One of the last to do so was Roger Houck, some of whose works are displayed on the ground floor. The hotel also numbered some very famous variety-show performers among its clients. They came to visit the studio located on the 6th floor.

Church of St Médard : head left when leaving the hotel, down Avenue des Gobelins (1st on your left) until you reach the Church of St Médard. The choir of this ninth-century church was built between 1550 and 1586 and the vaulting between 1609 and 1622. The inside was renovated between 1777 and 1784; visitors may admire the pulpit, which dates back to 1718, the eighteenth-century organ and three paintings by Natoire, Restout and Zurbaran. The graveyard around the church witnessed scenes of mass hysteria during the Jansenist controversy (the episode of the "convulsionaries") and was later converted into a park. This is the only church in which persons guilty of cannibalism can receive absolution.

* Across from the church, visit Rue Mouffetard and its market : the buildings are dated 1620 to 1840. Walk up the street to Place de la Contrescarpe, ending Place du Panthéon.

You may admire a few shop signs - n° 69 Le Vieux Chêne (1837)

- n° 122 A la Bonne Eau (1823)

- n° 128 Trois Poissons et Petit Cerf (1840)

- n° 134 A decorated façade, more recent, but quite typical...

* Rue Daubenton, don't miss n° 47: the doorway led to the former graveyard (note the remarkable remains of the city walls).

Manufacture des Gobelins (tapestry workshops) : created in 1662 by Colbert (some remains of buildings dating back to that time may be seen Rue du Fer à Moulin). It owes its reputation to the dyes used for the wool (which was washed in the waters of the Bièvre river) and to its inimitable "blue". The first dyer, Jean Gobelin, settled on the banks of the Bièvre in 1443. Starting from Place des Gobelins, go up Avenue des Gobelins. You will find the Manufacture about 100 yards further, on the right-hand side. It is open to visitors on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 2:15 pm and 2:45 pm. Across the street, don't miss the façade of the "Gaumont Gobelins" movie theatre, some of whose sculptures bear the signature of Rodin.

The famous Santé Prison : located on boulevard Arago, about 500 yards from the hotel. Inmates sentenced to death were executed publicly under the guillotine, erected at the corner of Boulevard Arago and Rue de la Santé. The priest and the executioner usually stayed at our hotel in order to be there at 5 am, which was the legal hour for executions.

Before the prison, on the left, be sure to see the Cité Fleurie, a favorite place of many artists, sculptors, painters and craftspeople, who are fiercely defending their workshops against city planners. Rodin, Bourdelle, Maillol, Gauguin and Modigliani worked there.

Across from the prison, take a stroll through the superb Parc de l'Observatoire.

Place Denfert Rochereau : if you have a taste for the macabre, visit the Catacombs and their underground galleries. They are open to the public from Tuesday to Friday between 2:00 and 4:00 pm and on Saturdays and Sundays from 9:00 to 11:00 am and from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.

The chapel of Val-de-Grâce (1664-1665) : (open only on Sundays for two traditional Masses in Latin, with Gregorian chant, at 9:00 and 11:00 am) : head right when leaving the hotel, go up Boulevard de Port-Royal. Then take the 2d street on your right (Rue St-Jacques). You will find the chapel at n° 281. A dome inspired from that of St Peter's in Rome crowns the structure; the decorations are by Mignard, with sculptures by M. Anguier.

Jardin des Plantes (Botanical Gardens) : take Boulevard St Marcel, then the 3d street to your left (Rue des Fossés St-Marcel) in order to go in through the Jussieu gate. Formerly the "Royal Medicinal Herb Garden", the Jardin des Plantes is now a public park surrounding the laboratories of the National Museum of Natural History and various educational facilities: a zoo, vivarium, greenhouses, exhibition halls... Nearby are the Jussieu Cedar of Lebanon, planted in 1734, and the Cretan maple trees, planted in 1702. On November 4, 1793, the public prosecutor of Paris published an order stating that all the wild animal keepers in the capital would henceforth be liable to arrest. Their animals were housed at the Jardin des Plantes after their owners had been compensated and enjoined to make a living in some other way. That was the beginning of the zoo, with the support of Geoffroy St Hilaire. It included a leopard, a civet cat, two monkeys, a tabby cat, a polar bear and two eagles.

The Paris Mosque : located across from the Jussieu gate of the Jardin des Plantes, it was erected between 1922 and 1926, in the classical Western Muslim style.

Arènes de Lutèce (Roman amphitheater) : together with the Musée du Cluny, these are the only remains of the Gallo-Roman period still extant in Paris. Turn left along Avenue des Gobelins, then up Rue Monge on the right until you reach n° 47, then turn right again, rue de Navarre.

Despite the Barbarian invasions, ground levelling carried out in the sixth century, the building of convents and the creation of gardens, construction work carried out by the Compagnie des Omnibus led to the discovery of the first remains in 1869. Unfortunately, Napoleon III did not consent to make the Arenas a protected site. In 1883-1885, thanks to Victor Hugo and V. Duruy, the first half of the amphitheater was brought to light, then later (in 1915) the other half. At that time, Dr. Capitan began the restoration of the site, but was unable to bring it back to its initial length (140 yards) or to restore the tiers, which have been greatly altered (they initially seated 15,000 people).

HOW TO REACH THE VARIOUS TOURIST SITES IN AND AROUND PARIS

Château de Versailles :

Public transportation: take bus n° 91 to Gare d'Austerlitz (stop in front of the CCF bank on the other side of Place des Gobelins). Then take RER C to the Versailles RG station.

By car, go up Avenue des Gobelins (on the right starting from the square) as far as Place d'Italie. Straight ahead, take the broadest avenue, "Avenue d'Italie", as far as Porte d'Italie. Turn right onto the western beltway ("Périphérique Ouest"), then, at Porte d'Auteuil, take Autoroute de l'Ouest (A 13) and exit at Versailles.

Sainte Chapelle : bus 27 or 47 or metro (get off at Châtelet).

Bibliothèque Nationale de France (by metro) : at the Gobelins station, take line n° 7 in the direction of Villejuif or Mairie d'Ivry. One stop later (Place d'Italie), change to line n° 6 (in the direction of Nation). Get off at the Quai de la Gare station.

The Eiffel Tower (by metro) : at the Gobelins station, take line n° 7 in the direction of Villejuif or Mairie d'Ivry. One stop later (Place d'Italie), change to line n° 6 (in the direction of Charles de Gaulle Etoile). Get off at the Bir Hakeim station.

Notre Dame Cathedral and the Conciergerie (via public transportation) :

By metro : at the Gobelins station, take line n° 7 in the direction of La Courneuve 8 Mai 1945. Get off at Châtelet, then cross the Seine on foot.

By bus: take bus n° 47 on Avenue des Gobelins (in front of the "L'Interlude" café) and get off at Notre Dame.

Sacré Coeur and Place du Tertre : at the Gobelins metro station, take line n° 7 in the direction of La Courneuve 8 Mai 1945. Get off at Stalingrad and change to line n° 2, in the direction of Porte Dauphine. Get off at the Anvers station, which is the starting point of the funicular railway for Sacré Coeur.

Many tours are offered by Paris Vision (Paris, Versailles, Fontainebleau, Chartres, Mont-Saint-Michel, etc.) : information and reservations at the reception desk ; brochures on the reception counter.