In the sprit of our cancel culture, I demand that Paris rename the Pont Alexandre III. IT is named for the viciously anti-Semitic czar who massed the famous May Laws, which made it illegal for Jews to engage in professions and a long list of other types of work, restricted where they could live, placed a rigid quota (later adopted by Yale, I should add) on the number of Jews who could attend high schools or colleges, and made it illegal to sell property to Jews.
The laws restricting Jews were vastly more onerous than our Jim Crow laws in the South and they applied to Jews everywhere in Russia.
So down with the bridge, may it rise with a new name!
19
'Attila the Hun' was, in fact, a leader of the Huns, a different Asiatic nomadic steppe tribe, and not the Mongols.
13
Beautiful, lyrical story. Thank you, Elaine Sciolino, for this portrait of the bridges of Paris.
23
How come the author does not mention Apollinaire's poem, Le Pont Mirabeau?
One of the most evocative work about lost love and flight of time ever written...
Under the Mirabeau bridge flows the Seine
and our love.
Shall I remember
how joy always followed grief?
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
Holding hands, let's stay face to face
as under the bridge
of our arms flows
the exhausted stream of everlasting stares.
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
Love goes away like this flowing water
Loves goes away
Life is so slow,
and hope so fierce!
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
No matter how many days and weeks go by
Under the Mirabeau bridge flows the Seine
and our love.
Shall I remember
how joy always followed grief?
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
Holding hands, let's stay face to face
as under the bridge
of our arms flows
the exhausted stream of everlasting stares.
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
Love goes away like this flowing water
Loves goes away
Life is so slow,
and hope so fierce!
Come the night, toll the hour,
days go by, still I remain.
No matter how many days and weeks go by
Under the Mirabeau bridge flows the Seine.
31
The passerelle d’Ivry-Charenton is my favorite bridge in Paris. It is also the ugliest bridge in Paris (perhaps on earth as well). It is covered in interesting graffiti (some anonymous masterpieces); it is abandoned (and feels so) accessible only to bikes and pedestrians (and is crossed only on the east side); it is difficult to access on both sides; and it is constructed entirely of concrete, looking like it should collapse at any moment. It has a spectacular view of the confluence of the Seine and the Marne. There’s also a power plant with a steaming, towering stack directly at its feet to the south. It’s definitely not for everyone (and for that I’m full of thanks).
8
I spent eight days in Paris mid-September. Thank you so much for a walk through my memories. The bridges of Paris are indeed quite special.
9
Super piece.
I lived in the City of Light, across from Notre Dame on rue Frédéric-Sauton, une voie située dans le quartier de la Sorbonne du 5e arrondissement
One of my favorite things? The bridges. Memorizing their structure, dates, and names.
Thank you for this most wonderful memory jog.
15
J’adore.
C’est bien.
C’est bon.
8
Merci! The Seine just before dawn is magical. But you forgot to mention the Zouave at Pont de l'Alma! How Parisians measure floods by whether the water has reached the top of his boots, or higher.
11
Unfortunately, the subject of one of my favorite poems was missing from your wonderful bridges article. "Sous le Pont Mirabeau coule la Seine et mon amour ... faut-il qu'il m'en revienne ... ". I once composed and performed a song for soprano and piano using the whole poem, and dreaming about that bridge.
9
Thank you for allowing me to indulge once again in my love affair with Paris.
22
nothing beats the 360 degree view from Place de la Concorde except a stroll across Alexander III and a brief respite au milieu for a warm embrace and a tender kiss
7
What a lovely perspective on the bridges of Paris.
9
What a wonderful revisit. My mother and I “lived “ in Paris for a month 5 years in a row. We were fulfilling a dream. Living in the 1st or 2nd arrondissements allowed us to visit the Seine daily. I’m a photographer and took advantage of early mornings to explore the bridges. Days with light fog were especially alluring. Favorites include Pont Neuf ( and the Square du Vert-Galant and Place Dauphine), the lacy Pont Notre-Dame, the red Pont au Double and the Pont de Sully. Thank you for a very informative article and beautiful photos.
9
Wonderful...if I lived in Paris I would spend a lot of time on those bridges. I visited once, and that will probably be my only time, but the bridges and a boat ride on the Seine will be forever in my memory.
6
Having lived in Paris I share your enjoyment of the bridges. One thought Attila was a Hun (Germanic) and the Mogul hordes were led by Genghis Khan who never got close to Paris.
5
@ jeff Gorelick Reno
Genghis Khan's hords were Mongol, not Mogul.
6
Ah, I wake in the early morning hours in my rural village of Ohio, and stroll 100 yards down Le Boulevard du North (North Street) to the asphalt bridge over the former engineering Wonder of the World, the Ohio Erie Canal and contemplate its histoire. I smell the sharp aroma of the algae growing among the cattails in the silted-over bed of the storied waterway and contemplate the thousands and thousands of stories of the people who passed through here on the way to another life in the West of pre- Civil War America. Mon reverie (is that French?) is interrupted by the appearance of a muskrat swimming into the culvert. I look in vain for decorative ironwork and the only plaque is a sign commemorating they fact that the parking lot of this very nice park was once my great-grandfather’s lumberyard. C’est magnifique!
If only there were croissants. I’ll settle for an Everything Bagel from Giant.
I love the NYT but these “Don’t you wish you were me?” articles are pretty annoying. And I travel. A lot.
17
@Lightning14
With respect. I am not annoyed at all. We have been to Paris three times and this article with the beautiful pix makes me want to go back again.
Perhaps in the spring.
I live in a small city with nothing but highway bridges crossing two rivers. Nice but not exactly the same as Paris or London.
BTW There is no bagel in the world that compares to a fresh
croissant.
19
Oh and one other thing:
Now you’ve done it. You just prompted the NYT to do its annual “Isn’t it terrible that you can’t get a decent bagel in NY anymore?” story, prompting legions of New Yorkers past and present to weigh in with memories, suggestions, places in Oregon you can get a decent one, how Oregon bagels are awful, etc.
1
My point:
It’s tremendously over-written.
6
The great and wonderful Parisian culture is, very suddenly, gone. It is a shame.
2
@ Simon On A Plane
An important aspect of the Paris urban culture are the ubiquitous cafés with an outdoor terasse, where a weary sightseer can rest, smoking and drinking coffee.
3
This shows you what freely elected politicians can do. Well, not exactly.
we head back fairly soon and on this upcoming visit we will now focus on the bridges at the farther points! We will see this time the damage to the Cathedral that haunts us in occuring about 10 days after we left. Thank you for such a moving description of the river bridges: I am back again in my memories walking along the banks.
5
Thank you so much for this article and especially for the map. I've lived in Paris for 33 years and have always meant to memorize the names and order of the bridges, but somehow got lost in too many other things to learn. Now I can get around to this task.
16
I fell in love instantly twice: once with my wife and then with Paris. Thank you!
16
So beautifully written. Felt like I was in Paris myself
19
About fifty years ago on my first visit to Paris, I wandered the narrow, winding streets of the left bank early one morning until the Quai de la Tournelle and the bridge appeared before me. An elderly man in Gauloise blue overalls swept the sidewalk on the other side of street. I crossed to the bridge and turned left to see the buttressed back of the cathedral. Fifty years ago in the grey dawn there were no sounds except for the swish of a broom and the sudden intake of my breath. Thanks for the memory.
25
A splendid article.
So much that appears about Paris has to do with food or shopping or tourist needs or wants.
What a delight to read this lovely exception.
Sent with admiration and respect for Elaine Sciolino.
41
Another great song, "Paris is a Lonely Town" in which "each glamorous bridge is a bridge of sighs" from Gay Purr-ee, a wonderful animated film starring Judy Garland and Robert Goulet, with songs by E.Y. Harburg and Harold Arlen.
2
Thank you for a wonderful article that brought back waves of good memories. As a young Fulbright student living and doing research at the Université Rene Descartes in the early 90's, I walked the city incessantly after work and on the weekends. I would typically gravitate to the Pont Alexandre, with the wide views down river at dusk. My sixth floor walkup "chamber de bonne" was just off the Rue Passy, and on the weekends, I would walk over the Pont de Bir-Hakeim to play basketball at a school just across the river. I'm not sure I ever realized what the bridge was named for until reading this article. I often feel the Hemingway quote nicely summed up that wonderful year in my life: “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.”
23
From the first time I went to Paris almost fifty years ago, the city was like a costume that had been waiting for me, one that felt more familiar and comfortable than anything at home. I loved everything about Paris, from the food to the museums and the ordinary tourist experiences, to the people I met, the times I sat outside and just absorbed the pleasure of being more at home than I'd ever been anywhere else, and the feeling that I was looked after and cherished by a city that welcomed my being there.
The first time I ventured out on one of the bateaux-mouches and the boat passed under the Pont Neuf, everyone started to sing, very softly, "Under the Bridges of Paris," and it was so corny and moving that I was laughing and crying all at the same time.
Most times I stayed on the Left Bank in one- or two-star hotels, which was what I could afford, the best room being the first time I went alone, six flights up, right under the roof, and I filled it with flowers from the market. That was 40 years ago, but I can still feel it, smell it, hear it as the street cleaners washed the cobblestones in the early morning. I would give so much to be there again, then.
32
I haven't been to Paris in years and when I was there, I didn't have anywhere near enough time to begin to absorb its beauty. This article is absolutely inspiring - going to Sicily in the spring but I think a substantial side trip is in order.
That said, I'm sorry I have to ask: does Paris have nightly ant-grafitti patrols or does the hoi polloi there simply have more restraint and respect for real art than in, say, New York? The bridges pictured look admirably untouched.
5
Wow! What a beautiful article. I visited briefly in 1976 with a college tour, and was lucky enough to be there again last August. It was a wonderful experience both times, and your article enhances my memories.
My wife and I reconnected with one of our former college professors shortly before our trip. Pat was part of that long-ago tour. As I reviewed my trip diary, I was reminded of his birth date and we sent him birthday wishes shortly before we left home. (He’d recently returned from a trip to Paris in June; it was his favorite city.)
Unfortunately, Pat passed away a few weeks after our return. He was a chemistry professor, but one who was knowledgeable in many other areas as well. His enthusiasm and curiosity about so many things encouraged the same from his students. I am sure that this article would have given him great pleasure, as it has for us, by presenting his beloved Paris from a unique perspective.
Thank you!
8
What a wonderful article that brought back such fond memories of time in my favorite city in the world. In 1990, I lived close to the Pont de Bir-Hakeim and enjoyed walking across it and meeting new friends there. Months later, back in the states, my heart skipped a beat when I saw a video to a new Janet Jackson song. There she was, walking around the bridge in glorious B&W.
On one of last visits to Paris to spend a week at Roland Garros, I often crossed Pont Mirabeau after a long walk back from the stadium. NYC has the Brooklyn Bridge but nothing compares to all of the bridges of Paris. Perfectly scaled for human interaction, civic beauty and transportation.
5
Ahhhh, just beautiful.
13
For all the lovers of Paris bridges, you must get the gorgeous book by Gary Zuercher, “The Glow of Paris: The Bridges of Paris at night” . The pictures will blow your mind. The author worked on it for several years, taking pictures late at night. Waiting for the perfect light....
6
@Emmy Le Bigre
Agree, visited a few bridges along the Seine around 3AM-4AM - when Paris "pauses" for a few minutes in preparation for another day. The pre-dawn calmness is intoxicating.
5
I love this article because I also love the bridges of Paris.
And like the author, I spend much of my time on the bridges of the island St.Louis . I feel centered in Paris there.
11
Reading these comments is almost as inspiring and idyllic and magical as the article itself. So many people have a deep love of Paris’ magic and timelessness. I am one of them. I have been to Paris several times and also lived there for six months. I will go there again before I die.
35
Well I know where I'm going now on my next trip to Europe! Thank you NYTimes for the beautiful photos of the stunning bridges. They put our Canadian bridges to shame.
6
Elaine, I've been reading you for years, but this is tops. I recently visited an exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam on art and migration in Paris, where a short film: Africa on the Seine, is showing. Captivating and surreal take of Paris in 1955. Bridges and all, the Seine is holy and Paris is divine.
9
Beautifully written. I spent 6 months in Paris in my 20's and loved the bridges and long hours in museums. I wish I could repeat that time.
9
I just got back from a trip to Paris last week. It was not my first time in Paris, but the last time was 25 years ago, when I was 21 and stationed in England with the military at the time. Definitely a different perspective seeing it as a 46 year old! One of my favorite experiences was taking several long walks around the city at night. I was amazed how alive the city was at night, all of the sights and sounds. One night it was raining during my walk which added a whole different element. I was going to see Versailles on my last day there, but when I got there, the amount of people waiting in line resembled a large music festival in size. . . so I just took pictures of the outside and went back to Paris.
12
Reading this makes me want to splurge for a book I know I'd love -- History of Paris in Painting. Thank you for this lovely reminder of the amazing bridges, in a city I was privileged to enjoy twice.
4
I dreamed of standing on the Pont Neuf from the time I was a girl, living in a tenement house in a mill city. I had no business thinking I'd ever travel across state lines, never mind Paris.
It took me until age 58, but when I got to Paris and stood on that bridge, I sobbed. I wept with a broken heart for all that was so hard in my life, and in exultation for what I have been able to accomplish. It was made all the sweeter to share it with my husband, my life partner, by my side, at one of the most poignant moments of my life.
Yes, the bridges of Paris, I am sure, have left their mark on many a life.
92
During one of our visits to Paris, my husband and I merged a chocolate tour and a bridge tour into a glorious day of sweetness and beauty. We zigzagged our way back and forth across bridges, stopping for chocolate along the way. That day was one of our best in Paris.
12
I was in Paris summer of 2017, and the city was beyond fabulous. The bridges are all unique and missing from discussion is Pont de Arts, the lock bridge, there are thousands and thousands of locks, beyond comprehension. The city is very clean and it is all about enjoyment, seating is everywhere, parks are everywhere. Landmarks that would be the centerpiece of most any other city are literally everywhere.
To be honest I never wanted to go, I went.....and I didn't want to leave!!
14
Like taking a nanosecond journey to a gorgeous city, most beautiful getaway for free...thank you for this treat.
12
My high school French teacher (who was born in and hailed from Los Angeles) and her husband were both recently interred in a Paris cemetery - I have great earlier memories of being with them and visiting and crossing the bridges of Paris - the City of Light! - many years ago and when death was the *last* thing on our minds!
9
Choosing one bridge's like choosing a favorite anything; the moment you decide, you have to make amendments. I will say this, what I love about Paris; when you are here, someone with two left feet becomes FredAstaire, someone who can't sing a note becomes MariaCallas, someone who can't draw a straight line becomes AlbrechtDürer & someone who can't find the words to say what's on their mind becomes WilliamShakespeare; this city transforms the ordinary you into the extraordinary you & that's as close to Heaven as we'll ever get ... having said that, my favorite's pontAlexandre3; when you're standing in the middle of the bridge, looking over the shoulder of the water nymph, with the iron & gilt-edged grasses immeasurably waving in the breeze, illuminated softly with a crown of eight cattails, you feel you're behind the scenes looking across the Seine when, in fact, you're center stage ... how wonderful is that?
18
My husband and I managed an afternoon in Paris in 2006, a beautiful autumn day. We took a ride in the bateau bus, a great way to see the city with limited time. When we glided up to the Pont Alexandre III, I gasped, "That's not a bridge! That's a wedding cake!" Watching the each unique bridge go by was like a visit to an art gallery.
My husband is a small town guy who has never enjoyed cities, but even he loves Paris.
7
Your piece brings a tear to my eye. Our family lived in France for eleven years, of which over two in and near Paris. We made sure that every visitor had the chance to cross the Pont Alexandre III, so photogenic and spectacular is it, with staggeringly beautiful views in all directions. While living in the city again would not be our first choice in the future, there is no denying that it ranks among the most exquisite and enriching places one can visit or live. Sadly, Paris is crumbling under the weight of over tourism, with the destruction and collapse of services and monuments that brings (remember all of the selfish “love locks” on the Pont des Arts?).
10
Thank for a lovely article! Enjoyed every word.
6
Au Pont Neuf!
The challenge to a neophyte painter!
4
Thank you for this lovely piece. I saw many of these bridges while on my honeymoon in Paris 40 years ago. I am currently planning another visit in a couple of months and will definitely make the bridges a focus of this long-overdue trip.
11
My wife and I visited Paris a couple of months ago. We had a wonderful experience. The food, culture, people and sights were amazing.
Some of the beautiful we visited were of course the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, Avenue des Champs-Elysees, Place de la Concorde and from a distance, we saw Notre Dame. We get too close because it's currently under construction.
Bon jour Paris !
3
There is a scene in "The Sopranos" in which Carmela, on a trip to Paris, stands on the Pont Alexandre III at dusk. She looks up the Seine towards Notre Dame, overwhelmed by the beauty, and says "Who made this place?" I've had that feeling more than once in Paris.
48
We were lucky enough to be in Paris recently, such a beautiful city with wonderful people and amazing food everywhere. It's an example for all of us to aspire too, with excellent healthcare for all.
29
@Tibby Elgato France and Germany vie for the best health care on the planet. US wins the prize for most money spent with least effect.
15
@Tibby Elgato
but but...….what about the horrors of socialism.
cheaper, full coverage, longer life expectancies, lower infant mortality rates.
terrible stuff--and they're all shackled by the stifling of their liberty.
10
One of the best spots to run is beneath the bridges via Les Berges de Seine on the Left Bank, beginning near Musée d’Orsay and landing at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
3
One of the best evocative and informative pieces I have seen about an area I know quite well...for Times readers yet to get to Paris...keep a copy of this for when you do.
22
There was a boat moored to the left bank near the Pont de la Tournelle, a floating restaurant that served light fare. We would go there for a break from seeing the sites in the afternoons, rest our feet while sipping a glass of wine and do the princess wave to the tourists on the vedettes. The view of the back side of Notre Dame was exquisite.
On Sunday afternoons the park on the westernmost tip of the Île de la Cité, the Square du Vert-Galant, is filled with Parisians picnicking. We joined them, spread a small blanket on the concrete, opened a bottle of wine and enjoyed pâté, bread and cheese, grapes and chocolate. Aujourd'hui nous sommes tous Parisiennes.
Thank you for such a delightful article. In your words I returned to Paris. It was a lovely visit.
31
Ahhhh. Paris. Many folks will complain about this and that about the city but, in the end, it is my favorite city on earth.
I always look forward to going back.
35
@mark You are so right about Paris. I always remember how I found my way to the Bastille on July 14, 1960 after only been in France about five weeks. I traveled from Orleans to Paris and negotiated the subways with the experience I had in the NYC subways.
4
What about the bridge connecting the "back" part of Île de la Cité to Ile St. Louis?
Does that have a name?
A few Decembers back it had 3 awesome, no frills Christmas Trees on it along with a 3 piece band with a full upright Piano.
7
@Jake: That would be the Pont Saint-Louis ... I agree that is a quaint spot in the very heart of the city.
7
@Jake
You must be referring to the Pont Saint-Louis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pont_Saint-Louis
For what it's worth, in the movie Funny Face (1957), Fred Astaire is singing - apparently on the roof on Notre-Dame de Paris- but he is situated on a spot which prevents the audience to see behind him the former passerelle which was built in 1941 and demolished in 1970.
This site shows some pics of this former footbridge with the story that goes along.
https://defensesitenotredame.typepad.fr/actualite-association/2013/03/l-histoire-des-ponts-le-pont-saint-louis-suite-et-fin.html
It's in French but Google transate will be happy to help.
And thanks for your question, it gave me the opportunity to do some research and learn something.
7
@Jake
It is called le pont St Louis, from king Louis IX.
3
"Make my way to the Pont de la Tounelle" before dawn?
I find it very hard to believe that, unless there is a police station located on the bridge, this is a safe thing to do in a small town these days much less in a huge international metropolis.
Enjoyed reading about the bridges, but please stay safe.
@Joan In California It is, in fact, incredibly safe.
Some years ago, while on a business trip to Paris, I had dinner with colleagues near Place de la République. It ran long, as Parisian dinners tend to, and I left at around 12:40 AM. I hopped on the Métro, went one stop but then missed the last train of the night when I went to transfer.
This was well before the age of Uber and Vélib, and taxis in Paris are not always easy to find, especially at that hour, so I started walking back towards my hotel in Montparnasse. At first, I thought I would just walk until I came across a taxi stand, but I wasn't flying out until mid-day the next day, and decided that walking the full 3 miles or so would be something to savor. It was a fabulous stroll, along the quais and across one of the bridges - I forget which - with deliberate detours through the parts of the Left Bank that were my old haunts from my college days.
I wasn't bothered by a soul, and felt like the whole city, bathed in soft light and largely free from the sound of traffic that can be so intrusive during the day, was mine.
30
@Joan In California
Paris is much safer than you think. I have walked home alone at all hours of day or night without problem for half a century!
33
@Joan In California
Jane, Do consider this life maxim: It’s dangerous to be alive.
6
A wonderful article and great photographs. I did find my self wishing that all bridges could be seen within the article.
For those who haven't been to Paris you are in for a surprise. Last trip I was in my 70's, old, fat, diabetic and put of shape. My doctor told be to just enjoy myself and don't worry about what I ate. I was not able to pass a single pastry shop but walked so much that my weight went down 7 pounds and my A1c was also significantly lower. A pretty good him at how good those wonderful walks around Paris are. My best day was 8 miles of wonderful sights and wonderful pastries.
52
@Ken We old guys have a lot to remember of Paris. If I could still walk a useful distance without pain, I'd want to be there again right now because of this article.
12
Thank you, Ms.Sciolino, for another terrific article. Your views of the secrets of Paris are wonderful. Such a lovely activity, a walk along the quays. I saw my first JR - his eyes - just off Pont St.-Louis behind Notre Dame. Such a moving piece. Didn’t know him at that time but came to know his spectacular art. Thank you!
2
But then again, there are the indigenous people living in between those bridges to ruin things.
Isn't it time that Paris be immortalized not for its "romanticism" but for her efficiency, the reliability of public transportation, the cleanness of the subway, the absence of beggars, its technological prouesse in this 21st century?
6
My wife and I recently returned from a one-month visit to Paris. We like to go there just to live in Paris for a while. One of my favorite activities is to get up early and walk down to the Seine where I have taken many pictures of the bridges and from the bridges. Early in the morning, you nearly have Paris to yourself, and you can capture sunrises and beautiful reflections before the boats travel up and down the river. You can take pictures of the Louvre with hardly anyone in the shot. Before the fire at Notre Dame, you could visit the cathedral when it first opens and share it with maybe a dozen people. We love Paris and feel very fortunate to be able to visit for extended periods.
40
I didn’t see Petit Pont on the map or mentioned in the article. My favorite given its history.
2
There is a wonderful 13 minutes short film titled "Rites of Passage" (1979), by Canadian director Philip Jackson.
Nor sure where to find it though. Anyone have an idea?
One of the best things to do in Paris is to walk by the Seine and just let your feet take you as far as they can go. My favorite bridge is Pont au Change because my initials are carved on it.
10
I actually like Le Depart St Michel. Whenever I’ve been there, there are very few tourists, but it tends to be busy. And one of my fondest memories of Paris was sitting at one of their outside tables, when an eldery frenchwoman, dressed just so, sat next to me and my husband (we were having dinner, about 8pm, summer). The Parisienne just ordered a glass of wine. She removed two squares of dark chocolate from her bag, and proceeded to spend the next hour slowly sipping her wine, nibbling her chocolate, and regarding the passing parade. Not a single waiter said “boo” to her. Buying one glass of wine had bought her the right to sit at that table for as long as she pleased.
Since we were eating a meal of delicious plates of steak frites, salad, bread and our own wine, we were there the entire hour that madame lingered. She taught us how to slow down and savor the world around you, and I will never forget it.
And btw, those plexiglass panels on the bridges to prevent love locks are hideous. So sad it had to come to that.
47
@Ann
Agree about the plexiglass panels being hideous.... loved the love locks! They brought sooo many tourists looking at them and reading whom loved whom. One young man had several locks, each one declaring his love for different women! Such a cad! But fun. Bring the love locks back.
1
@Ann , the "love locks" were destroying the bridges but the tourists could care less. Their souvenir photos of their destructive hardware were more important to them. So blame them for the plexiglass barriers they brought about. former resident of Paris.
27
@Mickey Mouse
I was in Paris when they started to remove those love locks.
The first couple that had the idea had a cute idea. And I don't blame the second, the tenth not even the 50th.
But when people keep adding locks even when warned that the structure of the bridge is being put under stress because of the accumulated weight, it's no longer cute to ignore the warning.
As so often, the PTB had to step in because people didn't head the warnings.
Blame the plexiglass panels on the people that ignored the pleas and kept adding padlocks, not on those responsible to keep the bridge safe to use.
21
This is one of the very best articles I've read on Paris. During the year I spent there many years ago the Square du Vert Galant, beneath the Pont Neuf, was my favorite spot for quiet relaxation. Thanks for evoking so many beautiful memories.
34
This article awakens the dormant longing I always have for Paris. I don’t remember how many times I’ve been there, but there have been never enough visits, and always too short.
63
@Portlandia: I recently returned from a month long backpacking trip in France. I'm sitting here in my small mountain town yearning for Paris. Paris is the only city in the world that I love. I must go back soon. There are bridges there that I have not stood on and dreamed big dreams.
26
@Portlandia
as I mentioned in my comment, I've been 25 times.
10 of the trips in the last nine years.
at the end of my stay, I always tell myself that's enough and next year i'll go somewhere else.
Italy and spain are both very enjoyable, Yorkshire is lovely, I love the south island of NZ especially going during a new moon and looking at the milky way==and Melbourne is my favourite NEW world city.
but after a few months I start getting the paris itch.
and no matter how often I scratch it and tell myself that Barcelona, rome, san gimignano, siena, madrid, Florence, Vienna are all great, great places.....
I book a trip to paris.
20
@Portlandia
This note was left for us in the apt we rented years ago. My translation is a little rough.
What about a favorite city? Paris...... because you never know what's around the next corner. Because you live in surprises. You know, like when you're in love and you hurt a little bit. I always hurt for Paris..
10
One of my favorites is the Pont de Grenelle, where there is a narrow strip of land underneath the bridge right in the middle of the Seine which spans that one and the Pont de bir-Hakeim. The Ile aux Cygnes is tree lined and wonderful for walking and watching boats in the Seine go by. Under the bridge at the end of the island is a replica of the Statue of Liberty.
9
@GMR I seem to remember that bridge from 'Last Tango in Paris'. Is that right?
2
We rent an apt. on the Ile St. Louis for several weeks each year. I know the Pont de La Tournelle so intimately, and I have avoided Le Depart St. Michel like the plague-as you've noted, it's a tourist hub. But perhaps one very early matin I'll watch the bridge...the Pont L'Archeveche is the second bridge that links the Ile to the quai la Tournelle, and also one of my favorites...I'll be there in a few months, and cannot wait!
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Merci. You painted a beautiful masterpiece mural with your words.
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Another wonderful movie that opens and closes with a magical scene on the quay is La Nuit de Varennes.
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A beautiful article. On my wife's and my pilgrimages to Paris, I regret that the historical Pont du Louvre is no longer there. It was the bridge, on which Concino Concini, the Counsellor of Marie de Medici, mother of Louis XIII, was shot in one of the court intrigues.
Another wish, is to see more small bistros on the bridges, with the view of the Seine.
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What a wonderful article. I love the historical facts on the names of the bridges. What I would love to read from the author is a book on the history of all the Rues in Paris-a brief background of the nomenclature of all the streets.
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@Potter There is such a book.
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@Potter , that would be an encyclopedia
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The Pont de Bir Hakeim is featured at the beginning of "Last Tango in Paris," when the grief-stricken Marlon Brando shouts profanity as a train passes overhead.
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@Perfect Gentleman Yes! I also remembered that scene.
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@Perfect Gentleman-- the train would be the Metro line 6, which runs above ground, and is an older train, but a great one to take for viewing sights around the Eiffel Tower/Seine.
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Thank you so much for this article on bridges in and near Paris!!
I'd like to visit the bridge painted by Renoir in the town of Chatou 10 miles west of Paris. Is there any article published by NY Times on how to get there and how to find this bridge?
Many thanks to the author and to NYT Travel section for writing and publishing this wonderful and very informative article!
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@Fashion Fun Lover . you can eat at riverside cafe Renoir painted! I took the RER to get there.
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i returned last tuesday from my 25th visit to paris which is, in my not so humble opinion, the greatest and most romantic city on the face of the earth.
i haven't been to all of 'em but i've been to many.
la ville lumiere is incredibly walkable.
as for the bridges they are glorious; an integral part of what makes paris, PARIS......
i usually walk over pont alexandre lll most days since i normally stay in the 7th arrondissement.
the backdrop of des invalides (often called napoleon's tomb by english speakers) is phenomenal-especially at night.
i've noticed more and more people taking wedding/fashion photos on pont de bir hakeim.
i spent the most romantic 24 hours of my life with a woman from philadelphia named cathy that i met during a trip to versailles and chartres during the first full day of my initial visit in may 1981.
i was a 31, she was 37
we first kissed on the after dinner at le drug store at the bottom of the champs elysees.
we'd wandered around after our meal, holding hands and found ourselves walking across pont de la concorde near dusk.
we stopped, our eyes locked.
we kissed.
we paused and looked around us.
there was the arc de triomphe in the distance tho almost straight ahead, the eiffel tower off to the left, the louvre to the right and notre dame perhaps 3/4 of a mile behind us.
"My god we're in Paris and this is really happening!" ran thru my mind several times.
and afterwards.......
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@brupic
Well no doubt Paris holds a very fond and romantic spot in your heart and memory. For me, it's Madrid that ranks as 'most romantic'.
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@Left Coast
I think we should just agree that you're wrong, no?
I love madrid and Barcelona too. stayed with a friend on sabbatical in san Sebastian aussi.
the prado was phenomenal.
seeing bosch's garden of earthly delights and durer's self portrait were highlights for me.
and then a short walk away to see Guernica was a perfect trifecta.
I seem drawn to latin countries. Italy is another favourite....
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You can't speak of the bridges of Paris without reference to some obscure moment in some obscure film. But beware. If you choose the short cut and take a tour boat, obscure cinema will not be kind to you. Those tour boats have been a symbol of tackiness for more than one obscure film director.
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@Honeybee One acclaimed film was about a talented choreographer who used illusion to transform cabaret dancing into an art. The director viewed the boat rides as a similar, turning something base into a tourist-pleasing performance.
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@michjas
Not only those tour boats are the essence of tackiness, they also have the bad taste of throwing a glaring light on kissing lovers sitting on the river banks , who certainly would prefer a little anonymity!
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So evocative of good times spent near the Seine over the years. When walking around the city as flaneurs, strolling and drinking it in, you must take the time on the bridges to appreciate the river and the more distant perspective of the buildings. We have enjoyed staying on the Ile St. Louis more than once, and so have spent a lot of time on all its connecting bridges.
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