January 2014 ~ Invisible Paris

The Morrison Hotel Mystery

The death of Jim Morrison is not the only mystery in the Rue Beautreillis. On this street where the leader of The Doors spent the last few months of his life and where he (probably) died, another door stands curiously alone. But what is it?

The last bastion standing

Today only one significant element of the city’s 19th century fortifications remains standing. Where is the Bastion n°1 and what purpose does it serve today?

The World's Oldest Surviving Basketball Court

How did a game invented by the YMCA in America cross the Atlantic in the late 19th century, and why has this Paris court survived so long?

The Longest Street in Paris

An attempt to find the soul of the city's longest thoroughfare.

Belgium by the Seine

A trip to Elisabethville on the trace of old postcard locations leads me to abandoned beach resorts and experimental 1950s architecture.

Tuesday, 28 January 2014

The Hopital Bicêtre: site of a hundred ghosts

As regular readers of this blog will know, I find hospitals fascinating. The Hopital Bicêtre, situated just to the south east of Paris, was always one I’d meant to visit without ever quite finding the time. I was glad though that I did finally make the effort.

Map Hacking and Murder in the Villa des Ternes

A private community where it is forbidden to wander? That sounds like an invitation for a stroll, especially when it contains places to investigate!

The Villa des Ternes in Paris's 17th arrondissement is a neat warren of tree-lined roads and imposing buildings dating back to the 19th century. It was originally situated outside of Paris, in the grounds of a chateau that once stood nearby, but little by little the city has crept up around its edges. Nevertheless, it remains private, and the gates at its limits are still firmly locked to outsiders.