It’s incredible how sometimes the large and ugly stands next to the small and cosy. But yet this is the case in Place des Fêtes’s area, near Buttes Chaumont park: right behind the five huge blocks of concrete which host many of the last remaining working class families of Paris, about 20 villas (here, villa = alley, lane) concentrated around Rue de Mouzaïa, constitute one of the most charming residential area within Paris’s boundaries.

Also know as “Carrières d’Amérique” – plaster produced from old gypsum quarries ( = carrières) was exported to the USA and is believed to have been used in the White House construction… – this area has a deep working class background. Back in the 19th century, this area was part of the East suburban industrial neighbourhoods, and this sloping site (unstable because of quarry exploitation) could only host fragile two-floored constructions.

More than a century later though, it surely is one of the most picturesque and intimate areas of intra muros Paris, which will ravish not only flower enthusiasts but also cat lovers: cats are indeed the real sovereigns of the villas, and as a poetic homage to their feline fellows, some of their owners have put funny signs on their door (most of them in Villa Sadi Carnot) such as “chat gentil” (= friendly cat), “chat lunatique” (= quirky cat) or “attenti ai gatti” (Italian for “beware of the cats”). A delicate warning, isn’t it?

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Les Villas de la Mouzaïa | Relaxing
Rue de Mouzaïa | La Villette
24 hours daily

When the sun shines in Paris, people begin a frantic hunt for the best outdoor spots to spend their summer evenings. In my opinion, few places will offer the range of the 25° Est next to the Bassin de la Villette.

Food? Yes, here it is cheap and copious. Music? Yes, regular concerts are held here.View? Yes, across the Bassin de la Villette, in a pedestianised area away from exhaust fumes.Sun terrace? It has two!

Add to this two art-house cinemas nearby and the fact that Paris Plage (the inner-city beach) sets up here for the summer, and you have the perfect spot for summer!

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25° Est | Bars, Relaxing | Beer € 2.50
10, Place Bataille de Stalingrad | La Villette | +33142096674
12:00 – 23:00 daily

As you may know if you have read my articles about La Campagne à Paris (check the La Campagne à Paris article) or Les Villas de la Mouzaïa (check the Les Villas de la Mouzaïa article), I really like picturesque and bucolic areas in Paris, generally surrounded by modern buildings, but which look like a village or a suburban residential neighbourhood.

That’s why I want to make you discover the Butte Bergeyre, one of the least famous of these areas.

West of Parc des Buttes Chaumont, this sector is accessible only from one zigzagging street for the cars (rue Georges Lardennois), and from three staircases for pedestrians located at 52 rue Simón Bolívar; 19 rue Manin; and 40 rue Mathurin Moreau (they are the thin lines on the map). Once up the hill, you’ll find a residential and peaceful area where you’ll find more cats that cars…

The architecture of the buildings is not as uniform as in the other sectors previously mentioned, but there’s still a good harmony between buildings and vegetation, and there’s even a nice collective garden taken care of by the inhabitants of the area.

Last but not least, your efforts to climb the stairs will be rewarded by one of the best views on Montmartre and the Sacré Coeur, but don’t count on me to show you a picture, you’d better go there!

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Butte Bergeyre | Art & culture, Relaxing
Rue Georges Lardennois | La Villette
24 hours daily

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