Heights and arts in Montparnasse

You have two options to reach Montparnasse. The longer one starts at rue Garancière. When you reach the Luxembourg Gardens, follow rue Guynemer while enjoying the photo exhibitions on the trailings. Take the time to discover the A.P.C emporium of rue Madame (at n°38) or its factory outlet on rue de Fleurus. For a more cultural moment, enjoy the Zadkine Museum (at n°100 bis rue d'Assas): it offers an insight into the sculptor's career (1890-1967) while confronting his work to contemporary artists. Enjoy another sweet fix at Jean-Paul Hévin chocolate shop (at n°3 rue Vavin). Then you'll be close to Montparnasse and its legendary brasseries (Le Dôme, La Coupole) where artists from everywhere met in the Roaming Twenties.

For a shorter stroll, just follow rue de Rennes up to the Montparnasse Tower. You may want to discover the vicinity. Check rue du Cherche-Midi and the beautiful shop of Marithé & François Girbaud (with a suspended garden, at n°7). Don't miss Poilâne farmhouse breads (at n°8), or airy clothing by Lilith (at n°12). On rue Saint-Placide you'll find various factory outlets of mainstream brands, offering nice deals.
The Montparnasse Tower, with its 209 meters high and 59 floors, is the highest Parisian building. It was inaugurated in 1972. The tower is great for a family tour to its top: enjoy the fast elevator up to Montparnasse 56, its terrace. There, on a sunny day, the overview reaches more than 40 kilometres around. Viewpoint indicators and binoculars will help you to recognize the monuments. There is also a restaurant and bar, the Ciel de Paris: it offers European cuisine and nice cocktails. Enjoy a romantic break above the skyline.

The big train station behind the tower has trains to Brittany or Aquitaine... but also to Versailles : you can reach the famous palace in 30 minutes.
Take rue du Départ and turn on boulevard Edgar Quinet. Nice terraces invite to a lazy drink, near the tube station. On Sundays, the boulevard welcomes an art market. If you go east, you'll reach the Fondation Cartier, dedicated to contemporary art. You can also pay homage to dead artists: many of them are buried in the Montparnasse Graveyard.
The Fondation Cartier (at n°261, boulevard Raspail) has been launched 14 years ago in a beautiful glass building conceived by Jean Nouvel. It welcomes cutting-edge art, for temporary exhibitions (like César this summer) or through evenings of performances called Soirées Nomades which are very successful with the arty type. (Wednesday and Thursday evenings, Booking mandatory, call 01 42 18 56 72).
If success is a vanity, what is posterity? You may answer this question while visiting the Montparnasse Graveyard (Cimetière du Montparnasse). There lie the likes of Charles Baudelaire (Author of the infamous Flowers of Evil), Serge Gainsbourg (a famous French singer), but also the Captain known as Dreyfus - unwitting hero of one of the biggest French trials.

In the middle of the graveyard, don't miss the rue Emile Richard: it's a "blind" street -only lined by two walls and a few trees, and no buildings.
But Montparnasse is not only about nostalgia. On rue de la Gaîté ("Joy Street" - Oh, may we say it was long home to prostitutes?), you'll find cabarets and theatres. The street has just been renovated. You will find there the Café Tournesol, a café with a simple but nice atmosphere, and some theaters, including the Gaîté-Montparnasse.

But if culture is your pleasure, you may prefer a visit at daytime of Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson (At n°2 impasse Lebouis, close to avenue du Maine). It's dedicated to photojournalism. Another option is to discover the heritage of Montparnasse. Check the Musée du Montparnasse (at n°21, rue du Maine), or Marie Vassilieff workshop : the place used to be the epicentre of Boho life and Cubism at the beginning of the Twentieth century.