Flâneries in Paris: Explore the Golden Triangle

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Flâneries in Paris: Explore the Golden Triangle
This is the 28th in a series of walking tours highlighting the sites and stories of diverse districts of Paris. As soon as I entered the Golden Triangle, an estate agent’s window set the tone. A sign boasted of Exclusivité, Paris 8 and the prices made it very clear that only la crème de la crème need apply. Four and half million euros for a three-bed flat and nearly 13 million for a couple more rooms and a swimming pool. It would be strictly window shopping only for me, gawping my way round the three avenues – Avenue George V, the Champs Élysées and the Avenue de Montaigne which make up the Triangle d’Or.    Bistrot Marius on the Avenue George V. Photo: Marian Jones I’d started at the Place de l’Alma end of Avenue George V where the Bistrot de Marius had a nautical flavor – a striped awning, a menu featuring oysters and vol au vent de Saint-Jacques and a sign saying the outdoor fish counter sold only the freshest catches, straight off the boat: pêche de petit bâteau selon arrivage. A few doors up came the Crazy Horse Theater, where glamorous girls draped in (not that many) beads have been performing their “sensual and sexy cabaret” since 1951. It was too early in the morning for the promised “pinpoint precision choreography and sophisticated allure,” but I’d be intrigued to experience the “totally crazy night out” another time and discover how balance is kept on those dizzyingly high heels. Crazy Horse on the Avenue George V. Photo: Marian Jones Further along Avenue Georges V, on the other side, came the American Cathedral. Steps led up through an arched entrance to a pretty courtyard with a memorial cloister running alongside it, dedicated to “all those who died in Europe for liberty and justice during the two World Wars.” That is 138,000 members of America’s Armed Forces. Individual plaques gave the numbers buried in the various American Military Cemeteries across Europe – 10,629 in Normandy alone, for example, the precise number an indication of respect for every single one of them. In the cathedral itself, a bald eagle gazed upwards from the lectern, a proud symbol of the American nation. On my way out, I spotted a cushion embroidered with Benjamin Franklin’s picture and his dates, 1706 -1790. 
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Lead photo credit : Champs Élysées. Photo credit: iStock - GlobalP

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Recently retired from teaching Modern Languages (French and German), Marian now has time to develop her interests in travel and European culture and history. She will be in Paris as often as she can, visiting places old and new, finding out their stories and writing it all up as soon as she gets home. Marian also runs the weekly podcast series, City Breaks, offering in-depth coverage of popular city break destinations, with lots of background history and cultural information. She has covered Paris in 22 episodes but looks forward to updating the series every now and then with some Paris Extra episodes.