PARIS: BOHEMIO ITINERARY

We are not going to lie to you: little or nothing remains of the bohemian Paris of the late 1800s, however with a touch of imagination and our advice you can, if only for a few seconds, feel in the Paris of those years ... (I know Woody Allen stole my idea!)

So here we go with a bohemian itinerary in one of the most bohemian cities in Europe, Paris!

BOHEMIO WHAT? WHO? HOW? A SMALL INTRODUCTION

Life bohème It is the one that many artists, poets and painters adopted, who believed in a life full of art and with the odd nightlife ... from absinthe to cabarets! (Although what they liked most was absinthe, come on).

The term bohème refers to that lifestyle that considers life as if it were art, perfect examples are: Rimbaud, Baudelaire, Verlaine, Van Gogh, Satie, Courbet, Picasso to name a few ... (Although what they liked most was absinthe , come on).

Henri Murger defines the bohemian perfectly: "they are a race of stubborn dreamers for whom art is a faith, not a job." (Although what they liked most was absinthe, come on).

WALK THROUGH MONTMARTRE

Montmartre was the neighborhood that lived through the "Bohemian Revolution" and although today it is one of the most touristic corners of the city there is a time when you can move to Paris in the early 1900s ... yes: get ready to get up early!

Montmartre at dawnWhen there is nothing and nobody in the street, you can give the impression of reliving those years full of art, sensitivity and excesses. Without tourists, cars and the chaos of modern life, it is not at all difficult to feel in bohemian Paris.

There are no large buildings in the area (removing the Sacred Heart, of course!), So its charm lies in the narrow alleys, the stairs, the trees, the mills and the facades of the houses ... that if they could speak they would have more than one thing to tell!

When the hordes of guiris have already eaten their croissant you can continue your bohemian ride in the Montmartre museum (rue Cortot, 13) which offers many graphic samples of the history of this characteristic neighborhood hanging on the side of a hill: you can discover more about its past, about cabarets, about the commune and cursed poets.

Don't miss the Place du Tertre, the square of the artists where today the "bohemians" modernillos meet (which are called hipsters and who prefer beer to absinthe ... weaklings!).

LITERARY COFFEE

There are many places that among the absinthe rivers and clouds of smoke saw some of the great works that artists such as Paul Verlaine, Baudelaire, Apollinaire, Hemingway or Picasso gave us. Most are scattered around the neighborhoods of Montmartre and Montparnasse, these are the most important:

- Le Procope (Rue de l'ancienne Comédie): opened in 1684, this café, one of the oldest in Europe, saw many of the most famous Bohemian poets and painters pass through its walls.

- Closerie des Lilas (171 Boulevard du Montparnasse) frequented by Baudelaire, Verlaine and Hemingway among others.

- The Rotonde (105 Boulevard du Montparnasse) which was, at the beginning of 1900, one of the meeting points of the collaborators of the magazine "Les Soirees de Paris" founded by Apollinaire. As a curiosity we will tell you that the artists who could not pay the bill did so with a poetry or a drawing (although I think that the owners, today, would not like such a proposal).

- Another fundamental place for Apollinaire and his people was the Café de Flore (172 Boulevard Saint-Germain) that maintains a beautiful art deco style.

- Le Café de la Paix (5 Place de l'Opéra) was Oscar Wilde's favorite place, who spent entire days writing here.

- And how to forget the famous Chat Noir, which was frequented by Guy de Maipassant, Renoir, Victor Hugo and Degas.

DRINK ABSENT

It is no secret that most bohemian artists were inspired by large amounts of absinthe. Absinthe is a distillate derived from flowers and the leaves of the “artemisa absinthium”, very alcoholic, which tastes of anise.

Absinthe really was born in Switzerland (ah, you thought they only made chocolate, huh?) And became famous at the Moulin Rouge as it promised hallucinogenic and aphrodisiac effects, magical and inspiring ... and so famous it became that in the early 1900's France got to drink 36 million liters a year: that's a LOT of absinthe!

The “fée verte” (fairy to see you) inspired the majority of bohemian artists of those years… who knows if without her it would have been the same! In 1915 it was banned, although in 1988 it was re-marketed in France and today, although it is not very common, it is also not impossible to find it.

¿How absinthe is taken? The classic method says that a bored spoon is placed on the glass with the absinthe. In the spoon a lump of sugar is put and drops of ice water on it.

If you want to try it, write these directions:

• La Fée Verte: 108, rue de la Roquette. Bastille Metro. More info: //www.facebook.com/Louis-et-Martyn-165366666812201/
• Les Furieux: 74, rue de la Roquette. Metro: Bastille. More info: www.lesfurieux.fr
• Vert d'absinthe: 11, rue d'Ormesson. Metro: Saint-Paul. More info: www.vertdabsinthe.com
• Le Fumoir: 6, rue de l'Amiral de Coligny. Metro: Louvre - Rivoli. More info: //lefumoir.com

ESSENTIAL FOR THIS ITINERARY:

1. A bohemian book (how about "Les Fleurs Du Mal"?).
2. A notebook (maybe even you get inspired and produce something creative and good!).
3. Have an air of a cursed poet at all times (you'll see, in the end you're going to flirt and everything!)

Did you feel like visiting the Most bohemian paris? We are sure that it is a different but very interesting itinerary to spend a day in Paris.