Rue de la Harpe, Latin Quarter

first      previous      next      last     

This is the southern end of the rue de la Harpe, one of the pedestrian streets in the heart of the Latin Quarter, just east of the place Saint-Michel. This cobblestone street is filled with tourists just about every day.

The Latin Quarter derives its name from the fact that Latin was once the nominal working language of university students in this part of Paris (the Sorbonne is in the Latin Quarter, although today it is only one part of a city-wide university system). However, walking down the rue de la Harpe today, you’re more likely to hear Greek than Latin. For some reason, this pedestrian area is filled with Greek restaurants, most of which are of very mediocre quality. The proprietors stand in the doorways of their establishments (especially on Xavier Privas street) hawking their cuisine—a sight that you will see nowhere else in Paris (it certainly is not a French custom). Very strange. And, as if that weren’t enough, there’s a McDonald’s restaurant at the end of this street, on the left (you can’t see it here because it is hidden by the building in front of it). Despite all this, however, the overall atmosphere remains entirely French.

In the photograph, you are looking south towards the boulevard Saint-Germain. The wooded area on the other side of the boulevard is the Musée de Cluny, a museum of medieval art housed in the remains of ancient Roman baths on the site. The time is the late afternoon.

I have a photograph of the nearby rue de la Huchette, if you are interested in seeing a little more of this area.

Photographed on July 17, 2008.