Loft in Paris

Indicated by an enamelled plaque from the boulevard de Clichy, the Cité Véron, where Jacques Prévert and Boris Vian used to live, is lined with small apartment buildings, little gardens and town houses. It is a pleasant dream in the heart of Paris which is pervaded by an atmosphere of calm despite being located behind a noisy boulevard next to the Moulin Rouge in the midst of the Pigalle district. 

 

A canteen for the employees of the town of Montmartre in the beginning of 20^th century, a local dance hall in the 1920s, then also a night club, an import-export warehouse for Haitian goods and an upholsterer’s workshop: number 7 Cité Véron has seen it all. Following the advice of some Parisian friends who were chambre d’hôtes pioneers, François took the plunge himself.  It has a joyful state of disorder as the furnishings are a mixture of antiques, family furniture and Moroccan handicrafts. In particular there are two genuine bars, one from the 1950s and the other from the C 19^th. The large loft has the false airs of a Symbolist poet’s attic with its cement floor and its brick wall panels. It is simple and welcoming.

 

“The Australians and the British are crazy about this kind of place” François tells us. Families find all the space they have been looking for elsewhere, but often in vain. Groups of English girls, who come on their own to live it up in Paris, are amongst the faithful guests.  Only the Americans are still apprehensive of this quarter and its “nefarious” reputation, which is nevertheless one of the nicest and liveliest in Paris with its bars, nightclubs and concert halls.