The newsletter provides information about cultural events and places to visit in Paris and Versailles for September 2013. It includes sections on Versailles with descriptions of the Palace, the city, and the Montreuil neighborhood. For Paris, popular areas like the Eiffel Tower, Champs-Elysees, Pantheon, Opera, Saint-Michel, and Montmartre are described. Upcoming outings organized by the cultural center are also listed. The newsletter aims to help students discover French culture and provide tips on attractions, transportation, and dining options.

1. IS’ CULTURAL
NEWSLETTER
September 2013 edition

2. Hi guys!
Welcome to HEC Paris and Jouy-en-Josas! We are IS’ cultural pole team and our mission is to help you
discover the French culture as well as the mysteries of the beautiful city of Paris.
That’s why we have created for you a monthly newsletter that will give you all the tips and good addresses
you need to enjoy the capital but also Jouy’s closer neighborhoods like Versailles. In our newsletters, we
are also going to advise you about events, shows, exhibitions, parties and so on that might interest you
and for which the communication isn’t always efficient enough to break through.
For our September 2013 edition, we have decided to give you an overview and to describe the main
things to do in Paris and Versailles through a selection of itinerates associated to bars, restaurants, and
clubs in each particular borough you may be visiting.
In addition to that, we plan to organize regular outings in the capital or Versailles during the weekends
that will give you the opportunity to discover out of ordinary places. At the end of this edition, you will
find a list of all the visits we would like to organize this year for you. Don’t hesitate to tell us the ones you
prefer, your availabilities and to suggest any additional outings you would like us to organize!
We hope you’ll enjoy our first edition of the year!
IS’ cultural pole.
PS: All the information you get in the newsletter is recorded on our website www.hec-is.com so don’t hesitate to visit it!

3. I)
VERSAILLES
1)
2)
3)
The Palace of Versailles
The true & living Versailles
One neighborhood under the microscope: Montreuil
II) PARIS
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
The Eiffel Tower borough
The Champs Elysées
The Pantheon and the Luxembourg Gardens
The Opera borough
Saint-Michel and Notre-Dame
Montmartre and the Sacré-Coeur
III) IS CULTURAL POLE’S PROGRAM OF OUTINGS FOR THE YEAR

4. THE PALACE OF VERSAILLES
The first thing to do in Versailles is, of course, to visit the Palace and its wonderful gardens!
You can easily spend a whole day there... From HEC, take the RER C or you car (there’s a big
parking just in front of the Palace). If you want to see everything, buy the “passport ticket”
(18€) and go through the Palace tour, then walk in the gardens and have a picnic on the grass,
next to the Grand Canal. After that, go to the Trianon palaces – the Grand Trianon and the
Petit Trianon - and finally, take a look at Marie-Antoinette's Estate, with its peaceful farm, mill,
lake and houses. You can do it walking or rent a bike (at the beginning of the Grand Cana).
At the end of this day, you will feel like an aristocrat of the 18th century!
VISIT OF THE “Château de
Versailes” ONLY
Every day except Mondays
9.00 am - 6.30 pm
Price: free for EU citizens
under 26, 15€ for the others

5. THE TRUE & LIVING VERSAILLES
But Versailles has many other secrets. For another day in this royal place, you
may want to discover the city as well. A very nice (and personalized) thing to
do then, is to ask for a “greeter”: a local resident who will show you his “own
Versailles”, for free! For more information and for registration, follow this
link: http://www.versailles-tourisme.com/en/greeters/whats-a-greeter.html
Otherwise, you can still walk randomly in the city and find by yourself its
nicest places. Here are a few suggestions we have selected specially for you:
- Would you like to do some shopping? The most trendy place for that in
Versailles is the Paroisse street, from the Market Place until the Gardens,
and the surrounding area (“Shopping” on the map)
- Buy food, sample cheeses or just enjoy the mixed smells and colors of
the old authentic Notre-Dame market! Carrés Notre Dame (“Market” on
the map). Tuesday, Friday and Sunday from 7:00 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- At night, local students like to go to the different bars of the Market
Place, like the “Franco-Belge” for it’s large choice of beers (“Bars” on
the map)
Keep reading us if you want to know more, we’ll provide new tips and addresses in the next issues of the newsletter!

6. ONE NEIGHBORHOOD UNDER THE
MICROSCOPE: MONTREUIL
Here, we suggest you to discover one precise neighborhood of Versailles in details. The first
one we chose is the Montreuil neighborhood, more will follow in the next issues…
Stroll through Montreuil district, a former medieval village incorporated into Versailles in
1787. Start at the Hotel de Ville (City Hall) of Versailles and just follow the 10 stone markers
of this “historical trail”: the Préfecture, Hôtel du Barry and Hôtel des Menus Plaisirs,
Domaine de Madame Elisabeth, Octrois, Maison des Musiciens Italiens, Eglise SaintSymphorien, place Alexandre 1er et Lycée Hoche…
Before the slight “turn” of Avenue de Paris, don’t forget to look backwards and enjoy the
perspective until the Palace!
Wait until Rue de Montreuil to grab some
food: there are many delicious caterers there
(italian, chinese, greek, etc.), you won’t regret
it! 

7. THE EIFFEL TOWER BOROUGH
What’s best when you arrive in a new city than starting by having a
wonderful overview? That is exactly what you can get at the Eiffel
Tower! Built in 1900 for the Universal Exhibition, it took a little
time to the tower to be accepted by the Parisians. “The best view of
Paris you can have is from the Eiffel Tower, because it’s the only place where
you can’t see it”, they used to say. However, today, this quotation
could mostly be applied to Eiffel Tower’s neighbor tower, the Tour
Montparnasse. Constructed from 1969 to 1972, it is the 14th
tallest building in the European Union, but it has often been
criticized for its large proportions and monolithic appearance.
Despite all these polemics, you should not miss the opportunity to
climb both towers, and then have a nap or a picnic at the Champs
de Mars, the gardens that join Eiffel Tower to the Military School,
the French institution for military higher education. When you
leave the place, don’t forget to reach the Trocadéro across the
Seine, from which you can have a very nice perspective of the
Eiffel Tower and the Trocadéro gardens with its fountains.
The best way to have lunch around there is to have picnic on the
Champs de Mars, but as an alternative, we advise you to go to Le
Café du Marché (38 rue Cler, open from 7am to midnight), a bar
and restaurant situated very close to the Eiffel Tower, located in a
lively pedestrian path, famous for its diversified marketplace.
We don’t advise you to spend the evening and the night next to the
Eiffel Tower, because the few bars and clubs located there are
excessively expensive. However, from 11pm until 1am, you can see
the Eiffel Tower sparkling every hour.
EIFFEL TOWER
CLIMB
Lift: from 9:30am to 11pm
Stairs: from 9:30am to 6pm
Price: 13€ (for 12-24), 14,50€
(for >25).
TOUR MONTPARNASSE
CLIMB
From 9:30am to 11:30pm
Price: 10,50€ for students

8. THE CHAMPS ELYSEES
Would you like to walk on the most beautiful street in the world? Just go to the Champs
Elysées! A long and large street full of numerous and famous shops, cinema and hotels! If
you are ready to spend a little money, you can stop by a café or a restaurant, but we prefer to
warn you that they are very expensive. If you go up the street, you’ll see the Arc de
Triomphe, sanding above the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War 1. The Arc de
Triomphe is situated in the center of the Place de l’Etoile, also called the Place Charles de
Gaulle, and known as the biggest and most dangerous roundabout in Paris. For that matter,
it is often said that you become an excellent driver once you have managed to drive on the
Place de l’Etoile! If you go down the Champs Elysées, you’ll arrive at the Place de la
Concorde, where you can observe the Luxor Obelisk, originally located at the entrance to
Luxor Temple, Egypt. At night, you can go to a lot of night clubs, like the Queen or the
Duplex. You can also have a drink in many places that are very expensive, but if you are
looking for something cheaper, we advise you to go to Charlie Birdy – Boetie (124 rue de la
Boétie, 8e, Paris): open from 12pm to 5am daily, this enormous pub is a cross between a
New York loft and a colonial gentleman’s club and propose a regular program of jazz, blues,
folk and funk gigs.
TO GO TO THE TOP OF THE
ARC DE TRIOMPHE
Everyday rom 10am to 11pm
Price: free, for France residents or
members of the UE

9. THE PANTHEON AND THE LUXEMBOURG
GARDENS
This neighborhood, called the “cinquième arrondissement”, is wellknown of young Parisians in search of quiet libraries to study, but
also of nice bars and cafés to meet their friends. In fact, it is the
most lively place for students, just next to prep schools and La
Sorbonne. Just take the RER B and stop by “Luxembourg” station.
The Pantheon stands on the rue Soufflot, right in front of the main
entrance of the Gardens of Luxembourg: it was once a church, and
it was turned into a cemetery for extraordinary people…Why don’t
you go there to pay a tribute to Victor Hugo? (Truth is, he is not
really buried in there, but still…)We suggest you to wander in this
beautiful monument if you are fond of French History. After, you
can have a walk in the Luxembourg Gardens, have a seat around the
little lake and taste the delicious ice creams sold just at the entrance.
It is the ideal place to have a romantic picnic, or just to lay down
with friends on a sunny afternoon. If you are looking for a place to
grab a bite, the Rue Mouffetard is waiting for you just on the other
side of the Pantheon, behind the church of Saint Etienne du Mont.
This street is well known by children because a famous novel used to
say there was a witch who lived in there. It is full of restaurants, bars,
around the Place de la Contrescarpe. There is a very joyful
atmosphere at night, until late. The “Mayflower” offers a large
selection of beers (http://www.mayflower.fr).

10. THE OPERA BOROUGH
In the Opera borough, you’ll appreciate the large streets surrounded by prestigious monuments of Paris.
VISIT OF THE PALAIS
You can start your visit by admiring the Palais Garnier, one of the two outstanding monuments of the
GARNIER
National Opera of Paris. Compared to Bastille Opera, the Palais Garnier has a much more traditional
From 10am to 5pm
style; if you go inside, you will love its marble-made staircases, its red carpet, and giant ceiling lights. Just
Price: 10€ (6€ for students
behind the Palais Garnier are the Paris Grand Stores, well known under the names of Galeries Lafayette
under 25)
and Printemps. You should not miss the opportunity to go inside and get lost in the magic world of Zola
in his book “Au Bonheur des Dames”. There, you have the most prestigious brands of clothes, bags, shoes, perfumes and jewelries.
Don’t miss the dome in the center of the Galeries Lafayette! But it’s not time to leave this paradise of sparkle and bright yet: go to
the Place Vendôme, the most expensive hotels, like the Ritz, and jewelries shops of Paris are located there. End your visit by going to
the Madeleine Church and entering inside: built in a Roman Catholic style, it’s designed in its present form as a temple to the glory of
Napoleon's army. If you want to stop by a bar or a pub, we recommend the Experimental Cocktail Club (37 rue Saint-Sauveur, open
from 6pm) even if you will have to walk a bit before reaching it. You probably have heard of the Café de la Paix, on the Opera place;
even if we encourage you to have a look outside and inside if you can, the prices there are extremely expensive so be careful. At
night, you can go to have fun in the great parties in Social Club (142 rue Montmartre) and the Rex Club (5 boulevard Poissonnière),
both at the east of the borough: use the subway!

11. SAINT-MICHEL, NOTRE-DAME, AND MORE
When you walk out of the metro station “Notre Dame Saint Michel”, you will find yourself in front of a great fountain where
there are often little concerts or shows. Turn on your left, and you will find the Boulevard Saint Michel, and Rue de la Huchette.
This is a very touristic street where you can find lots of restaurants which will promise you typically French food, but truth is they
are not that good. If you want to have a nice meal, we suggest you to go to Rue Saint André des Arts, on the other side of the
fountain: it is full of Crêperies, that is to say French pancakes stuffed with anything you like, served with fresh cider. We suggest
you to take away your pancake and eat it on the Seine side, under the bridge. If you prefer to have a drink, happy hour at “Le Petit
Pont” is very lively: you can order a big bucket of cocktail for cheap Don’t miss Notre Dame Cathedral, just a few steps away from
the fountain. The magnificence of this ancient monument will take your breath away.
If you feel like walking, you have two options:
•
Take the bridge and walk until you reach Place du Châtelet.
You will see one of the largest street of Paris, Rue de
Rivoli, full of fashion shops, and the beautiful
neighborhood called “Le Marais”. The Pompidou Center is
a wonder of architecture which has to be seen, and it
always organizes very cool exhibitions that we will test and
describe for you in the next newsletters!
•
Take the Rue Saint André des Arts, then Rue de Buci, and
walk until you reach Saint Germain des Prés: you will see
the little church, and the very famous cafés: “Les deux
magots” and “Café Flore”, on the place Sartre-De
Beauvoir, where the literary elite used to seat and talk for
hours… And do not miss Rue de Rennes, the ideal spot to
shop.

12. MONTMARTRE AND THE SACRE COEUR
Stop at “Abbesses” station, or “Lamarck Caulaincourt”
on line 12.
VISIT THE SACRÉ
CŒUR
Take the little train of Montmartre to discover all the
From 6am to 11pm
charming streets which lead to the Cathedral of the
Price: free
Sacré Coeur!
The Place du Tertre is on the top of the hill, on which you will have a wonderful
view. All restaurants and bars are very expansive because it is a very touristic area, so
if you want to have a nice meal, we advise you to walk until Place de Clichy, or
Pigalle. By going there, you can stop by the well known Moulin Rouge to observe it
from outside!
If you feel like walking, you can go and see the Square of Batignolles, created in
1862: it is very large and beautiful.

13. IS CULTURAL POLE’S PROGRAM
OF OUTINGS FOR THE YEAR
•
•
•
•
•
•
Local heritage days (14th and 15th of September) :
Palais Royal, the Senate (Palais du Luxembourg), the
Comédie Française Theatre, etc.
Paris catacombs
The Conciergerie
The Plants Garden (Le Jardin des Plantes)
The Grevin Museum
The National Hotel of the Invalides
Don’t hesitate to contact the Cultural Pole to give us your suggestions!