St. Germain

I think I've said before that if I were ever to permanently live anywhere in Paris, it would be in The Marais, just over the river, with it's Jews, falafels, vintage stores, occasional klezmer music and nice cafes. But my second choice would definitely be St. Germain-des-Pres, in the 6th Arrondissement.

I don't know why I'm so obsessed with St. Germain, but I am. Overall, it's simply very nice without being super touristy. However, with it's niceness comes the fact that it's also the area where it's difficult to stumble upon your typical neighborhood bakery, but there are still a lot of other good things about it, even though they tend to be on a larger (and less personal) scale than other areas of Paris.

Charming alleyway near Odeon.

Statue in the courtyard at the church.

Really beautiful artwork facing the church's courtyard. 

Mmmmm.

Nice architecture!

MMMMMM. 

This area gets its name from one of the churches in it (also called St. Germain-des-Pres) which is the oldest church in Paris. There are also a bunch of nice smaller museums, like the Delacroix museum (which is housed in Delacroix's former studio!) and the Museum of Medical history. My favorite thing to do when I want exercise in the city is to make sure that I'm at least as far out as the St. Michel area, then walk home to Montparnasse, which takes me through St. Germain.