The arrondissement of Observatoire, the 14th of Paris, is located on the rive gauche of the Seine and includes the well-known administrative borough of Montparnasse.

In Montparnasse many of the most prominent artists of the 20th century have lived, such as Pablo Picasso, Apollinaire, Chagall, Modigliani, Duchamp, Ezra Pound, Sartre, Giacometti and André Breton.

WHAT TO SEE

The first part of your visit might linger on Montparnasse, with the cemetery of the same name, established in the 19th century. Here you can find the tombs of Jean Paul Sartre, Serge Gainsbourg, Man Ray and Simone de Beauvoir, located among green areas and centuries-old trees. From the cemetery you can glance at the Tour Montparnasse imposing figure, the tallest skyscraper in Paris with its 210 metres and 59 levels. You can access it and reach a terrace at the 56th level to enjoy a splendid view of the city.

Inside the arrondissement there are the catacombs of Paris, a network of tunnels excavated during the Roman period, that host tombs and bones. It’d be a very suggestive experience, a bit uneasy perhaps!

At 261 Boulevard Raspail you can find the Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain, with more than 1000 artworks by more than 300 contemporary artists from the international scenario.

If you desire to have a stroll outdoor, go to the Parc Montsouris, with its lake and bronze statues peeping out among trees and plants.

CURIOSITIES

An alternative route along this arrondissement must include the Capuchins quarries of the Cochin hospital: underground quarries where, between the 15th and the 16th century, the stones used to build the monastery were extracted. Visits are available upon reservation only. Interesting are also the roof-gardens of the Atlantique, with a kind of surreal atmosphere, surrounded by huge buildings and inhabited by numerous students.

UNDERGROUND: Line 4 – 6 – 13; RER B.