Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) is known among Francophiles for his book “A Traveling Feast,” in which he vividly and lovingly chronicled his experience in Paris. He arrived in the City of Lights in 1921 with his wife Hadley and quickly became one of the most important figures in the American community in Paris that settled there after World War I.
One of Hemingway's favorite pastimes, who in those days did not suffer from excess money (to say the least), was walking the streets of Paris and visiting Sylvia Beach's Shakespeare & Company bookstore, where he met the writers Gertrude Stein (1874-1946), Ezra Pound (1885-1972) and F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940), with whom he would later sit in the cafes of Montparnasse.
Hemingway left Paris in 1928 with a new wife (Pauline), but continued to return to it several times over the next few years, with his most famous visit being in 1944, when he traveled to the City of Lights to “liberate” the Ritz Hotel (or rather, its wine cellar).
Legend has it that his good friend, photographer Robert Capa, drove to Paris at breakneck speed to be the first to arrive at the Ritz Hotel , only to discover Hemingway sitting in the famous bar (which is now named after him) with a glass of drink in his hand…
The route you will find here focuses on the Latin Quarter, where Hemingway lived and worked, and is a sort of "complementary route" to the Latin Quarter itinerary I previously published.
The house where Hemingway and his wife lived in Paris
Start your trip by exiting the Cardinal Lemoine metro station. Go to number 74 on the street after which the station is named. This is where Ernest Hemingway lived with his wife Adele when they arrived in Paris. They lived in a 2-room apartment with a shared bathroom for the entire floor, but according to Hemingway they were “very poor but very happy.”
Moffatar Street
Continue to Place Conterscarpe, which stars in his book “A Traveling Feast.” To the left of the square you will discover Rue Mouffetard , which Hemingway wrote was “a charming, crowded, narrow market street.” I recommend you stroll this street especially on Sundays when there is a market at the bottom of it where Parisians gather every week at 11:00 for a kind of public singing.
After you've done some shopping on Rue Moffatt, turn right on Rue Clovis and continue down the street towards the Pantheon. On your right will be the Church of Saint Etienne du Mont, it's not really associated with Hemingway but it's really recommended to go inside.
Luxembourg Gardens – Hemingway's favorite garden
After visiting the Saint-Etienne Church, and perhaps also visiting the greats of the French nation at the Pantheon, walk along Sufflot Street towards the Luxembourg Gardens, where Hemingway used to walk every day.
Legend has it that Hemingway was so poor that, out of hunger, he hunted pigeons in the Luxembourg Gardens, and one day while hunting pigeons (or just wandering through the garden, depending on who you ask) he met Gertrude Stein, whom we will talk about a little later.
Hemingway's Bar
From the Luxembourg Gardens, walk south along Boulevard l'Observatoire until you reach Closerie des Lilas, Hemingway's favorite café and the quietest of all the Montparnasse cafés. Enter the café and look for the small plaque on the bar that marks his permanent spot.
It's time to visit some of the writer's good friends.
Here to the Rue Notre Dames des Champs. There, at number 113, Hemingway lived right next to his friend Ezra Pound. It is said that Hemingway received writing lessons from Ezra Pound and in return taught him boxing…
Retrace your steps a little and walk north to Rue d'Assas and then turn left onto Rue Fleurus. Gertrude Stein lived there at number 27 (apartment 5) and Hemingway spent long hours in her apartment talking about writing and gossiping about their friends (this all ended after a few years when the two of them had a fight).
Hemingway's Bookstore
Try the Luxembourg Gardens again (there is no such thing as “too many Luxembourg Gardens”) and exit at Rue Ferou. From there, walk along Rue Saint Suplice and turn right onto Rue Odeon. Hemingway took this route to reach the Shakespeare & Company store , which was originally located at Rue de l'Oden 12, without going through the restaurants in the area, as his financial situation did not allow him to enter them. This store, which can be found today on Rue Bucherie, was a kind of second home for him and the books he borrowed there provided him with the inspiration he needed.
The restaurants where the writer liked to eat
Continue on Odeon Street to Racine Street and from there continue until you reach the Polidor restaurant, which is located on Monsieur le Prince Street. This is where Hemingway used to eat when he didn't have much money. If he were alive today, it's not certain he would be able to afford it...
Continue on Rue Monsieur le Prince and turn left on Boulevard Saint Germain to reach Brasserie Lipp and Café Deux Magots . Hemingway loved these two places and in his book “A Traveling Feast” he wrote about how he ate potato salad and sausage at “Lip” while drinking a cold beer. If the prices there don’t scare you, you are welcome to sit down there and do the same because this is exactly where our route ends.
And finally, are you looking for a “partner” for this trip? “Midnight in Paris”!
Although usually when Americans are allowed to make films about France, the result is terrible kitsch, in the case of “Midnight in Paris,” Woody Allen managed to capture the Paris of the 20s, where Hemingway lived, in a charming and accurate way. So before you take this route or after you return, you simply must see this film.
More on the subject
Hemingway's quote about Paris:
If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a movable feast.
Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast