Woods, parks, gardens, squares and more; there are more than 450 parks in the capital of France. According to the UNEP, every major city of France currently invests an average of 5 million euros or 47 euros per capita each year for the creation and maintenance of parks and green spaces.
Although our cities are still a far cry from London in terms of greenery - Londoners are rightly proud of their 'urban forest' and 47 percent of their city is dedicated to green spaces - we are certainly very good at knowing how to make the most of our well-loved parks and woodland, using them for picnics, walks, pleasure gardens, and public events.
Here is a list of Paris' most beautiful green spaces:
The Parc Monceau was originally the personal garden of the Duke of Chartres, who acquired the land in 1769. Louis Carrogis Carmontelle subsequently had the opportunity to rework the garden and he gave it its international aspect by erecting buildings of all styles and epochs; the Egyptian pyramids, the Dutch windmill, the Chinese pagoda ...the buildings that make this park such a unique and fantastic destination. The Parc Monceau is also famous for the statues that can be admired - Guy de Maupassant, Musset, Gounod, Chopin and many others. There are also huge trees and many different species of birds.
This place is particularly special because it is surrounded by many signature Haussmanian mansions and buildings, which are a feast for the eyes. Photo credit: Jean Philippe Humbert.
Originally the royal garden of medicinal plants, the Jardin des Plantes or the Botanical Garden was created by Guy de La Brosse in 1626. The garden was officially opened to the public in 1634 and became the seat of the National Museum of Natural History in 1793. Today there is a zoo and a scientific exhibition gallery. The zoo is the second oldest in the world and houses many exotic animals, such as giraffes and elephants. Photo Credit: Rog01
The Parc de Bagatelle was inaugurated in 1775, 64 days after a wager between Marie Antoinette and her brother-in-law, the Count of Artois. The gardens were designed by Belanger and Thomas Blaikie and marked a revival of French arboriculture, inspired by China and fantastical oeuvres.
In the nineteenth century, Napoleon III wanted to create a garden in the English style and ordered this park to be built in the northern part of the Bois de Boulogne. For many years, the park was more of a zoo because of the lack of space in the menagerie of the Jardin des Plantes. In the later years of the nineteenth century, the park became the location of Parisian anthropological exhibitions of human beings, who portrayed as "savages". In the 1950s, the park converted back into a family centred leisure park with many fun fair like attractions.
In 2014, the Foundation Louis Vuitton building, designed by Frank O. Gehry, opened in the garden and became a cultural centre with its glittering glass sides. Photo credit: David Monniaux.
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