The tour begins at Place Pigalle (map).

Take the metro to Pigalle on line 2 or 12 and prepare to

stroll in the footsteps of geniuses. The tour ends near where it starts.
Place Pigalle
Take the metro to Pigalle on line 2 or 12 and prepare to stroll in the footsteps of geniuses. Exit
the metro and you’ll find yourself in Place Pigalle on the Boulevard de Clichy (map).
Downhill you’ll head back into Paris and going across either east or west you’ll be walking
around the Butte du Montmartre or the hill of the martyrs.
We’ll find out about the name later, but in the late 19th Century this went from being the
countryside outside of the city to the most radical artistic neighborhood in the world.

Looking down the hill you’ll see a nightclub called Folies Pigalle, this was once the café
Nouvelle Athènes frequented by Van Gogh, Henri Matisse, and Degas where the latter painted
his famous L’Absinthe (see picture).
Back then absinthe, a supposedly hallucinogenic drink made of anise, fennel, herbs, and
wormwood, was all the rage but we’ll hear more about that later too.
By the 1940s, the bar had become a striptease club where the Nazis and later French
Resistance fighters would relax.
Sex and the erotic have always been a big part of the Montmartre story. Looking around today
you’ll see lots of clubs and sex shops along the Boulevard.
It can be quite seedy here at night, but as we head up the hill you’ll notice the atmosphere
becomes much less bawdy.
The name Pigalle comes from the 18th-Century painter, Jean Baptiste Pigalle, but American GIs
arriving in Paris after its liberation by Free French forces found the same pleasures here and
nicknamed the area Pig Alley!
Right now we’re going to head west along Pig Alley (the Boulevard de Clichy) keep downhill
on your left and uphill on your right.

Le Chat Noir
(68 Boulevard de Clichy)

You are standing in front of the world’s first modern cabaret.

La Chat Noir is now most famous for stylish retro posters on a thousand student walls (see
picture).
But this was the soul of Belle Époque Paris, a place where fashionable artists came to be
entertained at their tables by raucous music hall entertainment.
The club opened in 1881 as the meeting place of Les Hyrdopathes a group of artists who
preferred wine to water!
The doormen at the club dressed like the Pope’s Vatican Swiss Guard but their job was to stop
priests and the military people from entering this bohemian and radical club.
The list of famous patrons is like a who’s who of modern art and culture; the musician Claude
Debussy, the singer Aristide Bruant and painters like Henri Toulouse Lautrec.
Henri Toulouse Lautrec was a fascinating character. Born to a noble family with a history of
inbreeding, Toulouse broke both legs when aged 14, and his legs ceased to grow, leaving him
with an adult torso, a child’s legs, and hypertrophied genitals!
He became the center of the Montmartre social scene, a leading post-impressionist painter,
and a legendary lover to many local prostitutes and models.
From this, he contracted syphilis, went crazy, and drank himself to death at the age of 36.
Today he’s probably best known for designing the posters and flyers for the most famous
cabaret in the world.
You probably don’t need us to tell you the name of that cabaret, keep walking west on the
Boulevard de Clichy, and on your right, you’ll spot a big red windmill!

Le Moulin Rouge

The original red windmill stood atop a low building here which marked the entrance to the
cabaret where kings and paupers could mix and watch girls dancing the famous Can-Can
dance.
That windmill burned down in a fire, but the club was rebuilt and continues to wow audiences.
The Can Can, where dancers kick up their legs one after the other, getting quicker and quicker,
was originally danced by both sexes but women in the late nineteenth century wore open
underclothes which would occasionally flash audiences as they danced.
Here at the Moulin Rouge, they found that the more the girls flashed the more customers kept
returning, and over the years the underclothes got shorter and shorter as the club became
more and more famous.
Baz Luhrmann’s film with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor reignited interest in the club in
2001. If you’ve seen the film John Leguizamo’s character is based on the painter Toulouse
Lautrec.
The Moulin Rouge remains one of the main attractions in Paris with shows every night at 21:00
(9 pm) and 23:00 (11 pm).
For now, let’s head up into Montmartre. Turn back towards the Blanche Metro stop and then
left up Rue Lepic.

Café des Deux Moulins

As you head up Rue Lepic, you’ll find this charming café-bar on the left-hand side - 15 Rue Lepic
(map)
Movie lovers will instantly recognize this as Amelie’s workplace from the famous 2001 French
film; Amelie. The quirky love story is set around Paris but focuses heavily on Montmartre.
The cigarette machine from the film is missing but the Café’s bathroom remains identical to
how it is in the raunchy movie scene!
Despite its fame, the Café des Deux Moulins is no more pricey than other cafés and restaurants
in the area.
A top tip for saving money in Paris is to drink at the bar. You will pay a higher price for table
service and an even higher price for sitting outside on the terrace.
Continue up Rue Lepic, you will get to what looks like a junction, but turn left and you’ll find
that Rue Lepic continues curving its way up the hill.

Van Gogh’s House

As Rue Lepic turns right uphill you’ll find a plaque on the wall at 54 Rue Lepic (map)
commemorating Vincent Van Gogh’s time here.

This was the home of Theo Van Gogh, Vincent's brother, who worked for a local art dealer.
Vincent showed up in 1886 penniless and moved in with his brother.
This began a 2-year stint in Paris. It's here where Vincent's studio was set up (well, it was his
bedroom).
In Paris Van Gogh became interested in Japanese art, pointillism, and impressionism and was
hanging out with artists like Toulouse Lautrec, Paul Gauguin, and Camille Pissarro and his art
took a transformative turn in these days.
Financial success eluded him to this point. Ironically, Van Gogh's poverty led him to focus on
painting inexpensive and readily available items, which is why many of his paintings of this era
involve flowers.
This is also the period when he painted several versions of his self-portrait.
For more information on his time here in Paris, there is an excellent article, which was a source
for this entry, as well as an online exhibit.

Le Moulin de la Galette
Stop on Rue Lepic at the corner with Rue Tholozé (map) for fantastic views down into Paris.
Cast your eyes upwards and you’ll see the Moulin de la Galette.
A galette is a kind of wholemeal crepe that was a staple food of the poor of Montmartre and
Paris at the turn of the 20th Century.
The windmill here is the only original windmill remaining today, but back then, Montmartre
was full of windmills. This one is famous for two reasons:
During the 1870 Prussian siege of Paris, the mill’s owners defended the area and the miller was
nailed to the sails of the mill in punishment by Prussian soldiers.
On a happier note, the mill was famous as a café, cabaret, and meeting point for artists. Many
painted scenes here, but most famously Pierre-August Renoir.

Renoir and the impressionists took art away from trying to capture purely accurate images.
They preferred to show how things move and change over time as light changes from morning
to evening.
Renoir’s Moulin de la Galette painting appears in the film Amelie for those who’ve seen it.
Today the windmill is privately owned and you can’t go up there so we’ll continue around the
corner on Rue Girardon.

Saint-Denis Statue
One block on, at 2B Impasse Girardon (map), you will find a small park, Square Suzanne
Buisson, on the left of the Rue Girardon.
In the park, there’s a statue of the first Bishop of Paris, Saint-Denis.

Saint-Denis was beheaded here on the hill by the Romans in the 3rd Century.
According to legend his corpse picked up his head and walked 10km to the point where the
Cathedral of Saint-Denis now stands in the suburbs of Paris.
Every French king is buried at Saint-Denis and it’s great for a visit if you get the time.
Historically, the name Montmartre, the Hill of the Martyrs, has been attributed to this event.
However, most historians today think the hill was already known as Montmars, the hill of Mars,
by the pagans before the advent of Christianity.

Buste Dalida
Exit the park the same way you entered and continue down Rue Girardon.
At the corner, where it turns to the right onto Rue L’Abreuvoir (map), you will see a small bust
of the famous Egyptian-Italian-French singer Dalida.

Dalida had an incredibly successful career but tragic love life.

Her first fiancé shot himself, her husband shot himself, her friend jumped to his death from a
Paris apartment and her final lover gassed himself in his Renault car.
All this became too much and Dalida overdosed on barbiturates in 1987 leaving a note saying;
life has become unsupportable for me. Can you blame her?!

Rue L’Abreuvoir
This charming street was immortalized by the painter Maurice Utrillo. Utrillo was one of the
few painters born in Montmarte.

Rue L’Abreuvoir
His mother Suzanne Valadon was the first woman admitted to the society of fine arts and
learned her art from the countless painters she’d modeled for as a young woman.
Her former house is now the Montmarte Museum just ahead at number 12 Rue Cortot.
When Valadon fell pregnant she didn’t know who the father was. According to one
Montmartre resident at the time; “she went to Renoir, but he looked at the baby and said, ‘can't
be mine, the color is terrible’!
So she went to Degas, who said, 'He can't be mine, the form is awful!'
Valadon then saw an artist named Miguel Utrillo and told him her woes. He told her to call the
baby Utrillo: 'I would be glad to put my name to the work of either Renoir or Degas!”

La Maison Rose
On the corner with the Rue des Saules (map), you’ll see the Maison Rose, or pink house, where
Utrillo and many other painters used to hang out.
Upstairs was once a brothel where Van Gogh is reported to have contracted syphilis.
Today it’s been cleaned up and is a lovely spot for a bite to eat! Honestly!

Au Lapin Agile
Turn left down Rue des Saules with the vineyard on your left and stop on the corner by the
Lapin Agile (map).
This little cabaret started life as a hang-out for low-lives and criminals.
After the owner’s son was killed in an attempted robbery, the place was known as the Cabaret
des Assassins.
But, fortunes changed when Andre Gill painted a new sign with a rabbit jumping out of a
saucepan. People started to refer to the place as Gill’s Rabbit and this later changed to the
Agile Rabbit.
At the turn of the 20th Century the place was bought by Aristide Bruant to save it from closing
and it became a favourite meeting place for struggling artists.
A young Picasso used to flirt with the waitresses and doodle their portraits on napkins in
exchange for them letting him off the bill!
This is still a Cabaret today and well worth a visit for a more intimate and less bank-breaking
French cabaret experience.

Le Jardin Sauvage
Turn right on Rue de Saint-Vicent and you’ll head past the old wild garden vineyards. The wine
they made here was Beaujolais, some of the first wines of the season and cheap wines for the
people of Paris.
Unfortunately, the wine crops failed for several years in the late 19th Century and this is where
the tradition of drinking absinthe came from.
Once the wine stocks returned, many poor artists preferred to stick to absinthe as it was
cheaper.
In order to get their customers back, many vineyards began spreading the idea that Absinth
made drinkers go mad, hallucinate and commit all sorts of terrible crimes.
They also tried to get its sale prohibited. The legend they invented of hallucinogenic trips with
the ‘green fairy’ persists to this day.

Le Sacré-Coeur
Continue uphill along Rue de Saint-Vicent. You’ll cross the path with the stairs heading up and
down the hill.
The view down the hill is beautiful but we’ll continue uphill on the more gradual incline.
As the road bends to the right you’ll suddenly catch a view of the back of the Sacré-Coeur
Basilica (map).

Le Sacré-Coeur Rear
The basilica was built to make up for what many saw as the moral corruption for which they
blamed for the French defeat in the 1870-71 Franco-Prussian War
When Prussian troops took Paris in January 1871, the French Government and Army
surrendered.
However, the working-class National Guard and the people of Paris refused to accept the
surrender or the authority of the French Government and created an autonomous commune
up here in Montmartre.
This was the first example of the working-class rule in the history of the world, but it only lasted
a few months.

Barricade set up by Commune shown captured by French Army forces

In May French troops attacked and destroyed the Commune in what became known as
the Semaine Sanglante or bloody week
On both sides, terrible atrocities were committed and the Sacré-Coeur was seen as a way to
atone for those sins.
Construction of the basilica began in 1875 but didn’t finish until during WWI, so it was only
consecrated after the war in 1919.
Let’s head around the church to its right, at the front you’ll get the most spectacular view of
Paris, prepare to have your breath taken.

View of Paris from Le Sacré-Coeur

Take all the time you need to drink in the incredible views of Paris. In the afternoons the steps
will be packed with people listening to street musicians.
Once you’ve regained your breath, turn back to the basilica and you’ll see two statues of people
on horseback.
Le Sacré-Coeur Front
The statue to the left is King Louis IX, the only king of France to be made a saint. Louis brought
in the right to a fair trial and banned medieval trials by torturous ordeals like walking over hot
coals.
From his fights in the crusades, he brought back holy relics that you’ll find today in the Sainte-
Chapelle in the centre of Paris.
The statue on the right is Joan of Arc. During France’s darkest hours when the English were
conquering at will, Joan rallied the French armies and started their fightback.
She was captured and burned as a witch by the English ensuring her legend forever in history.
You can enter the Sacré Coeur free from 6 am – 10.30 pm. You have to pay to climb the dome
and you’ll need strong legs to climb the 300+ steps!

Place du Tertre
Once you’ve checked out the church and got your breath back from the view turn right with
the church at you back and head along Rue Azais.
Looking out towards Paris you’ll catch a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower, then turn uphill to the
right. As the street bends left you’ll enter the Place du Tertre (map).

Place du Tertre on a rather slow day.

Today, as in years gone by, the square will be full of painters selling their art. If you’d like your
own portrait they’ll be more than happy to paint you.
On the northern side of the square, the Mere Cathrine restaurant was the first Bistro in the
world.
Russian soldiers at the end of the Napoleonic wars demanded their drinks quickly- Bystro in
Russian, and the idea of a bistro or rapid service restaurant was born!

Salvador Dalí Museum Paris

Once you’re done in Place du Tertre, leave on the downhill corner, diagonally opposite to the
side you entered.
At the end of the small street steps go downhill, do not take those, turn right on Place du
Calvaire and you’ll come to the Espace Dalí Montmartre (map).
Salvador Dalí is today the most famous surrealist artist in history, which is ironic as the
surrealists kicked him out of their movement!
Surrealism was a reaction to all the craziness of wars and destruction in the world.
A group of writers, poets, and painters led by Louis Bréton began to question whether the
comforting world of our dreams was actually the real world and our crazy world just a
nightmare.
To connect with the dream world, they tried to write and paint without thinking consciously.
This automatic writing, as they called it, can be fun to try and to read back to yourself, but
generally reading the nonsense of someone else’s head isn’t too engaging.
Dalí’s painting seemed intended to provoke and he was kicked out of the movement for
thinking too much about his work and more than anything for making too much money from
it!
People are still making money from his work today, entrance costs €13 and is a must for fans
of surrealism.

Bateau Lavoir
Continue on Rue Poulbot and turn left at the end on Rue Norvins then left on Rue Jean-Baptist
Clément and right on Rue Ravignan into Place Emile Goudeau (map).
This hidden little square is named after the leader of Les Hydropathes, who we met right at the
start of our tour.

On the right, as you enter downhill, you’ll find the Bateau Lavoir which is steeped in art history.
Only the façade remains for the original building after a fire in the 1970s.
But, at the turn of the 20th Century the creaky building would sway in the wind like the washing
boats on the River Seine, hence its name- the washing boat.
The name was coined by Picasso’s life-long friend the writer Max Jacob.
The original Bateau Lavoir had many floors below going downhill towards the back, and when
Picasso arrived in Paris in 1900 the place was packed with struggling artists.
Picasso had been painting in dark blue colors since his arrival in Paris when his best friend shot
himself over unrequited love.
But living here Pablo met his first love, Fernande Olivier, and began painting in happy pink or
rose colors, he then moved on to experiment with African masks and created the first-ever
cubist painting here in 1907.

The impressionists had been moving away from 100% accurate depictions of their subjects.
But in Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (see picture) Picasso took the art rule book, ripped it up, and
threw it out of the window, representing five ladies with hard angular blocks of color.
Avignon is in the South of France but most people now think this painting is of five prostitutes
from the Carrer d’Avinyó in Barcelona where Picasso grew up.
Picasso and his friends were poor struggling artists but always to be found out and about in
Montmartre.
If you’re on the Picasso trail, check out the Picasso Museum in le Marais.
Murs de j’taime – The love wall
Leave the square downhill on Rue Ravignan and turn on Rue de Abbesses to Place des
Abbesses.
On the upper side of Place de Abbesses you’ll find a small park with I love you written in over
250 languages.
The wall was created by the artists Frédéric Baron and Claire Kito and is a must for lovers and
honeymooning couples.
If you come back this way Abbesses is the nearest Metro stop (map) to the top of the hill but
its spiral staircase is hard work for all but the fittest of visitors.
If you’re looking for a place to eat, there are many great restaurants for all budgets around
here.
A personal favourite of ours is l’Annexe on Rue des Trois Frees or for something fun and
different, the Refuge de Fondues on the same street where the wine is served in baby’s bottles!

Refuge de Fondues
Take Rue Yvonne le Tac and Rue Tardieu across the hill (neither up nor down) and you’ll arrive
at a park with fantastic views back up to the Sacré-Coeur.
This is where Amelie calls her lover on the payphone and tells him to follow the blue arrows.
Hopefully, you’ve enjoyed our time in this most romantic of neighbourhoods.
If you’re done with Montmarte just head down Rue de Steinkerque to Place Anvers where
you’ll find the Boulevard where we started and the Metro station Anvers to head off to your
next Paris destination.
If you’d rather hang around longer and explore, just remember whichever way you go downhill
on the Sacré-Coeur side of the hill, you’ll hit the big Boulevard where we started and where
you’ll find a Metro station.