The featured image is one of my more recent photos, taken from a front row seat at Cafe Marly . This cafe is on the top of my list as one of the ideal seats in Paris. It can be heralded as having a remarkably broad view of an ever-changing contemporary scene with a historically significant, centuries-old, world-renowned location as a backdrop. To be assured of a seat, book a reservation, although I have walked in without a res and been OK, more than once.

Although the cafe has indoor seating with its own glass enclosed lookout on a different view of the Louvre (and the hallway to the bathroom upstairs has yet another view worth seeing), Cafe Marly is known most for its outstretched outdoor corridor of tables under a rather difficult-to-find protected arched terrace. This terrace has always come across to me like I am sitting on a beach boardwalk but just the ‘beach’ here happens to be the astounding exterior view of the Louvre and its Pyramid instead. Depending on the table you are seated at, the view can also include a showing off of the Tuileries Gardens to the right and possibly even a smidgeon of the Eiffel Tower!

Although it on the pricier side to grab one of these seats, you can secure that cafe seat for hours, if you so desire, by just ordering a drink or add in some eats if that is your preference. You are then left to wile away your time, rain or shine, morning or night, soaking in the reality that you are, in fact, in a choice spot in Paris.

Focusing on the Pyramid, when revisiting my oldest of photos, I came across this one I had taken of the interior of the Pyramid:

The Pyramid, in the main courtyard of the Louvre (Cour Napoleon) was completed in 1989 by the world renowned Chinese- American architect, I.M. Pei. He wanted the glass to be as transparent as possible, which meant he worked for months on coming up with a glass that would not, for instance, cast hues of green or blue. His ultimate choice of glass does allow for a clearer view of the courtyard building on the opposite side of the Pyramid.

Once inside, there is also an inverted pyramid that you can walk around and survey.

One of the more intriguing highlights I enjoyed at the Louvre more recently, is the fortress/moat/tower area:

“…long before it became a public museum, the Louvre was a fortress dating back to the reign of Philippe Auguste, the French king who paved the streets and built the walls of Paris.Thanks to archaeological excavations in the mid-1980s, a “Medieval Louvre” exhibition beneath the Louvre Museum’s Coeur Carré courtyard now lets visitors explore the ruins of the castle that existed from 1190 AD until the early 16th Century, when the keep was torn down to make way for the Renaissance palace that survives as the Musée du Louvre.”

If I have peaked your interest, click on the Pyramid link above to find out more about the highlights of the Pyramid you might not know and also see some exquisite photos.