L'Île aux Cygnes

L'Île aux Cygnes (Isle of the Swans) is one of Sugar's regular walking spots. It's a kilometer-long, man-made island in the middle of the Seine between the 16th and 15th Arrondissements.

The Isle's namesake

Foraging along the shallow edge of the Isle

Because there is no traffic, it's a great spot to unleash the dog for a bit, even if we have to be mindful of the other people strolling the allée--and especially the many joggers during the lunch hour. I've seen few places with more smokers than Paris has, and few with more joggers. I guess that's their idea of a healthy balance.

At the south end of L'Île (where we start our walks) stands one of the original mockups of the Statue of Liberty--facing south, so you only see her backside from the Pont de Grenelle or the Isle itself.

La derriere de la Femme de la Liberté

At the north end of L'Île is the Pont de Bir-Hakim, commemorating one of the early Allied victories against Rommel in North Africa.

Bir Hakim, 1942. When fighting the Wehrmacht, the French Foreign Legion wore shorts. ((c) Imperial War Museum)

Originally called Pont de Passy, Pont de Bir Hakim was built in 1905, well before the battle for which it was renamed. It's decorated with statues depicting its heroic creation and, for some reason, the view of a horse's ass.

Putting the finishing touches on the Pont de Bir Hakim

Riding away to glory

Just below the Pont de Grenelle is what I consider L'Île's greatest feature: an open air gym. I've unilaterally (and unanimously) dubbed this "Club sous le pont" (club under the bridge) which makes us club members "les trolls", I guess. During my workouts I've seen people, cormorants, and a kingfisher catch fish in the river and have been kissed by strangers' dogs when doing pushups. What could be better?

Les trolls au Club Sous Le Pont