Boulevard Montmartre

You are standing on Boulevard Montmartre, one of Paris's great old avenues, laid out in 1763. Notice the tall trees, the flow of people, the shopfronts blurring past. Now look up at the windows above the street. One of those rooms changed art history.

In 1897, the painter Camille Pissarro checked in here with sore, failing eyes. Unable to work outside, he sat by the window and painted this exact street 14 times. Carriages, lanterns, rain, fog, sun, crowds. Same view, 14 different moods. One of those paintings is attached to this stop, so take a look. You are literally standing inside his canvas.

Behind you and to your sides, two covered passages slice through the buildings like hidden streets. Passage des Panoramas, from 1799, was one of the first buildings in Europe lit by gas light. It is also the oldest covered arcade in Paris, and it smells wonderfully of old paper and warm coffee.

Right next door, Passage Jouffroy opened in 1847 as the first arcade in Paris with underfloor heating. In 1847! Cozy before cozy was cool.