Musée de la Poupée

Each morning in Paris, no matter what we have announced our plans for the day to be, the girls have asked "So when can we go to the doll museum?" This morning, to their delight, we announced that the plan was to go to the Musée de la Poupée. The museum is tucked back in a sweet little alleyway amid the madness of Beaubourg, near the Centre Pompidou (modern art museum), next to a little garden in honor of Anne Frank (4th arrondissement). The girls loved it. It's a must do for any kids who are doll lovers, and kind of fascinating from an adult perspective to see the toy trends throughout the years. And, though I'm not sure any irony was intended on the part of the museum's curators, my mom and I were helpless with laughter much of the time. These pictures speak for themselves – no captions necessary. 

 

Musée de la Poupée: Impasse Berthaud, Paris 3e (open Tues.-Sat. 10-6)

The museum is tiny and doesn't take much time; you can easily add it on to a trip to Beaubourg or the Marais. We began here and then moved on to the Pompidou, where we ate lunch at Georges on the top floor, with a magnificent view and pricey but tasty food (the girls happily split a pasta dish and sipped their Oranginas). We breezed through the museum afterwards, then strolled through les Halles and up the Rue Montorgeuil, a market street around the corner from where I lived, years ago. Much has changed in 15 years, some not a bit. We stopped for pastries at the ancient Patisserie Stohrer at #51, and picked out some of the older storefronts among the modern chain shops.