Paris, Ile St. Louis

Just upstream from Ile (Island) de la Cité, and joined by Pont (bridge) St. Louis, Ile (Island) St. Louis is the location of some very expensive homes and famous restaurants. Ile St. Louis is like an urban jewel, studded with elegant mansions, many created in the 1600s.

Originally two small islands, Ile Saint Louis was formed when the Île aux Vâches (Cow Island) and the Île de Notre Dame were merged in the 17th century. Now four bridges link Île St-Louis and Rive Droite, the Right Bank, and Rive Gauche, the Left Bank of the Seine, another connects to the Ile de la Cité.

During our visit one year, in the middle of Pont St. Louis a group of musicians were in great form, complete with various instruments including a full-size piano on wheels. They provided an excellent street-side concert.

There is one more “island” in the Seine, one that looks as if it were man-made. My city map of Paris indicates it is not real, and when we visited the so-called island, it sure didn’t look naturalistic. The narrow Allée des Cygnes (“Promenade of the Swans”) runs straight as an arrow between Pont de Bir-Hakeim and Pont de Grenelle. It is a little tree-lined, paved path on a sort of dike or pier in the center of the river. It’s most important feature is the bronze scale model of Bartholdi's Statue of Liberty, that sits on the western end of the Allée.

I reviewed over 50 Google references that talked about this island, but not one gave any indication of who did it, or why. One Web Site said, "A prefectoral decree of May 18, 1878 authorized the City to establish on the platform of this dam a planted alley … … ." The best I can figure, they were talking about this "make believe" island. Your HELP please!