MUSEE DU QUAY BRANLY

We like to go to the museum from time to time and we are very lucky to live near Paris, as it offers plenty of choices.
Lately, we went to one of the biggest museums, recently-opened in Paris, Musée du Quai Branly, located near the Eiffel Tower, by the river Seine.
The museum was inaugurated 2 years ago, and it’s dedicated to the ancient civilization.

The first interesting thing with this museum is its architecture.
When you first arrived, you will notice a cultivated wall (where plants literally grew from the wall) at the corner of the building.
You will then enter into a rather savage garden (where the access is free-of-charge) to find some bench to rest and a café with a terrace, and by crossing here you will reach the museum entrance.

It also offers a gastronomic restaurant, “les ombres”, on the top floor, with an open-air area and a great view over the river and the tower. We took the opportunity to spend a day at the museum to have a good lunch there. The place is nice, the service is friendly, the food is quite original and the price is reasonable if you choose the set menu.

The museum has a very important and interesting permanent collection, classified by Continent. The visit is like a world tour. You start normally by Oceania, continued by Asia, from South-East to Middle-East, then arriving in Africa, from North to South, and finishing by the Americas, from South to North.
You have also access to the temporary exhibitions. When we were there, we had a chance to check out these exhibitions: “Batak of Sumatra”, “Ivories in Africa” and “Elena Izcue”, a Peruvian artist.

We spent the entire day at the museum and, even though we were quite tired by the time we get home, we were very pleased as it was interesting and diversified.
It’s a very nice place and we strongly recommend it.