Paris is the archetypal city that is best discovered by walking its streets. Umbrellas are always handy however, when the skies announce inclement weather. But besides the grands magasins (grand department stores) like Printemps or Les Galeries Lafayette, one finds most charming and architecturally interesting times exploring and shopping the roofed commercial passageways of Paris.
Passage Jouffroy
Not always easy to find, Les Passages Couverts of Paris are disseminated mostly around the first and second arrondissements on the Rive Droite (right bank of the Seine river) within the inner limits of Paris before its extension of 1860.
They were built through buildings or designed along with them, close to the Grands Boulevards, at a time frequented by a mostly affluent society. These galeries (shopping arcades) are covered by a verrière (glass roof) with a zénithal lighting, which gives them a unique luminous quality. They also shelters the clientele from bad weather, street noises and smells, and traffic dangers; they are also places for social meetings and encounters.
Galerie Vivienne
The first passageways were the galeries de bois du Palais-Royal, (1786), Feydeau, Caire and the Panoramas (1799). Over 150 covered passages existed in 1850. However, with the urban changes brought by Haussman with the big avenues as well as the new grands magasins, many of these passageways disappeared.
A French association is dedicated to informing the public about the Passages et Galeries of Paris (in French): Passages & Galeries.
Here is a link to a comprehensive map of the Passages Couverts of Paris.
Galerie Colbert
