En chasse

Yesterday, Kyliemac and I braved these Paris city streets, just two girls on the hunt. No, not for men or great bargains in les Soldes, but for fame, glory, prizes, or at the very least, the dignity of the English-speaking community in Paris. Because it was time for the annual Chasse aux Trésors - the Paris Treasure Hunt! (Which I heard about here, thanks to Polly-vous Français!)

For the second year now, the city fathers have put this event together, and thousands of Parisians, expats and tourists alike turn out. Alone or in teams, you register to participate in the treasure hunt organized in one of five arrondissements - this year it was the 3rd, 6th, 13th, 18th and 19th. You are given instructions and clues at the start of the day, and you have until a certain time to complete the "enigmas" and find the end-point (finding it is part of the game), where you can enter your name in a random drawing for one of three prizes (each arrondissement provides 3 prizes, so you're only competing in the quartier in which you played, not the whole city-wide event). It's something that seems so quintessentially French to me, being all about relying on your powers of observation, logic and intellect, that I just had to do it, and fortunately for me Kylie decided to join me as her French is excellent and mine... isn't.

I chose the 6th, known as Saint-Germain-des-Prés for the famous church of the same name (oldest church in Paris), because I'm a bit familiar with it already in terms of getting around and because I love it and wanted to have a chance to discover more about it. We arrived at the Mairie (city hall) of the 6th at slightly after the official start time of 10am, to find a line about a mile long. While Kylie stood in line to hold our place, I ran across the street to a bookstore to buy a copy of the Michelin Guide Vert for Paris, which the treasure hunt website hinted might be useful. We had no idea if we would be forced to work all in French or if they would provide clues and directions in English, so we wanted to be prepared. As we were waiting (and waiting - the French being incapable of rushing through anything), we talked about how we doubted we'd even be able to finish the course, but we were going to give it our best shot.

It was drizzling and cloudy as we finally got to the front of the line, where we were pleased to discover they had directions and the "enigma" in English. We were to use the enigma to proceed, and periodically would have to enter certain shops or galleries to collect pieces of clues which we would need to solve the end of the puzzle and finish the hunt. Intrigued, we set off. And you can come along for the ride walk:

Walk along the great garden. Your direction: the palace. You are on the longest street of Paris. On your right side, you will see the museum. Reach the painter, behind the forest. And when you see the arches, go under them. Against the wall, you will find a meter.

So we knew the "great garden" was the Jardin de Luxembourg which was just up the street. I knew "the palace" was the Palais de Luxembourg which now houses the French Senate. And (light bulb moment!) I remembered that the longest street in Paris is Rue de Vaugirard! Kylie was shocked that I knew this, and I have my landlord Georges to thank for this, as he and his wife Andi once took me and a friend to dinner in the 5th and while we were driving on Rue de Vaugirard, he mentioned it was the longest street in Paris. Anyway, we knew we were off to a good start.

Or so we thought. I knew the museum on the right was the one hosting the current Lalique exhibition. But the "reach the painter, behind the forest"? Arches? We walked long Vaugirard for a bit, and saw a restaurant called the "Renoir", and some arcades (the arches perhaps? Or should we be looking for a McDonalds?) but we got thrown off by the reference to the "forest" because at this point you couldn't even SEE the parc itself because the Palais building goes right up to the street. We pulled out our Michelin guide to look up the Palais and Jardin, and saw a reference to a statue of Delecroix located IN the park. So we backtracked.

In the park. I knew where this statue was because I'd seen it once. But then we were stumped by this "arches" clue because neither of us could recall seeing anything with arches in the gardens. We walked along the Palais again, this time inside the park, and found nothing. We exited the park on the other side of the Palais (passing the Medici Fountain), back onto Vaugirard. The whole time, we're feeling better because we are seeing other confused hunters, some speaking French, so we knew it couldn't just be the English speakers who were scratching their heads. But we're also thinking how sad it would be if we couldn't get past the FIRST PARAGRAPH.

So we decided to double back and try the "Renoir" cafe reference. We walked under the arcades "arches", and THERE it was, the "meter". Literally a stone measurement of the metric "metre" embedded in ("against") the wall under the arcades. Clever, these Frenchies! The little plaque next to it told us that these were installed around Paris between 1796-1977 to standardize the usage of the metric system, and that this one was one of the only two (out of the 16 originally installed) remaining in all of Paris, and the ONLY one remaining on its original site. Now we could move on to the next paragraph:

Keep walking along the palace and when you are at number 15-ter, count 8 meters East and you will find a golden coin on the pavement. There are 134 other coins like this in Paris. All are on the same line, which is the meridian.

Remember the name written on it.

We both knew about these "coins" in the pavements. They're the ARAGO markers of the Arago Rose Line and named after a French astronomer, and they mark the original French N/S meridian that competed with the Greenwich meridian. They were also made famous by The DaVinci Code. And "15-ter" is the entrance to the Senat building, where there were two security guards laughing their derriéres off at all the treasure hunters.

Right after a company which delivers messages, turn left and go down North. At number 19, enter, you will find a clue.

We turned left at the post office onto Rue de Tournon, heading north toward the river. Number 19 was some sort of a day spa/exercise place. We collected our clue in English (we had to ask for it as they only set out the French ones on the table with their literature - the objective being they were hoping the hunters would patronise their establishments at some future date), and back out we went.

Once you have it, keep going north and at the next crossroad, follow the old name: follow the brave. You are on the way of the Parisian river. Leave it when you meet Clement. He invites you in his street.

North on Tournon, at the next intersection next to the usual Blue and Green street signs, we saw other, different street names carved into the cornerstones of the buildings. From my Marais walking tour earlier this year, I learned that in the oldest parts of the city, you will still see the original ("old") street names carved into the stones. And sure enough, we were on Rue Brave, known today as Rue de Seine.

We got to the next intersection, with Rue Clement, turned left into the next clue:

On your way, you will see a covered market. Get inside and look for the gap. Inside, you will find a clue.

The Marché Saint Germain is located on Rue Clement. It's now a modern shopping mall. With: THE Gap. (Subtle, non?) It took us a few minutes to find a salesperson who could give us our clue and we had to answer a question first: in what year was The Gap founded? Answer? 1969. I should have known that, as I once worked a holiday job at a local Gap, but I didn't.

At this point we decided it was time for a nature break and a bit of lunch. As we were enjoying our sandwiches and Kylie was busy getting a brain-freeze from trying to drink a horrible frozen cola slushie, we read through the next clues to plan our next move.

Then, in order to find your way out, search the wooden statue and walk in his direction. Walk straight until the boulevard. There, find the place where you can enjoy a nice glass of rhum.

Don't drink too much, because your boss is next to you, up on the boulevard. Join him. Your next rendez-vous is at the entrance of the church. When you are in front of the main door, look for a little garden right next to it. Inside you will find the face of a man. His name is the name of the street you have to take.

The wooden statue was right behind where we were having our lunch, and it needed a thorough dusting. We knew the nearest boulevard was Bd. Saint-Germain-des-Prés, and I remembered there is a bar there called La Rhumerie; a fact that Kylie found somewhat disconcerting: "How did you know THAT?" I've never even been there but have spent more time in that neighborhood than in any other place in Paris and after you walk by a place 30-40 times you kind of notice things.

I figured the "boss" was probably a Hugo Boss boutique, given the trendy stores in this area. And we knew the church would be that after which the quartier is named. I knew there was a small park next to it because there's a bus stop there that I use all the time.

So we got to that park, and found the "face" of Guillaume Apollinaire. Kylie looked around and sure enough, there was a street named after him, just across Rue Bonaparte from where we stood. By now we were thoroughly into this whole thing, despite our somewhat shaky start, and we felt like we might have a good chance of actually finishing as we were about halfway through our instructions.

At the end of this street, follow the saint on your right. Silence: two angels come across. On your way,  you can notice a jazz club. You can find many others in this neighborhood.

When this street comes to its end, don't be attract by Marilyn Monroe's melody. You would better turn right and then, follow the emperor towards the river. On your way, you will see a narrow street. Its name reminds you the name of a great film maker. Take it. Next to a little garden, enter Marie-Claude's gallery. Inside you will find a clue.

At the end of Apollinaire street, we turned right onto Rue Saint-Benoit. A block farther down the road, we saw the two angels: the Impasse des Deux Anges. Continuing down St-Benoit to the the end, passing the "Jazz Cafe", on the way, we never did figure out what Marilyn Monroe's Melody was, but the corner cafe was playing Abba's "Take a Chance on Me". We hung a right onto Rue Jacob then a quick left back onto Rue Bonaparte [emperor, of course] heading toward the river. Rue Visconti was the next narrow side street, and sure enough, there was the gallery. We picked up our next clue. And while walking down the street I noticed a carving in the wall at Number 24, with a name that was shortly to factor into our hunt (coincidence? Who knows.)

At the end of this street, look for the colours of the painter and take the road of the man who will need them.

Took a moment to get this one. We were now on Rue de Seine again, and not quite knowing which direction to take, we headed back toward the Boulevard and came to the next cross-street. And saw a restaurant called The Palette... on rue Jacques Callot; Callot was a painter. On this street, we saw this really excellent bronze statue that we both quite liked.

At the next crossroad, look for another great film maker and walk towards a restaurant whose name will sound familiar.

We were now on Rue Mazarine where we got momentarily stumped again. We saw a graffiti-type painting of a big head of a guy who was holding one of those movie-style clap-boards - the "great filmmaker"? We walked up and down this street looking for a "restaurant whose name will sound familiar" and the only thing I saw that was slightly familiar (even though I haven't been there) was the Alcazar. I guess it was the right way to go because across from it, we had the next clue:

Next to the restaurant, take another paved and narrow street. When you are out, turn right and keep going until you reach the boulevard.

This was the Passage Dauphine, one of a handful of little private pedestrian-only streets that are part of the older sections of Paris. It sure would be nice to live in one of those streets, they are always so peaceful and seem worlds apart from the city. We came out onto Rue Dauphine, followed it all the way down Rue l'Ancienne-Comedie (where Le Procope is located, the oldest restaurant in Paris and where I've eaten on two occasions and had very good meals and service). Back to the Boulevard, we were at Metro Odéon:

There, look for the statue related to the French revolution. A finger of his right hand shows you the direction. Keep walking until you reach another boulevard.

This one was easy: Danton, a key figure in the Revolution. We can see that he (and Kylie) points east toward Boulevard Saint Michel.

At this moment, follow the French author of theatre masterpieces. He will lead you to the theatre. When you are in front of it, turn around it and go towards the great garden. You will be on the longest street of Paris again. Well, your last clue is hidden somewhere in this street. Try at number 16, you may find it there.

We had to check a map on this one to find the right direction to take on Bd. St. Michel, and there it was: Rue Racine! Walking down that street we saw the Odéon Theatre at Place de l'Odéon. A left turn and a short block away, we were back on Rue de Vaugirard again with the Luxembourg Gardens in front of us. Now, for the last clue... wait a sec, Number 16 is CLOSED.

Then we remembered that in the beginning they told us one of the clue locations was closed and they gave us the clue in advance. VOILA! We had all our "clues".

Once you have it, get inside the great garden next to you. There, it will be time to get your clues all together. Show them to the sky and let the light go through the paper. The message will appear clearly. It will lead you to the treasure.

So what we have now is 4 pieces of paper, one side with plain printing and the other with italicized printing. Putting the 4 pieces together (wish we'd had some Scotch tape!) in order, there were more clues on both sides - so we weren't done "deciphering" yet!

The plain side said:
Look for a map of this place. At the corner of a plot of grass on which people can walk, at the bottom of it, you will notice a little text. Remember the last word of the fourth line. Maybe you would better find the map make for those who cannot see. On this map, look for this symbol [a Braille symbol]. You have a rendez-vous in front of the thing it represents. Under the right hand of this man. Walk behind his man following the line drawn by his 2 feet. You will reach a symbol of the last word you memorized. A white mulberry tree. Your adventure ends under its shadow.

And the italicized side - printed BACKWARDS - said:
You will find candies. Not far from one of these candy boxes there is an invisible statue. The statue is there but you cannot see it. Remember the word linked to the one you saw at the bottom of the invisible statue. You will meet an artist lost in the leaves - follow his eyes. They show you his direction. In front of it, you have the choice between 2 directions. One of them leads to ___________.

Now we really had our work cut out for us, and wondered (not for the first time, either) if something had been lost in translation.

Upon entering the gardens, we found the map of the entire site posted clearly. But we couldn't find the "corner of a plot of grass on which people can walk" or "the little text". So we couldn't find the "last word of the 4th line". There was NO Braille on this particular map, nor did we see Braille on any other sign-posts as we wandered through the park. But we did see one thing on the big map: two symbols of wrapped candies... so we headed in that direction. As we're walking, Kylie tells me she'd heard there was the smallest replica of the Statue of Liberty here in the park and "we're not leaving until we find that, too!", so we had our eyes peeled for that, as well -- not having bothered to take the time to look for it on the map, of course.

On the far side of the big fountain and pond, there was a plot of grass with what looked like a big pedestal of a statue, but no statue. As we got closer, we saw a stall that was selling candies! So we knew we were in the the right place to find this "invisible statue". The problem was, the thing I thought was a pedestal wasn't one, and there was nothing inscribed on the bottom of it. Looking around some more, we spotted another, smaller, pedestal - with some other hunters clustered around it (I should admit that one of our strategies throughout this game was to look for other treasure hunters so we'd at least know if we were on the right track). Sure enough - a statue-less statue with some text below it. But which was the "last word"? We asked the other group that was there and they told us "LIBRE" - "Free". So, at least we had one piece of this final riddle. But where was this Braille map?

Again, looking to see where other hunters were going, and making a few wrong turns, we discovered the Braille map on the far corner entrance of the gardens, in a section neither of us had ever visited before. We found the Braille symbol on our clue and it pointed to a statue. Now, we knew we were near the end so we raced (even though we weren't being timed and there was no prize for finishing "first") to that spot. Another cluster of hunters were there, too. We didn't quite get the part of the clue about his eyes or under his right hand, but the statue (a modern bronze), had many words carved into it and among them, two stood out "libre" and "liberté". looked at how his feet were positioned on a diagonal and headed down a path in that direction.

And that's when it hit me: libre. Liberté. THE STATUE OF FLIPPING LIBERTY! THAT was going to be our final destination! Kylie and I cracked up at the idea of her saying "we're not leaving here until we find the Statue of Liberty" - she didn't know how literally right she was!

Around some shrubs... there there she was, our final enigma, solved. Diminutive in stature compared to the one gifted to the U.S. by France even to the one in the Seine, and obviously not cleaned in ages, but unmistakable. And how ironic, in a way, that here we were concerned the English-speakers might not get a fair shake in this contest, and the last stop in the hunt was THE symbol of an English-speaking nation with whom France has a love-hate relationship. Very appropriate, I thought.

Looking around, we spotted a table of people and although we had no idea what a mulberry tree looked like, knew we'd made it to the end, despite our initial doubts. We filled out our entry blanks for the prize drawing, and were given a question to answer to qualify to each get to put in an extra entry form apiece. Which is when we learned that the French-language enigmas had several different versions printed up (and only one in English) to make sure that people went in different directions and didn't cluster up in bunches. Which was a pretty good idea.

We started the game at 11am on the nose (not counting the 45 minutes of waiting time) and including a quick lunch and two bathroom breaks, it took us 2 1/2 hours to do the entire thing. I think it probably helped that we were in a quartier I was more familiar with; not sure we'd have moved that quickly in any of the other 4. Since it was now about 1:30 and we had two hours to kill before the official prize drawing (you don't have to be present to win but we wanted to see how they did it and experience the entire chasse from start to finish), we first took a break in a cafe near Saint Sulpice where we were attacked by baby spiders and cigar smokers. Kylie having had a Very Unfortunate Event with spider here in France, in which she was bitten and it got very nasty, we left because it was just too creepy to have these tiny spiders on us.

We took advantage of the time to do a little soldes shopping in some of the smaller boutiques around Rue de Rennes and Rue de Fours. Didn't buy anything but Kylie tried on some very cute dresses. Back to the Mairie of the 6th to wait for the drawing. Got there about 3:15pm at what turned out to be the perfect time: we snagged two chairs in the shade and most people as they filed into the courtyard had to sit on carpets or the tarmac. Some fonctionnaires brought in a lot of bottled water, cookies and fresh peaches, nectarines, apricots, strawberries and cherries to keep the crowd hydrated and fed.

We had rather a long wait, too - about 90 minutes. During which time we were able to crowd-watch and wonder why certain small groups of people were dressed up: there was a Goth group, a Renaissance group, and even a Harry Potter group. We thought that was a bit odd until we learned they gave extra prizes or certificates to teams who were the most creatively dressed. Voila, another mystery solved.

So, we didn't win a prize, tant pis pour nous, and the prizes were actually pretty cool: dinner for six at nice restau, a nice for two in a swanky hotel, and a mystery tour of Paris. The awards ceremony left something to be desired as the officials didn't seem to understand the concept of speaking clearly into the mic, and there were some annoying hecklers sitting near us who made it even harder to hear. It seemed only one of the 3 grand prize winners was actually present, and the others would be notified by phone. C'est la vie!

We both agreed this was a TON of fun and we would definitely do it again. However, we did NOT need that Michelin guide, despite the fact the event's website suggested as much. Perhaps it would have been more useful if we'd been in more unfamiliar territory. Over the course of the day, the weather even cleared up in the afternoon and made for a nice end to the day, where we wandered around the 6th some more, and eventually had an early dinner followed by some gelato from Amorina. The only downside was the spiders and later the flying ants which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere like a cloud of locusts over that part of the city. Seriously, they were EVERYWHERE, those ants, and after finding more spiders in my hair and Kylie's, we both decided all we wanted to do was pack it in, go home and clean up.

You will be able to hear more about this treasure hunt on Katia and KylieMac's podcast in Episode 61. Katia was not able to join us as she has just two weeks left before her month-long vacation back to Australia to attend her sister's wedding and visit with her family and friends back there. She just couldn't fit this into her day. But I'm sure the chasse will be on again next year, and if we're all still here we can do it again.

And if you missed it, or if you participated but in another arrondissement, print this post off and take your own walking tour of the 6th, and see it all for yourself!