Surprising architecture where you might not think to look

While the architectural symbols of Paris are well-known in the forms of the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame among other historic structures, the city hides some modern designs. This article features one of them, the Simone de Beauvoir Library.

There's also a link to the beautiful Passerelle Simone de Beauvoir pedestrian bridge that links the library, which is set among the buildings of the French National Library, to the Bercy area, tucked between the banks of the Seine and tracks from the busy Gare de Lyon.

This is quite distant from the usual tourist attractions, but there's a stop on the RER C train and the Metro Line 14 nearby. The RER C runs along the Left Bank of the Seine and you can pick up Line 14 at the Madeleine or Pyramides stations and the dreaded Châtelet.

Admirers of more traditional Parisian design can easily be satisfied while walking around most any neighborhood. I like to go out early on weekend mornings when there are few people on the streets and peek into alleys and courtyards.

Sometimes the ancient and modern collide, such as at the Louvre. I'm not sure I like the clash in this photo taken from within the notorious I.M. Pei pyramid; I think it works better when viewed from the outside.

If you stay in this apartment, you'll be able to walk to the Louvre and grab the Metro to the libraries. To see more apartments in Paris and Barcelona, visit www.likelivingthere.com