Maison de Victor Hugo
France's most famous scribe lived in this house on the southeast corner of Place des Vosges between 1832 and 1848. It's now a museum dedicated to the multitalented author. In Hugo's apartment on the second floor, you can see the tall desk, next to the short bed, where he began writing his masterwork Les Misérables (as always, standing up). There are manuscripts and early editions of the novel on display, as well as others such as Notre-Dame de Paris, known to English readers as The Hunchback of Notre-Dame. You can see illustrations of Hugo's writings, including Bayard's rendering of the impish Cosette holding her giant broom (which has graced countless Les Miz T-shirts). The collection includes many of Hugo's own, sometimes macabre, ink drawings (he was a fine artist), and furniture from several of his homes. Particularly impressive is the room of carved and painted Chinese-style wooden panels that Hugo designed for the house of his mistress, Juliette Drouet, on the island of Guernsey, when he was exiled there for agitating against Napoléon III. Try to spot the intertwined Vs and Js (hint: look for the angel's trumpet in the left corner). A recent restoration not only spiffed up the house but made the museum fully accessible to people with physical or mental disabilities and impaired sight or hearing, with improved touch screens and audioguides. It also added a lovely garden terrace and a café by Paris's famous pastry shop Maison Mulot.
