In fact, the Louvre’s courtyard itself makes this point evident; here one finds the glass pyramid designed by architect I.M. Pei, and put up in 1989. At first, it may seem that a modern glass pyramid in the courtyard of a lovely and enormous former palace, would be a bad idea. But as sometimes happens in Paris, here the modern and the old make a beautiful and fascinating juxtaposition.

On the Louvre’s northern side, the uniform rows of windows and relief sculpture on the museum’s façade face the Oratoire. Constructed in the 1600’s, this Protestant center of worship is an eye-catching Baroque explosion. If architecture isn’t enough, nearby is the Louvre des Antiquaires, an enormous arcaded building full of antiques stores where one might just find a masterpiece of painting, sculpture, or decorative arts to take home to one’s own palace.

The other location that gives its name to this quartier, the Palais-Royal, isn’t far off. Originally built as Cardinal Richelieu’s personal palace in the 17th century, the arcaded complex (another one!) went through numerous hands over the years, becoming a hotbed of Revolutionary planning and thought in the late 18th century, and a sketchy place full of pickpockets, thieves, and prostitutes by the mid-19th. Today, the Palais Royal is more or less back to its former elegance, but with some notable changes. For example, now the first inner courtyard is filled with sculptures by artist Daniel Buren, that seem to be parts of ruined columns painted white and black (giving the place a sort of Tim-Burton-meets-the-Forum feel). In a more aesthetically pleasing change, between this courtyard and the nicely arranged inner garden, are two enormous metal basins full of polished metal balls.

The unexpected art doesn’t end here; behind the Palais Royal’s columns, amid a few restaurants and cafes, one finds shops selling everything from stamps to finely made antique toys. If these are a return to the more expected classiness of the area, modern-day audacity takes over once again just outside, on the Place Colette. Here, across from the famous and centuries-old Comédie Française theater, one finds a Métro entrance made up of what look like glittery Christmas balls. In fact, this foreshadows the area’s last artful surprise; in the unlikely event a tourist doesn’t stop here, the Louvre-Rivoli Métro station, on the quartier’s eastern edge, is specially lit and filled with replicas of works in the Louvre. Proving that, not only is art dominant in this area, it’s practically inescapable.