Please note: Due to renovation music du munde room is temporarily closed till May 17th, 2025…read moreYou can still find some of the magnificent instruments being displayed at 1st floor

Les Amis du Musee de la Musique was nice, however the modern wing was closed and my former love was…read moredisappointed, as a avid music fanatic, who was not able to see Frank Zappa's equipment or instruments to create his masterpieces. This music museum showcase instruments from early era to modern instruments.

Also had a chance to visit the library here. All in French the collection is a handy tool used to…read moreteach dozens of students daily. Nice tables and chairs also make it a good place to read and find out more - open afternoons.

Extremely interesting. On the first floor there's a little…read moreexhibit on the history of the Palais de la Porte Dorée itself, which first hosted a colonial exhibition in 1931 and a series of colonially-minded collections before becoming the museum it is today. You can then find a section made of personal items donated by individuals to the museums: family photographs, objects of devotion, musical instruments, old postcards. I found it a very interesting insight on the 'plural voices of migration', as the museum puts it, and liked the fact that this section is varied chronologically and geographically. The centerpiece is the exhibit on migrations which develop thematically rather than chronologically/geographically. Some topics I remember: sport as a means of integration, music as a means of integration (with a nice jukebox of French songs written by / about migrants), lodging issues connected to immigration, food and immigration. It's a small museum and I personally spent about 2hrs inside. Tip: if you visit on Sundays (but apparently also on Thursdays) you can enjoy the local market (Marché de la Porte Dorée) and have a snack there. Just across the museum is the nice Bois de Vincennes. While I visited, the Palazzo Café just outside the museum (not the museum coffee shop, which is inside the Palais) offered snacks and drinks on a very nice patio. The only reason why I did not give a 5 stars rating: only some of the explanations are translated (into English, some are translated also into German and/or Spanish), therefore visitors who do not read French might only partially enjoy the exhibits.

We went shortly after the (re)opening and the place was bustling, as the villa works both as an…read moreexhibition space and a workplace for artists and curators. The exhibition is best enjoyed with a little guidance, but it's well worth asking one of the people who work there for a quick introduction or tour, as we eventually did, as it will make the experience all the more worthwhile. The staff was very helpful, friendly and informative. The villa itself is beautiful, the old blending with the new, feeling very much lived-in - such a beautiful space! Worth exploring on your own too. The space is not huge but has its little nooks and crannies, and you might stumble on an artist working from (what looked like) a tiny storage room if you do (!!) It felt like the Shakespeare & Co of art spaces. All in all, we left feeling we would to return. The curating team organise events and workshops, which we didn't get to see (there was one a few hours later that day), but will likely come back for another time.