La Mouzaïa, in the 19th arrondissement, is a small piece of countryside in Paris, an unusual and flowery district .
A district preserved in its setting
La Mouzaia will offer you an original walk through the Parisian villas, these pedestrian and cobbled alleys bordered by pretty individual houses inhabited at the end of the 19th century by the working population. Nestled in the heart of the 19th arrondissement, a stone’s throw from the Buttes-Chaumont, this little corner of paradise is truly exotic. Crossing it, it feels a little safe in the south of France, but in any case nothing resembles Paris in this district. Because, here, there are hundreds of small dwellings that hide in the ten passages, paths and other villas that form the district. These all overlook rue de la Mouzaïa, the backbone of the district.
A gypsum quarry
What you should know about this little-known district of Paris is that from the Middle Ages until the 1860s, it was a gypsum quarry. A material that made it possible to make very good quality plaster. This resource was due to the evaporation of the surrounding salt marshes. Gypsum was used to make moldings for the ceilings of Haussmann apartments. The Mouzaia district could not be more charming: cobbled streets, small houses, gardens, flowers, the din of Paris seems far away. Roses, lilacs, honeysuckles, in spring, also expect an olfactory journey
