Step Into Hemingway’s European Hangouts

"You can't get away from yourself by moving from one place to another."

By Google Arts & Culture

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Brasserie Lipp, Paris

Begin as you mean to go on, at a bar. In his 1964 memoir A Moveable Feast, Ernest Hemingway fondly recalls scraping together enough coins to order a cold liter of beer and warm potato salad at the Brasserie Lipp. Drink up, scroll, click, and drag to explore Europe with Ernest...

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The House of Gertrude Stein, Paris

Gertrude Stein, the art collector, writer, and great promoter of Modernism, became something of a mentor to Hemingway and other members of the 'lost generation', who found a home in 1920s Paris.

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Hosting regular salons at her house on 27 rue de Fleurus, Stein introduced the young Hemingway to artists including Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, and Juan Gris.

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Shakespeare & Co., Paris

This unremarkable doorway at 12 Rue de l’Odéon was the site of Sylvia Beach's original Shakespeare & Co. bookshop. Hemingway often hung out here hoping to 'accidentally' bump into its famous clientele.

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Beyond the name, the current Shakespeare & Co. bears no relation to Beach's original shop. It opened in 1951 and is found at 37 rue de la Bûcherie.

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Harry's New York Bar, Paris

A favourite hangout of fellow Americans in Paris. We owe it to the attentive bartenders of Harry's for inventing many of our favourite cocktails, including the French 75, the Sidecar, and the Bloody Mary. Just don't try them all at once.

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Inside, the bar retains much of its original wooden decor.

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Luxembourg Gardens, Paris

When writing, or drinking, gets you down, take a wander through the tranquil Luxembourg Gardens. Hemingway would often pass through here on his way to see the Cézannes at the Musée du Luxembourg.

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Cerveceria Alemana, Madrid

Imagine yourself, cerveza in hand, sitting at the Cerveceria Alemana and watching the world go by. This became a regular haunt of Hemingway during the Spanish Civil War. The bar has retained his special window seat with a marble topped table for those of a literary persuasion.

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Museo Chicote, Madrid


In the 1930s, while Spain was torn apart in the civil war, international journalists sipped cocktails and pencilled dispatches at this Madrid institution. The sleek curves and polished chrome of the Museo Chicote recall the art deco aesthetics of that era.

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Café Iruña, Pamplona

It's quiet right now, but you'd be lucky to get a table here during Pamplona's San Fermin feria, or The Running of the Bulls, made infamous in Hemingway's debut novel, The Sun Also Rises. The Café Iruña is the premier location for true aficionados of his work.

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The Gritti Palace, Venice

This hotel remains one of the most prestigious in Venice. Overlooking the Grand Canal, parts of this Gothic-style palace date back to the 14th Century. As well as Hemingway, the hotel has hosted Peggy Guggenheim, Elizabeth Taylor, and Richard Burton,

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The fact that in 1954, Hemingway and his wife Mary chose the Gritti Palace for their period of rest and recuperation after surviving two plane crashes says something about the degree of hospitality.

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Harry's Bar, Venice

This unassuming building houses Harry's Bar - no relation to Paris' Harry's Bar. The owner Giuseppe Cipriani took great pride in having Hemingway as a regular. He is also said to have invented the Bellini, a light cocktail of Prosecco and fresh peaches.

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The Ritz, Paris

Of all, this was Hemingway's favourite hangout. It's said that on August 25, 1944, as American troops and the French Resistance liberated Paris, Hemingway 'liberated' 51 dry martinis at the bar. In 1994, the bar was renamed in honour of their most dedicated patron.

Sherlock Holmes ceramic tile motif (1985) by Michael Douglas, Chorley, Hyman and Rose, and Paul ProctorLondon Transport Museum

In the mood for another storytelling-tour? Discover Sherlock Holmes' London

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