BnF

Warning: This post may be boring for those of you who don't get excited by rows upon rows of gleaming, esoteric books.

That's right: The BnF, or Bibliotheque nationale de France, located in Paris, is the national library of France. (Find it on our map.) I'll be spending a ton of time here, both at the pictured Site Francois Mitterand (aka Tolbiac), and at the Departement de la Musique, at 2 Rue Louvois, on the Right Bank. At both locations, I'll be sifting through boxes of unpublished correspondence, personal memoirs, financial records, musical sketches, party invitations, concert programs, and all kinds of other primary source documents from the Interwar years. 

As a foreign academic, I can only gain access to the Rez-de-Jardin (bottom level of the main branch, which is devoted to research) by presenting my passport and a letter of introduction at the Richelieu branch (also on the Right Bank). There, I'll sign up for a year membership (normally 35 euros, but 18 with a student ID). Once at the BnF site Francois Mitterand, I'll surrender most of my belongings at a vestiary and descend into the wondrous depths:

What it looks like inside (I may have taken this picture illegally)

A view of the below-ground-level garden (name-sake of the "Rez-de-jardin," or "garden level")

Here's the floor plan of the Rez-de-Jardin; each letter marks a different subject.

I've already done some research here, and it's a good thing, since initially it took me a few days to figure out how everything works. First I didn't bring my passport to the membership office; then I couldn't figure out how to request books; I also wasted time reading things I could have accessed just as easily in the States. This time around, I'll be better prepared!