#2852 let's talk about Paris

I think I have always wanted to go to Paris, and I know the desire became strongest in 2019. I was planning to attend a creativity retreat in the south of France with Lizzie in September 2020, and we intended to add a couple of days in Paris before the retreat. Of course, Covid changed the whole world, and the retreat was rescheduled and eventually moved to Crete, which ended up being really amazing. 

Still, I've followed Instagram accounts from Paris, and scoured Pinterest for helpful tips should I ever get to the visit the City of Lights. When Mamacita suggested we spend a couple of days in Paris, I was totally excited. I often had to remind myself that Paris wasn't the main course of this vacation, just a little appetizer. 

We spent three nights in Paris. We arrived late Sunday morning May 7, and had the opportunity to walk around for a bit that afternoon. We were there all day Monday and all day Tuesday, then we left on Wednesday morning, 10 May. 

Here are five take-aways I have from my time in the City of Love:

1. I am *slightly* obsessed with the Eiffel Tower. I took 209 photos in Paris, and 54 of them had the Eiffel Tower in it. Plus, there are four videos of the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night. I could not stop myself from taking it's photo whenever I saw it. I joked about how many photos of the darn thing I needed, and apparently now I know the answer. 

In my defense, it is spectacular and it's huge. You can see if from far away. It is just right there all the time, and it's the Eiffel Tower. I apologize for nothing. The thing is freaking awesome.

Place de la Concorde

Near Champ de Mars, the park underneath the Eiffel Tower

Sparkly Eiffel Tower with Pont Alexandre III spanning the Seine

2. Where are the patisseries? I was under the mistaken impression that there would be a patisserie or a boulangerie on every street. That was certainly not the case in the area where we stayed. I was looking forward to getting a fresh baked croissant and a baguette from a local shop every day. That did not happen. We asked the server at the hotel bar where we would find a patisserie, and he told us of one near the hotel, so we did find that one in the neighborhood, and it was good. I don't think it was exactly what I expected, though. Thinking those types of shops were prevalent, at least in the Museum district, was a misconception on my part. I will say that there were cafes and very nice shops with macarons and madeleines, and those were fun. Just no baguettes. 

3. My little corner of the city was pretty great. Our hotel (which I really liked!) was in an excellent location just a block from the Tuileries Garden. From the Garden, you can see the Louvre on one end, across the Seine to the Left Bank and the Musee d'Orsay, and from the other end, the Place de la Concorde all the way down the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe.

The Louvre

 

Musee d'Orsay seen from the Tuileries Garden

sunset through the Arc de Triomphe 

4. It's not that dirty and they are not that rude. Before I went to Paris, the thing I heard most often is that Paris is dirty and French people are rude. I didn't experience either of those things during my visit. I don't think that Paris is any dirtier than most big, old cities that I have seen. I'll tell you that at the end of an afternoon, I thought Rome was much more dirty with lots of garbage piled up near the small waste bins on the streets. I'm not exactly sure what is meant by dirty. Is it graffiti? Is it centuries of accumulated grime? I don't know. I do know that Paris is one of the most visited cities in the world, and there are just gobs of people there all the time. However, I don't think I ever had the thought, in my limited time there, that the city was dirty, or at least any more dirty than other cities.

As far as the French being rude, I didn't have that experience. Our drivers, both in and out of the city, were very nice and accommodating. The hotel staff was extremely kind and helpful. The servers in the restaurants were polite and friendly enough. No, they didn't come to our table to check on us a few times like they do here in the States or chat us up about where we were from, which was fine with me. They were attentive and patient with my terrible French when I tried to order food. I didn't really encounter any people that were not in a service industry, but do other tourists encounter locals very much? I left with a good impression of the city and it's people.

5. There is still so much to see! We had a very short visit to Paris, and I had to manage my desires to see everything there was to see. We just didn't have the time. I'm happy with the things that we did and what we saw. I had a wonderful time, AND I know that there are many, many things I would want to see if/when I get to go back to Paris. Like what, you may be asking. Well, I'll tell you. This list is right off the top of my head:

Montmartre

Sacre Coeur

Museums: the Louvre, the Musee d'Orsay, and the Musee de l'Orangerie.

Sainte-Chappelle

A ghost/dark history tour

Wander around the Latin Quarter/the Left Bank

Jardin du Luxembourg

Versailles

Rue Cler

Take a guided walking tour

Yes, I could easily spend more time in Paris. 

You want to know something, though? As much as I enjoyed being in Paris and as much as I'd like to go back and see other stuff, I didn't fall in love with the place like I thought I might. It was nice, and I liked it a whole bunch, but if someone offered me a week in Paris or a week in Rome, I'd most likely choose Rome. I really loved that city. Of course, if someone offered me a week in Rome or a week in Barcelona, I would choose Barcelona. BCN will always win. We'll get to why in future posts.