Paris, France is a lot of things to a lot of people. To me, for a long time, it was merely the city where they filmed Ratatouille (which I rewatched on both the flight there and the flight back). Now, of course, I recognize that it’s much more. Rachel and I just got home from six days in Paris, the first time there for each of us, and in case anyone is interested, below are a few photos from the trip and my Parisian hot takes:
1. The Eiffel Tower is huge. Like, really huge. And yet, the elevator going to the top is surprisingly smooth and comfy. It was raining as we started going up. It stopped around the time we got to the top. We saw a rainbow. A+ experience. Would recommend.
2. Recorded sound was invented in Paris by Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville and we got an incredible private tour of the Musée du Phonographe by owner/curator Jalal Aro. It’s really great! On one wall he had hanging a rare 1952 Saturne picture disc 78 of the Tour de France song. I told him it was the most French record I’d ever seen and he told me that he just recently found a duplicate. After some friendly negotiating, he agreed to sell it to me. Best Paris souvenir ever! Upon close-up inspection, I even discovered that it’s autographed (but by whom, I know not)!
3. Dogs in Paris are everywhere. I suspected this, since our own sweet Gidget is part bichon frisé and part poodle (the national dog of France). Super French! What I didn’t expect was how many well-behaved chiens would be walking around the streets of Paris and hanging out at cafes off-leash. Many were just waiting patiently on sidewalks while their friends were in shops or boulangeries. Totally cute but also somewhat confounding. How did they learn to do this? Is there a French-specific style of dog training? If so, where can I sign Gidget up? Renoir portrait of an off-leash dog at cafe for reference.
4. Paris is often called the City of Love, but I think that is because many Americans are mispronouncing Louvre. The Louvre is huge and takes up more square footage than most small-sized townships.
5. I had heard that Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is smaller than I think it will be, but I think that’s only because they won’t let anyone within 100 feet of it. It's probably really big, but everything looks small from that distance.
6. The Paris Métropolitain is astonishingly efficient. If we ever missed a train, there was another coming in just 4 or 5 minutes. And there would be a sign near the tracks letting us know that. And the signs were always right. And they were easy to follow. And on some trains, you could open the doors while the train was still in motion, which is pretty fun. But if you are running late, and you stick your hand or shoulder inside a closing door, do not expect them to re-open like a Boston subway car. They do not. And it hurts.
7. All the guidebooks and YouTube videos we watched said there would be pickpocketers everywhere. Rachel made me buy a wallet chain and a cell phone chain before we went so that they were always attached to my pants. She bought a Pacsafe with cutproof straps and locking zippers. We were READY! But in all of our Paris travels, not only were we not pickpocketed, we never once saw or even heard of anyone else getting pickpocketed. We did, however, see lots of heavily armed paramilitary folks walking around with machine guns. Some folks told us they were there to intimidate potential pickpocketers. I was a bit scared of them, but several let me take their picture when I asked.
8. I ate a lot of good food in Paris, even when I didn’t want to. Towards the end of our trip, we went to a nice restaurant (Le Cabanon de la butte) near Sacré-Cœur Basilica and I tried to order a burger. The waiter was horrified and told me there would be plenty of burgers awaiting me in America. He insisted I eat either the duck or a swordfish. I ordered the swordfish and it was delicious. Photo not at Le Cabanon de la butte, but here for reference of us dining outdoors.
9. Green ring-necked parakeets fly free and make pretty noises in Paris. On our way back to the States, there was a sign showing the many things tourists are not allowed to take with them on the plane. Green parakeets were on that sign.
10. The Versailles Palace is a beautiful, albeit non-critical look at the consolidation of wealth and power by 17th and 18th century French monarchies. The gardens were particularly stunning and we had a ball driving our rented golf cart through the miles and miles of pristinely plucked plumage. The Petit Trianon home of Marie Antoinette and the Queen’s Hamlet were exquisite as well. It's the perfect place to leisurely stroll if you like dancing water fountains set to the sounds of light opera and Vietnam war movies. We heard non-stop, close-range gunfire throughout our hours-long stroll. We never did figure out why, though they must have a military training field directly next to the gardens. Still, everything there was truly beautiful. Though frankly, seeing such gaudy displays of extreme wealth is quite off-putting. I guess I’m glad that Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette’s monarchy was ultimately crushed, though I wouldn’t have wanted to attend their public beheadings.
11. The Palais Garnier opera house is beautiful, as are the many extravagant costumes on display, but the real entertainment is provided by the thousands of influencers and content creators blocking the stairways and hallways at every turn. Next time I go it will be to create some internet content about the internet content creators. That way, no one will be in our way as they will instead be the focus of our content creation! This is a million dollar idea.
12. We went to Notre Dame and Sainte-Chapelle and both were gorgeous. The stained glass was particularly pretty. Each holy place had a holy gift shop. I bought an eraser for 3 euros.
13. As we walked through the many museums, we saw lots of art that l learned about in high school–Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, van Gogh’s Starry Night and various self-portraits, the Venus de Milo, Rodin’s The Thinker, Degas’s Little Dancer Aged Fourteen, Gabrielle d'Estrées and One of Her Sisters, the various Manets, Monets, and Renoirs at the Musee d’orsay, and the many freelance artists painting in Montmartre. It seems obvious to me now that my high school art teacher must have spent a lot of time in Paris.
14. We went on a riverboat dinner cruise along the Seine at sunset. It was magical. The Eiffel tower sparkled at 10:00pm. The “other” Statue of Liberty waved to us. Hundreds of picnickers lined the river. Rachel looked beautiful. I drank the citrusy champagne toast and experienced excruciating heartburn for the next two hours. I still recommend the tour, but bring Tums.
15. The weather was in the high 60s or low 70s all week. Perfect! Every day I wore Al Hawkes’ fringed leather jacket, cuffed Japanese selvedge jeans, blue suede Pumas, and my Stetson Open Road, because they look great and I care about fashion. I changed shirts and underwear daily. One guy told me I was the most American-looking person he’d ever seen. Another man asked me where my horse was. A third person expressed shock that somebody in the northern United States would dress up like a cowboy from the West. It seems as though cowboy couture does not exist in Paris and I left wondering who could have dubbed Paris the fashion epicenter of the world.
But in the end, we had an amazing adventure. Thanks to everybody who sent us their recommendations and reviews. Rachel did a TON of advance research and put together an incredible itinerary for us filled with museums, delicious restaurants and cafes, beautiful walks, park picnics, record stores, and flea markets, too. She had English-language audio tours at the ready, pre-purchased tickets to many of the attractions, and navigated us through the city with grace and patience. We ate amazing food. We met a bunch of super kind folks. We walked more than 50 miles. And we can’t wait to do it again! Au revoir for now, Paris!
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