Apparently, I’m the office travel agent when it comes to Paris. Over the last 2 weeks, I’ve had 3 people ask me for information in regards to Paris – hotels, places to eat, things to see, what they should budget per day, what the weather might be like at certain times of the year, etc.
One of the men has been to Paris before – years ago when he was just out of college, a few years ago with his wife & kids (though they might have just flown into Paris to pick up a car & drive to the south of France) & last year for a week with his wife. He said that Paris had changed so much from his memories after college, that people were so much friendlier & that Paris had many more things to do than Rome. He specifically wanted to know about Pere Lachaise Cemetery. I’d gone to Pere Lachaise on my first trip to Paris back in 1991. My friend & I had taken the Metro there, of course. When we got to one of the main entrances, some young guy kept asking “Are you here to see Jim?” At first, we weren’t sure who he was referring to, then it dawned on us that he was talking about Jim Morrison. We followed him to Jim Morrison’s grave, where a full-blown party seemed to be taking place. Several people were gathered around the tombstone. Someone was playing a guitar & some people were singing while a bottle of wine was being passed around. Believe it or not, someone’s pet white rat was also running around on the tombstone! I’ve heard that they used to put a statue of Jim Morrison’s head there, but it was repeatedly stolen. We didn’t see one on that occasion. Getting back to the guy in the office, I had also told him about an American expat in Paris who hosts large dinners for approximately 50 people from all walks of life every Sunday. I’ve never attended one before, but am already confirmed to attend on my upcoming trip next month. I’m really very excited to see who the guests will be at the dinner, what will be served & how the entire evening will be orchestrated.
Another guy in the office told me that his wife has been after him “since Day One” to go to Paris. He himself has never even been out of the country. He thinks that there are only “old things” to see in Paris, so doesn’t understand his wife’s desire to go there. I told him that they could sightsee together (maybe on one of the bateau mouche boats down the Seine), she could go shopping & he could go to a sporting event or concert. He was very concerned about the cost of the tickets, hotel & food. The ticket would obviously be cheaper when the weather is colder there! That goes for the hotels as well. He asked me if there were McDonalds in Paris. I told him that there are McDonalds (or McDo, as they call it), Burger King (that serves beer!) & their own chain called Burger Quick (or maybe that’s Burger Quik). I distinctly remember that burgers in Paris have Dijon on them, which I prefer, anyway! Eating food from street vendors is an affordable way to have a meal, though. I ate plenty of savory crepes, baguette sandwiches & even a few hot dogs. I like Parisian hot dogs. The ones on the street were served in buns that were NOT cut completely down one side, but had a hole in the middle. Those were inserted onto some type of prong so that they were toasted in the middle. The hot dogs were slid in & didn’t make a big mess like the ones here. Another option for him would be to go somewhere like Monoprix, rather like a French version of Target, & pick up inexpensive pate, cheese, wine, salads or ingredients to make sandwiches with. I did that a couple of times, too, when there was a refrigerator in my room.
The last person in my office was actually asking for a friend of hers. Said friend is considering going to Paris in September & wanted to start her research now. I just sent her several links to inexpensive hotels, one for renting an apartment (since she wants to stay at least 3 weeks) & another link for restaurants/bars/art/culture suggested by locals.
I myself haven’t quite fine tuned my itinerary yet. I want to see Pere Lachaise again & go to the Towers of Notre Dame again. I want to finally see the Conciergerie, where Marie Antoinette spent her last days. I intend to see Puces St. Ouen, apparently the biggest flea market in Paris, where I hope to find some vintage cuff links or rosaries. I’m also considering seeing something called “How To Become Parisian In An Hour,” a live comedy of sorts put on by a one-man show. Other than that, my plans include gorging on macarons from Laduree & cheese from anywhere, imbibing wonderful French wine, taking pictures of anything that moves or doesn’t, & spending a good amount of time at cafes people watching (weather permitting, of course)!