Can't Say Anything about Paris that Hasn't Been Said . . .

But I can at least say a little about what we enjoyed and why we enjoyed it. I've put this post off for a while in part because life has just gotten very busy now that we're back in Knoxville. But it's also feels a little futile to post about Paris, where we spent our last several days before returning to the US. Lots of words, by people much more insightful than me, have been written. But here goes anyway.

The LL Enjoying the River Seine

Paris is a truly wonderful city. We were there at the end of July - at a very busy time for tourism. But unlike Barcelona, Paris did not feel overrun by foreigners. A big part of the reason for that, I would guess, is simply that the population of Paris is so large and diverse to begin with. Adding a bunch of foreigners doesn't overwhelm the locals numerically, and a bunch of foreigners don't necessarily look all that different from Parisiens anyway, because Parisiens are from all over the place to begin with.

Jana and the LL Right Outside our Apartment Door

For this visit, our first to Paris, we decided to stay on the Ile Saint Louis. For those unfamiliar with Paris, the original settlement that became Paris was on an island in the middle of the Seine, called the Ile de Cite. There was a second marshy island nearby, and the early residents of Paris decided it would be good to build that island up a bit and make it more habitable. That second island is now the Ile Saint Louis. It is truly right in the heart of the city, but it has a quiet feel in the mornings and evenings and feels less touristy than many of the areas nearby (though it is certainly touristy by any definition). It was a great place to take a quiet stroll in the evening. It has enough good restaurants and shops to satisfy. There are convenience stores and groceries nearby. It is very close to several important locations in Paris. Most of the classic tourist stops are within a long walk at the worst.

We stayed in an apartment that we rented through Airbnb. It truly was an apartment where a Parisien family lives. They take time away when they can rent the apartment, so when we stayed there we really felt like guests of this family. It was completely equipped, was lived in, it felt like having our very own place in Paris. And it was a very cool place, in an 1800s building, with plenty of space, two baths with showers and a water closet (the French generally don't put their toilets in the same room with their showers).

Waiting to Enter the Louvre

You Probably Recognize This

From the Arc de Triomphe

Toward the Arc

While we were in Paris, we hit all the classic spots. It was our first time there, so we had to do the Louvre, Notre Dame, a Seine boat tour, the Pompidou modern and contemporary art museum, Champs-Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, etc. We also really enjoyed the Luxembourg Gardens where the LL attended a puppet show at one of the famous puppet theatres of Paris. A few quick tips. We bought the Paris Museum Pass and did not regret it. We paid more for the pass than we would have for the individual museums, but only by a little, and if I had not been so sick we might have even broke even on that front. But what you're buying even if you don't "get your money's worth" is time. The line at the Louvre was crazy long. We got to cut to the front, and got to cut even further ahead because we had the LL in a stroller. (If you have a stroller go to the handicap entrance at the Pyramid and you will be very happy when you see the long line you are circumventing. In fact, if you don't have a kid, you might want to just get a little stroller and put a doll in there and pretend they are sleeping. You'll save a ton of time!) Also, when you go to the Notre Dame, it's free to go in the church itself. The towers are part of the Museum Pass but you don't get to cut that line. So show up early as the line can be 2 hours long. Not worth that wait. If you want a nice view of the city, the Arc de Triomphe is a shorter line, or the Museum of the Arab World is another great option. Or the roof of the Pompidou center.

What we enjoyed most about Paris, though, and I know if we go back we'll take even more advantage of this, was the neighborhoods. We loved being close to the Marais, the Latin Quarter, Saint Germain. All of these areas have their own character and personality. Some are older than others. Some are more recently redeveloped than others. Some more residential than others. But they are all really interesting places to explore. We also, not surprisingly, enjoyed the food. Food can be very expensive in Paris restaurants. That is well known. It also would not have been impossible to find some really bad and overpriced food. We saw some of that for sure. Our strategy was to eat the menu of the day at more local-targeted places. The menu of the day is a fixed price menu, with a starter, main, and dessert, or some combination thereof and usually a drink. The price is often less than just a main dish. Most places served regular sized portions. Some will trim back a little for the menu special. But it's always a good value and what locals eat. Then at night we would go to ethnic places that had somewhat lower prices. And we also ate back at the apartment quite a bit, usually take out. The ethnic places all did takeout, and there was typically a fifteen to twenty percent discount since that is usually a service charge worked into the price. And that's important to note. Americans often complain about European restaurant prices. They are higher. But not as much higher as the price on the menu would make you think. In the US, you pay the menu price, plus a twenty percent tip plus nearly ten percent in taxes. You total that up and it's not all that different than Europe.

Another highlight of the trip to Paris was a concert in the Sainte Chapelle. This is a small chapel not far from the Notre Dame (which is not a small chapel). The stained glass in this place is just amazing. And they have a little concert series that they do there almost every night. You buy tickets in a convenience store across the way from the Sainte Chapelle entrance. It's a very small place, so there won't be any more than 50 or so people in attendance. You don't need to buy the expensive seats to enjoy it. The chapel is so small that none of the seats are really that far away - even the cheapest seats (there are three price-points, with general admission within each category). We were there for a small baroque trio, playing on period instruments. It was a decent concert in a fantastic setting. I highly recommend it.