Meri does Europe - Dec 2019 edition

[garbon]

Anyway Paris is the world's greatest city.

[merithyn]

I guess I just don't know what makes Paris "special", and not like any other large major city. The Eiffel Tower, of course, and the Arch de Triumphe. The Louvre (though I've heard it's so crowded as to be awful), and at one time, Notre Dame.

Add to that the distaste for Americans (which, admittedly, I totally understand right now), and it's always been kind of an overblown idealized place in my mind.

So those of you who love the city, what should I do to make it feel special? What is at least one thing that makes Paris Paris and will potentially change my mind about it?

[garbon]

The Louvre (though I've heard it's so crowded as to be awful)

That I definitely don't think is true outside of the Mona Lisa room. I definitely don't think its more crowded than any other major art museum / there are parts that were practically dead every time I went like the Napoleon III apartments.

Add to that the distaste for Americans (which, admittedly, I totally understand right now), and it's always been kind of an overblown idealized place in my mind.

That hasn't actually been my experience either. The Parisians I encountered weren't any more unfriendly than Londoners or New Yorkers.

[merithyn]

The Louvre (though I've heard it's so crowded as to be awful)

That I definitely don't think is true outside of the Mona Lisa room. I definitely don't think its more crowded than any other major art museum / there are parts that were practically dead every time I went like the Napoleon III apartments.

This makes me happy to hear. I'll add it back onto my to-do list then.

Add to that the distaste for Americans (which, admittedly, I totally understand right now), and it's always been kind of an overblown idealized place in my mind.

That hasn't actually been my experience either. The Parisians I encountered weren't any more unfriendly than Londoners or New Yorkers.

Mind you, my ambivalence toward Paris has been building for several decades. I fully accept that my impressions may be outdated.

I am going. I'm still ambivalent, but I'm going. So I'm asking for what those who love Paris find so appealing.

[HVC]

The Louvre (though I've heard it's so crowded as to be awful)

That I definitely don't think is true outside of the Mona Lisa room. I definitely don't think its more crowded than any other major art museum / there are parts that were practically dead every time I went like the Napoleon III apartments.

Add to that the distaste for Americans (which, admittedly, I totally understand right now), and it's always been kind of an overblown idealized place in my mind.

That hasn't actually been my experience either. The Parisians I encountered weren't any more unfriendly than Londoners or New Yorkers.

Damning with faint praise lol

[HVC]

and yes, the louvre wasn't too crowded (but normal big museum standards).

[merithyn]

Damning with faint praise lol

New Yorkers aren't rude, really. They're just always in a goddamn hurry, and do not want you or anyone else to slow them down.

[garbon]

Damning with faint praise lol

New Yorkers aren't rude, really. They're just always in a goddamn hurry, and do not want you or anyone else to slow them down.

I'm not sure. I don't believe I hear or say fuck you as much with strangers since leaving New York.

[The Minsky Moment]

I guess I just don't know what makes Paris "special", and not like any other large major city. The Eiffel Tower, of course, and the Arch de Triumphe. The Louvre (though I've heard it's so crowded as to be awful), and at one time, Notre Dame.

Those are not the things that make Paris special - the Eiffer tower is a hunk of metal in a rather unattractive plaza, the Arc de Triomphe is a bombastic 19th century monument in a middle of a crowded avenue. The louvre is extraordinary but yes overcrowded.

Get up - have your breakfast, toss away your guidebooks and maps and stroll out your hotel door.  Walk out and then keep walking.  Down the broad avenues, into and out of the side streets, through the parks.  Stop for coffee in a quiet café off the path, grab a baguette, or pick up some kosher pizza in the marais.  Get a feel for the rhythm of the street life and the people who live there.  Watch the bourgeois go their way in the right bank, the students in left.  Pass by the ruins of Notre Dame and walk through the small but charming i'le st louis. Peruse the shops.  Along the way find some charming little restaurant off the beaten path and reserve dinner there - don't bother looking what the guide books say.  If you absolutely need to DO something, go to museum like Rodin, with gardens and places to stroll.  As a midwesterner you will find the Paris winters mild and you won't get crushed by the crowds in the big indoor museums.  Grab an afternoon port and stroll around some more as the sun goes down. 

You can do that in London or New York.  But it will be London and New York.  It won't be Paris.  Once you've done it in Paris, you'll know.

[garbon]

You'll know it isn't that exciting?

[Zoupa]

We get it garbon. We get it. Paris doesn't care about you either.

[garbon]

We get it garbon. We get it. Paris doesn't care about you either.

Hey, Joan is the one who ended with such a silly paragraph. Also, I pointed out some counterpoints to Meri's negative preconceptions.

I'll agree that Parisians generally don't care for me but that's because they admittedly rarely think of me.

[Eddie Teach]

In spite of the gushing review Minsky still lives in New York.

[Zoupa]

Joan captured the right way to visit Paris. Following the guides, TripAdvisor etc is a bad idea.

Best way to experience Paris is to take it easy.

[Zoupa]

In spite of the gushing review Minsky still lives in New York.

I'd like to live on Mars. One does what one can.