Paris!

[rachelmanija]

Through a peculiar sequence of events involving my family, it looks like I am going to get to visit Paris in July, first with my mom, and then, after she departs for Argentina (it's a long story) by myself.

Wheeee!

I have never been to Paris. Please tell me your favorite Paris stories, recommend things that might be enjoyable to do with my mom, recommend things that I would enjoy, recommend food and where to get it, etc. Note that:

- I am going on a budget, insofar as this is possible.

- I like oddball, offbeat, little-known, local favorite things. I also like beautiful parks and gardens, and every sort of food. Please, rec me food! I like restaurants, I like buying stuff in markets and eating in parks, and love pastries. (I am not a huge cheese or wine fan.)

- Mom likes historical things, museums, and beautiful parks and gardens.

- We both like thrift shops, especially the sort that sell books or used designer clothing.

By the way, I cannot tell you how thrilled I am about the prospect of traveling with a Kindle instead of 50 pounds of books. (Plus, that means I can buy more books in Paris, since I won't be lugging a bunch from home to read on the plane.) I still need to bring a couple paperbacks to read while the plane is taking off/landing and electronics are turned off, right?

Comments

[movingfinger]

Yes, you will want some disposable paperbacks!

How to find stuff to look at in any of the world's infinite cities:

1. For any city, search "quirky (city name)" as there are SO MANY travel sites now, something will turn up.

2. In your case, have a look at Time Out Paris as a guidebook.

[rachelmanija]

Oh, I know! I'll definitely do that too. I was looking more for personal recommendations.

[ide_cyan]

I went to Paris once, and it wasn't so great since I got hit by hayfever when I arrived, and got sick on the last two days, but I did stop by Shakespeare & Company and bought a couple of books there, which was fun in a fannish sort of way since I'd seen the bookstore in the Highlander TV series.

[em_h]

Oh, I'm so jealous! I want to be in Paris right now. And actually, most of the time.

Yes, I have lots of recs, but I'm on campus right now, and if I wait till I get home then I can give you addresses, rather than just "that restaurant around that place," so let me get back to you tonight.

[ellen_fremedon]

It's been ten years since I was in Paris, so the only things I can recommend that I know are still around are the Louvre. But David Lebovitz's cooking blog has a whole section devoted to Paris restaurant and food recommendations.

(all diacritics omitted)

[mme_hardy]

AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME.

If you can possibly afford it, share a tiny apartment rather than a hotel room. You save money on meals -- can snack for breakfast and lunch and even dinner when tired -- you can come back to your room whenever you want without worrying about the maids, and it feels more comfy. You can also take full advantage of the markets without thinking "oh, damn, I want to try that fish but I can't cook it." I can recommend the apartment-rental company we used, but it's expensive. The advantage is that the rooms come with a complete guide to the neighborhood, with recommendations for the best patisseries and so on.

My personal comment is that the Louvre is a nightmare; the signage and maps are inadequate and often misleading, and you can wander for hours (literally) without seeing the one thing you wanted to see.

I bet you will find the Musee de l' Armee immensely; we did. ARMOR!!!

Even though it is way, way tourist-trappy, it's a classic for a reason. Take the Batobus. It functions as a get-off get-on bus along the Seine, and there's very, very good narration. http://www.batobus.com/english/

Even though it is way, way tourist-trappy, go to the top of the Eiffel Tower. My new rule of thumb is that all opportunities to go to the top of any city are wonderful; there's nothing like seeing the whole place laid out before you, connecting the dots. (This rule is based on the Seattle Whatsit, the London Eye, and the Eiffel Tower, FWIW.)

Skip Notre-Dame in favor of one of the other cathedrals. Notre-D was heavily restored by a Victorian, Viollet-le-Duc, and it shows.

Re: (all diacritics omitted)

[mme_hardy]

Sorry, I overlooked the need for crash space.

In that case, I recommend a two-for-one. Walk to the local market in the neighborhood and bring some flowers home as a guest gift. The cut flowers in Paris are the best I've ever seen, and you know where I live.

[jesuswasbatman]

Not cheap, but macaroons from Pierre Hermé are superlative, better than Laduree. And I strongly recommend chocolates by Jacques Genin and Richart.

Museum which may amuse you: the free Paris municipal art gallery in the Petit Palais. Some great art nouveau stuff. And the Marmottan Museum which is outside the heavily touristed area, has loads of Impressionist classics, and is in the middle of a nice park. The nearest Metro station is La Muette. I forget the name of it but on the way from the Metro to the park entrance is a very good Japanese tea/cakes place.

[mme_hardy]

We made it to Poilane (the world-famous artisan bakery) and were glad we had; bread makes a great eat-in-room treat.

[jesuswasbatman]

Oh, and there's a massive new hipster thrift store on the Boulevard Beaumarchais called Merci, which has a nice selection of English books.

[dandelion_salad]

We stumbled on the Musee National de Moyen Age (Middle Ages Museum) on my one and only trip to Paris. As I remember the building itself was a medieval chateau, and they have since added what sounds like a fun and fanciful medieval inspired garden. A room at the top has the famous Lady and the Unicorn tapestry on walls all around in a dimly lit room. I liked this museum because it was small and not overwhelming and so I was able to appreciate things in a different way.

http://www.musee-moyenage.fr/ang/homes/home_id20392_u1l2.htm

[cofax7]

It's been too long since I was in Paris for me to have any specific recommendations, other than NOM you will fall in love with the bread and the chocolate. SO GOOD.

[em_h]

Caveat: it's been more than five years since I was in Paris, so some of my information may be outdated. But here goes ...

My favourite hotel, reasonably cheap by Paris standards but nice, is the Hotel Gay-Lussac, 29 rue Gay-Lussac (it is, in fact, the hotel in which Daniel stays in Between Mountains). Perfect location in the 5th near the Jardin du Luxembourg, friendly, family-run; a bit run-down and basic (only a few rooms have en-suite toilets or showers) but clean and quiet. It's basically the only place I ever stay. http://www.paris-hotel-gay-lussac.com/

I really love that entire neighbourhood; it has interesting shops and cafes and a nice character to it. It's more or less a university neighbourhood (very near the Sorbonne), and a lot of academics and some students live around there. Last time I was there, if you went just up rue St-Jacques in the direction of the river you'd find a fantastic cheese shop and a rather good comic book store, among other interesting little places.

In the same general area is the Restaurant Indonesia, 12 rue Vaugirard, which is a co-operative restaurant run by political exiles from Indonesia, mostly old communists. Really nice people, and the food is quite good, odd as it may seem to go to Paris for Indonesian food. http://www.restaurant-indonesia.com/

La Fourmi Ailee, 8 rue Fouarre, also in the area, is a nice tea shop, which last time I was there was also a feminist bookshop, but apparently is no longer. The tea shop still gets good reviews, though.

I don't have other specific restaurant recommendations, but we've generally had good luck with most places we've tried.

The previously mentioned mosque is also not too far away, in the other direction, at the corner of rue Daubenton and rue Geoffroy-St-Hilaire. Visit it for sure, whether or not you try the hammam. It's a beautiful building and has a tea shop with outstanding pastries. Nearby is the Jardin des Plantes (a nice botanical garden), and also the rue Mouffetard, which is worth a look. Though heavily touristed, it also has a huge concentration of restaurants, some of which are horrid chains but some of which are quite good, plus very old and interesting street architecture, and a fruit and vegetable market at the bottom.

Up closer to the river, there's a nice little area around the church of St Severin with attractive old architecture, some bookshops, and other diversions. Also in this same small neighbourhood is the Cluny, the museum of medieval art, which is very definitely worth a visit with your mother; I love the Cluny, and admittedly it's partly because that's one of my favourite historical periods, but it's got some really nice pieces, and is a great building, and usually not too crowded.

If you want a brief charming diversion, the oceanographic institute just by the Hotel Gay-Lussac has a rather nice aquarium open to the public.

So that's "my" neighbourhood in brief. There are, of course, other areas of Paris, some of which are worth a visit. I may be getting near my word limit, so I'll start a second response for those.

[em_h]

Moving out of the Latin Quarter: Although it is basically a ghetto for extremely rich tourists, it's worth wandering through the Isle St-Louis for entertainment, and also to find Berthillon at 31 rue-St-Louis-en-l'Ile, which has THE BEST ICE CREAM IN THE WHOLE WORLD. It is only sold within a small radius of the shop itself, but really you might as well go direct to source.

jonquil is right that Notre Dame is not very authentic to its period and is heavily touristed, and that the Louvre is a perfect nighmare. I actually hate the Louvre. I'd still look into Notre Dame myself, but it's not really all that. The Sainte Chapelle is also usually crammed with tourists, but if you can find a time that's not too wildly busy, the great rose window really is stunning.

Does your mother like modern art? If so, visit the Beaubourg with her; if not, visit it on your own. Very good collection, and a building which, though no longer a cutting-edge gesture, is still pretty fun. Even better contemporary art at the twin buildings of the Palais de Tokyo/Musee d'Arte Moderne de la Ville de Paris (11 avenue de President-Wilson in the 16th), which are less central and less well-known but really good for contemporary art (there's also a nice cafe attached).

Other smaller museums/galleries worth a visit: the Max Fourny museum of naive art in Montmartre (2 rue Ronsard, right beside Sacre Coeur), and in the same area the Espace-Montmartre-Salvador Dali (9-11 rue Poulbot).

The Orsay and the Orangerie are the big deals if you like Impressionists and Post-Impressionists, and neither is as horrid as the Louvre. If you like Picasso, the Musee Picasso by all means.

Moving away from museums, one of my very favourite places in Paris is the Parc de la Villette. It's quite far north and west, but it's this awesome series of conceptual gardens, and is quirky and funny and not too busy and just generally charming and relaxing. There's a huge science museum nearby if you like science museums, and also the Cité de la Musique, a complex of performance spaces and odd bits of modern architecture, and a café which has the absolutely richest and thickest hot chocolate I've ever encountered.

I think that covers my favourite things ... more thoughts as they occur, or ask me if you have specific questions. I love Paris. This is probably really, really obvious.

[cyphomandra]

Berthillon's, on the Ile Saint-Louis, has the most amazing ice-cream, and was more than worth the hour my absent-minded friend and I spent searching for it on the wrong island. Very popular (mainly with the locals) so be prepared to queue. Otherwise foodwise I really miss the steel jugs of steaming hot chocolate served at breakfast with croissants...

For accommodation - check eurocheapo.com, which my whole family have used across Europe - editorially reviewed site of cheap, clean and convenient accommodation. We stayed in the Marais at a place with a gorgeous foyer, a terrifying concierge and very odd wallpaper for about 55 euro per night, but a quick look at the page shows that they've got recs for a hostel/hotel combination in the centre of town for $US34 a night for dorm rooms.

I agree with the comment above that you will get lost in the Louvre - wear comfortable shoes! Also, I loved the tour of the Paris sewers, but I was obsessed with Les Miserables at the time.

[mildred_of_midgard]

I've never been to Paris, but I wanted to say congratulations, and have fun! I got my Kindle last year right before my Europe trip, and it's so much awesomer! I don't bring books for the takeoff/landing, but those are the parts where I like to look out the window, so it's up to you, really.

The Kindle even had limited internet access when my friend and I were on the train having these incredibly geeky convos like "By how much did Eratosthenes underestimate the circumference of the earth?"*

*Answer, depends on what conversion value you assign to the Greek terms of measurement he used. Possibly not significantly at all.

[rilina]

It has been over a decade since I went, but I managed to do it pretty cheaply. My friends and I split a room at the Hotel Jeanne d'Arc in the Marais. Location was fabulous: not too loud but close to everything. We walked almost everywhere, and somehow found an excuse to get Berthillon ice cream every night in the way back.

We saved $ by getting food at the grocery store near our hotel and only having one restaurant meal a day. L'As du Falafel is apparently THE place to get falafel; my sister told me to go there when I went. Alas, we accidentally went on Shabbat, when it was closed, and never got a chance to go back. was closed.

In general, we did one touristy thing a day and spent the rest of our time exploring neighborhoods. And eating.

[mme_hardy]

"In general, we did one touristy thing a day and spent the rest of our time exploring neighborhoods. And eating."

That's pretty much what we did, and a very happy mix it was. If I think back, many of my best Paris memories are walking through the neighborhoods and shopping. Note that I, a big ol' costume geek, didn't buy a single piece of fabric in Paris, and the only clothing I got was one of those cheapie shawls to fill in the neck of a coat. I got a world's worth of shopping just buying food in the local market street, and looking at the windows

[zeborah]

It's been a while, but I still have fantastic memories of the Sainte-Chapelle, the catacombs, and the Musée Rodin. Also of getting lost and stopping at a café to drink hot chocolate and ponder my map. And browsing books in the stalls on the <thinks> right bank? of the Seine. Looking approximately north at Notre Dame, anyway.

[oracne]

Is there anyone you can convince to go with you and share a room? If I had the $$$, I'd volunteer!

[enleve]

The one thing I would definitely see if I went to Paris is Girard's machine. It is an incredible feat of engineering. Cooler than the Eiffel Tower, in my opinion.

Almost two hundred years ago, Paris was in trouble. It didn't have enough water for the number of people who had come to live there. The Seine was running dry.

It went something like this:

Napoleon: Oh Noes! The city is running out of water. Pierre Girard -- do something about it!
Pierre Girard: I will build a canal to divert the Ourcq River to the Seine. Mwahahahaha! Paris shall be wet again!
Napolean: *dies before completion of Canal de l'Ourcq*
Napoleon III: Despite taking 20 years to build, the canal was not enough. Paris is running dry again. My uncle, bless his heart, was not ambitious enough! We must divert two rivers to our will!
Louis-Dominique Girard: Um, water flows downhill you know, and the Marne River is a lot lower in elevation than the Seine...
Napolean III: I order you to make water flow uphill!
Louis-Dominique Girard: Yes, sir!

And Louis-Dominique Girard succeeds. He succeeds so well that to this day, there is a machine running, using no electricity, operating purely on hydraulic power, that pumps the River Marne uphill so that it can flow into the canals that take it into Paris. A machine without which the Seine would run dry.

A machine that you can book an appointment to see.

I learned all this in a wonderful documentary called We Built This City: Paris. I described the documentary in this entry: http://enleve.livejournal.com/128957.html

[oracne.livejournal.com]

When I flew at Xmas, I brought a magazine for the no-electronics part, and left it behind for others. I also had a paperback.

[coraa.livejournal.com]

I have actually never been to Paris, but I love pain au chocolat, so definitely try that!

I loooooove traveling with the Kindle, it's been so much easier than figuring out how many books I need to bring and then hauling them around. (Be aware that your ability to purchase books for the Kindle on the Kindle may go away while you're in another country, so if you want to order anything, do it before you leave. Or figure on downloading additional books from non-Amazon websites--Project Gutenberg, or, heck, Archive Of Our Own for fanfic--while you're there.) For takeoff/landing, I assume 15-30 minutes of no-Kindle time for each takeoff/landing per leg; it's often less, but you can get stuck taxi-ing, so it's good to assume more. One paperback each way, or a few magazines, holds me over. (If you're likely to get engrossed in the book and not be able to switch to the Kindle after takeoff, assume two paperbacks each way. I often bring a book that I'm rereading, though, which means I enjoy it during the takeoff and then don't have a problem saving it for landing.)

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

I managed to get by with the inflight magazine and picking on SkyMall in my head, but I didn't get stuck taxiing (and was taking two fairly short trips and trying to pack light). But man, so much easier than dealing with books.

[rymenhild.livejournal.com]

Once, years ago, a friend who knew Paris well led me and another friend to a Turkish bath somewhere on the Left Bank. There was plenty of steam and there were massages and there was baklava afterwards and it was fabulous. I wish I knew its name, or remembered its price, or could find it on the Internet. It wasn't expensive, I know -- we were impoverished undergraduates at the time.

This only works as a mother-daughter activity if you're all okay with being naked in front of many other naked women.

[em-h.livejournal.com]

That'd be the hammam in the Paris mosque (yes, there are lots & lots of mosques, but this one is quite old and large and is the one people mean by "Paris mosque"). Definitely worth a visit, even if you don't go in the steam bath; the mosque is beautiful, many areas are made accessible to non-Muslims, and the mint tea and baklava are fantastic. I'll get the exact address later, but it's easy to find.

[weirdquark]

Mostly, while in Paris, we would go to a bakery every morning and eat a baguette and pain de chocolate. Tang seemed to be the drink you could most easily get if you didn't want water or wine. You want to find a bakery and do this; as far as I can tell, bread and pastries are the most worthwhile thing to eat in Paris, even if you aren't on a budget.

We did go to a few restaurants though -- there was the fruit place, which had fruit as main part of every dish. I don't remember what it was called, but I think it was in sight of the front of Notre Dame. Possibly one of my housemates can confirm or remember more.

We also went to a random diner and had fancier French food. I got confit de canard, which was awesome. The snails were little rubbery things in garlic, so not so impressed there. They also had really excellent chocolate mousse. I have no idea where or what this place was -- we found it while wandering around looking for somewhere to have dinner. It wasn't very budget friendly, but very good.

[weirdquark]

As for touristy things, the Louvre has all of the art. I can't remember if we spent two days there or just one, but we did not see all of the art. This may or may not mean you want to go there.

Go to a concert at the Sainte-Chapelle; listening to music while surrounded by all of the stained glass is the best thing ever.

Go to the Centre Pompidou; it has awesome and strange modern art. It is also made of modern art and is covered with tubes.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I was in Paris for a day and a night with R (your beta reader) when he was like eight? The friend I was staying with had one of the earliest BlackBerries, and R came home from Paris loving two things: French crèpes and BlackBerries.

We had fun just walking around together. We got to Notre Dame and an old gypsy-looking guy motioned R over and got him to hold a biscuit so the birds would come land on his hand. This is apparently a Thing; I've seen strangers' pictures of their kids posed in the same spot.

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/86761435@N00/5454291622/)

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/86761435@N00/5453680409/)

[newsboyhat.livejournal.com]

My absolutely favourite bit of Paris was Montmartre. It's a bit of a hike to get through, but once you get there, you can spend the whole day there. There's picturesque views (especially at Sacre Coeur), street fairs, markets, adorable alley ways, architecture and so on. Out of all of Paris, it made the strongest impression on me... it's a good wandering neighbourhood :) The only note is that there can be steep climbs/weird staircases, so bring comfy walking shoes.

Montparnasse has nice places to eat, though it's a bit of a hike.

Also, I museum'ed myself out in Paris--the Musee d'Orsay is unmissable and a way more pleasant experience than the Louvre :) However, all the attractions along the Champs d'Elysees (including the L'arc de triomphe and the... column thingy) is fun.

[sienamystic.livejournal.com]

I loved going to the flea markets. There's the big, heavily touristed one (ones, really) at Cligancourt, but I liked the Puces de Vanves, which I think is only on Sunday, and is more of a little neighborhoody one where I petted dogs and smiled at babies and just had a great time wandering and buying a few cheap things like old postcards and photos.





I also really loved the Musée National du Moyen Age, or Museum of the Middle Ages (note: I'm an art historian and this is one of my favorite timeperiods, so my giddy glee may not be yours!). They have a lovely set of tapestries of the Lady and the Unicorn, among many other delightful things.

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

OH YES THE LADY AND THE UNICORN TAPESTRIES I stood in utter silence for 45 minutes to an hour just GAZING at them. Do not miss.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

The Louvre is really, really, really worth it. Allow lots of time (this is one to do with your mom). The first time I visited Paris I got lost trying to get *out* of the Louvre and was almost late to meet the people I was staying with. When you visit Notre Dame (there's a *reason* those things are huge tourist attractions) walk a couple blocks over and visit the Sainte Chappelle too.

On the other hand, I totally didn't think it was worth the wait to go up the Eiffel Tour, but the people I was last time with did so I was stuck. For my money the best thing to do with the Eiffel Tower is to take pictures of it from below, both day and night.

The Rodin Museum was fun. I do want to visit Montmartre, but haven't been there yet.