Tuesday, September 2, 2014

If It's Tuesday It Must Be Paris

We took the chunnel over to Paris for a couple of days. Mostly because I had never been before but also because A: it's one of Mark's favorite cities anywhere and B: it is not London. 

Sorry London, there is lot's to like about you but you've got some work to do on being welcoming. Let me just break it down for you like this- the Parisians were nicer and friendlier than the Londoners we came across. How is that for turning a stereotype on it's ear? With the exception of the management and staff at the wonderful Horse and Stables pub in London, everyone in London was polite if cool. The  Parisians, on the other hand were friendly and patient to a fault. The staff at Horse and Stables were the London exception to the "distant and cool" rule. Wait. Though they were in London, they were French. Never mind.

I find myself at a loss for words about our time in Paris. I understand now how people can fall in love with a place and never want to leave. I need to break it down into manageable bites if you will so for now I'll just leave you with some images and with this- find a way to get to Paris. Know you will need more time to take it all in. Know its okay to feel a little cheesy about gawking at cliche monuments and landscapes, they are well known for a reason. Know that you are not the only one with your mouth hanging open at the sheer beauty of it all. More to come....





















2 comments:

  1. That wide shot of Notre Dame? I've stood in just about that exact spot, and had pressed into my hand a cheap religious medal by what I suspect was a crazy nun-like person and who I know was speaking a sort of Italian-French mashup. As I was 19 and had just come off three years of Latin class, I was able to follow it, sort of. Unfortunately, I found Paris at that time full of hostile, contemptuous boors (despite my serviceable French). But I went last fall, and found the city much friendlier to tourists than I did prior, possibly because they need our money more now.

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    1. I think it's probably more of a case of an influx on non-native Parisians. Either way, it works for me.

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