My first visit (for a month!) was 55 years ago this September. I stayed at the Hôtel du Petit Louvre (now seems to have been turned into condominiums) near the Place Jeanne d'Arc for 13FF/night ($3.25). The hotel was apparently slightly ruder than your accommodations on bd Port Royal -- no telephone in the room; if you didn't bring your own toilet paper to the loo down the hall, you were supplied with cutup newspaper. Still, the city was glorious then and although considerably changed (as am I), it is glorious now. Thank god, after the initial Pompidou-Mitterand abominations (Centre Pompidou, Tour Maine-Montparnasse, TGB, some public housing, highway on the banks of the Seine), the modern architecture was moved out of the city. And yet Paris still remains as modern as ever.
I first visited Paris (briefly) 55 years ago and more definitely 50 years ago. I've been living in the eastern suburbs for the past 5 years. What a gloriously mti cultural neighbourhood live. And from our local RER I'm in central Paris in less than 30 minutes - and never have to wait more than 10 minutes for a RER train
For me, David, the big shift in Paris came with the shutting down of Le Halles and moving the wholesale markets away. The real life of Paris now feels to have moved to the suburbs, to Montreuil, Pantin and St. Denis. Did they really deploy the CRS to break up the football celebrants?
Thanks for your description of current day Paris. It’s been many years since i visited but i have fond memories. In fact we stayed in a small hotel you recommended which was clean, charming and had a delicious breakfast .
I took my wife to Paris for the first time a few years ago. She marveled at the Parisian metro. We live in Chicago and it puts our public transportation to shame.
I had to explain to my daughter (before she went to Lollapalooza Paris), that the pricey, tourist covered Montmarte was the backwater artists' home a hundred years ago. So dont look for the next Impressionist in Montmarte, head to St Denis.
And the best food we had was at a Asian-French fusion restuarant in an alley off a main street next to a market in the Marais. Quite Parisian indeed.
My first visit (for a month!) was 55 years ago this September. I stayed at the Hôtel du Petit Louvre (now seems to have been turned into condominiums) near the Place Jeanne d'Arc for 13FF/night ($3.25). The hotel was apparently slightly ruder than your accommodations on bd Port Royal -- no telephone in the room; if you didn't bring your own toilet paper to the loo down the hall, you were supplied with cutup newspaper. Still, the city was glorious then and although considerably changed (as am I), it is glorious now. Thank god, after the initial Pompidou-Mitterand abominations (Centre Pompidou, Tour Maine-Montparnasse, TGB, some public housing, highway on the banks of the Seine), the modern architecture was moved out of the city. And yet Paris still remains as modern as ever.
I take the view that if you can get there on the metro, it's Paris.
I first visited Paris (briefly) 55 years ago and more definitely 50 years ago. I've been living in the eastern suburbs for the past 5 years. What a gloriously mti cultural neighbourhood live. And from our local RER I'm in central Paris in less than 30 minutes - and never have to wait more than 10 minutes for a RER train
For me, David, the big shift in Paris came with the shutting down of Le Halles and moving the wholesale markets away. The real life of Paris now feels to have moved to the suburbs, to Montreuil, Pantin and St. Denis. Did they really deploy the CRS to break up the football celebrants?
Thanks for your description of current day Paris. It’s been many years since i visited but i have fond memories. In fact we stayed in a small hotel you recommended which was clean, charming and had a delicious breakfast .
I took my wife to Paris for the first time a few years ago. She marveled at the Parisian metro. We live in Chicago and it puts our public transportation to shame.
I had to explain to my daughter (before she went to Lollapalooza Paris), that the pricey, tourist covered Montmarte was the backwater artists' home a hundred years ago. So dont look for the next Impressionist in Montmarte, head to St Denis.
And the best food we had was at a Asian-French fusion restuarant in an alley off a main street next to a market in the Marais. Quite Parisian indeed.
"In New York, of course, the best bagels are made by Thais." Where does that come from? Which bagel shop(s)?
2388 Bagels
I guess he hasn't been to Shelsky's.