This was supposed to be the crown jewel for at least myself when we went off on this journey. In fact, my initial itinerary called for 6 weeks Paris and 6 weeks not Paris. The prospect of great food (which it delivered in spades), amazing culture, and historical sites was too large to not spend the more significant portion of time here. Not to mention, Paris got a ringing endorsement from my favorite uber-travel nerd Rick Steves' France 2011:
"There are two Frances: Paris... and the rest of the country. France's top-down government and cultural energy have alway been centered ion Paris, resulting in an overwhelming concentration of world-class museums, cutting-edge architecture, and historic monuments. Travelers can spend weeks in France and never leave Paris. Many do."
Now for some rambling thoughts...
Food:
As opposed to London, Paris is a true culinary city. A city, and perhaps country philosophy towards the preparation and quality (not quantity) is immediately noticeable. I remember seeing Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations show on London and his argument saying how London is on par with Paris for food. The only thing I'd say to that is it may apply to him since he's eating at all the best places ALL the time. In London I can think of one meal that stood out. In Paris, I never had a bad meal. The food was always fresh, the cheese was always stinky, and the wine was always perfect.
Transport:
Ok. One knock here. I got spoiled by London I guess, but Paris' Metro seems very very antiquated when compared to the Underground of London. I'll start off with the poor signs they have in Paris. The signs for the Metro vary between Arrondissements making them extremely difficult to spot. Would it make more sense to use big letters in BOLD? London has got it right. A great symbol that is a stark contrast to the buildings they are on and can be spotted far away. The Paris Metro is composed of a swack of lines (Metro & RER) that is a mess which could require you to catch 3 trains in the first 2 zones. The efficiency of London's is once again miles ahead with a well thought out mesh of rails. The only charming thing I really enjoyed were the buskers that go on the metro to play a tune while you are squashed in there like a can of sardines.
Attractions:
I mentioned before how impressed I was by London's attractions - and I think Paris' are just as good. A big difference though is the land that the Paris ones are situated on. Not among the skyscrapers in downtown, but Paris landmarks are usually on a plot of land with perfectly manicured gardens and huge spaces for you to enjoy along with the attractions. Another thing is that Paris attractions seem to be the biggest buildings in the city that are easily recognizable from many rooftops.
A True Sense Of Community:
A stark contrast that we found extremely interesting was while London you can feel the hustle and pace of the city, on the flipslip you are able to feel the sense of community and family values that Parisians seem to possess. In London parks they were few and far between, and when we did find them they were bare with most of the patrons being tourists like us. In Paris, outside is where they seem to play. For the first time in a while, kids are choosing to play outside rather than on Facebook or playing Call of Duty. All of the parks we went to were packed to the brim with local school kids just being kids. My daughter soon found out that pretending that you are pirates hunting for treasure is truly a universal game.
All in all, we love both Paris & London but would have to definitely give a strong preference to Paris. Two unique experiences that are hard to compare to one another.
Next City is Avignon!
