A second trip to Paris was all I needed to be convinced that I cannot like Paris. This city where everyone seems to see some sort of magic and charm that I am unable to understand. It’s quite frustrating, but it’s true and I must admit it. I don’t like Paris. Done. It’s out there.
It even took me a while to find the right amount of inspiration to write this post.
The first time I went to Paris, I ticked off all the boxes of what I really wanted to visit: the amazing Louvre, Versailles and Disneyland. All of these three things are amazing, and also seeing the Eiffel Tower live is something that you have to take off your bucket list. It’s an amazing piece of architecture.
Paris has indeed great things: beautiful and interesting galleries and Disneyland. But what I feel is that Paris, as a whole, doesn’t get juicier. The city is pretentious and snob without reason. There is no personality or charm I can find. Quite the opposite: I find the city dirty, disorganised, with no taste or charm. People are not nice. Be careful in the Metro because is bloody disgusting. Someone actually spilled yogurt on purpose on all the seats so anyone could sit.
Before I could still think that my disgust towards Paris was purely because I wasn’t used to the chaos that a big european capital can be. People will be cold, the streets will be dirty, you will never feel welcome. But now I live in London. Been living here for over two years now. All I could think about was how much I fucking love London.
From London, this city that I love, I took a train with Eurostar very early in the morning towards Paris. It was a one day trip. Found very cheap tickets, £50 return, and came back at 8pm same day.
However, not all was bad on my flash trip to Paris. I got to visit Espace Dalí – an exhibition dedicated exclusively to sculptures from the artist, a must go if you’re a fan. I have also visited Musee d’Orsay which is not only stunning as it exhibits amazing, beautiful, pieces of art. Not as big as the famous Louvre, but more accessible with a good collection of paintings from different art movements. There is a great collection of paintings from impressionists such as Monet, Renoir and Cezanne, and also a lot of pieces from Edgar Degas.
I also went to do some book shopping at Shakespeare & Co, the most amazing bookshop where I have ever been. Regardless of being a bookworm or not, I believe you’ll be impressed with the place. It’s just adorable. I wanted to stay there forever.
Love,
Nic
