Paris May 2017 – an Australian traveller perspective.

We have been in Paris for 5 days now and our ears have become immune to the constant wail of sirens. As I type – Frances’ new president – Emmanuel Macron is undertaking his inauguration and today the sirens appear constant.

Our little hotel room – four stories up and overlooking a narrow cafe lined street is in the Latin quarter of Paris. Paris is made up of 20 different areas (arrondissements) of which the Latin (5th arrondissement) is characterised by narrow pedestrian streets full of cafes and restaurants. It’s the traditional student quarter, home to the Sorbonne and Pantheon. We love it! Even the souvenir shops are great – full of quirky, cheap mementos that appear to have a little more class than our clinging koala filled souvenir shops. The cathedral of Notre Dame sitting alongside the river Seine is approx 5 minutes away while the Louvre is a 10 minute walk.

Going totally against all previous warnings and expectations we have found Parisians to be extremely welcoming, friendly and accepting. We have so far encountered none of the snootiness we were told to expect. Whilst trying to use my high school French it has on the whole appeared unnecessary – the French speak English well and are not reticent in speaking it with is.

We have found Paris to be a light, open city. With large boulevards, many beautiful opulent gardens, huge beyond magnificent palaces and museums the overall sense is well thought out spaciousness. For our first few days we caught the big bus – hopping on and off at all the tourist destinations Paris has to offer – the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Champs Élysées, Notre Dame etc. Thereafter we either used the metro or simply strolled. One useful thing we did discover was that the Louvre stayed open Wednesday and Friday evenings. Home to the Mona Lisa – the lines and crowds are usually enormous. Deciding to visit approximately 5pm Friday evening we simply strolled in. The time taken from front entrance to standing in front of the most famous and expensive painting in the world – 10 minutes! Unheard of really.

It’s a strange time to be visiting Paris given its recent brushes with terrorism. Smartraveller advocates one uses a high degree of caution – and despite the city being full of tourists – I feel we are all slightly on edge and practicing caution. This feeling is certainly reinforced by the sight of at least 3 or more heavily armed (young) guards at every main tourist spot. They may not always be obvious – but look around and you will see them. And when I say heavily armed – they are.

Prior to our arrival we had been eagerly anticipating the food and we have not been disappointed. The croissants and cheese are by far the best we have ever had and the availability and quality of the cheap (10euro) menu du jour is fantastic. My favourite set menu so far has been onion soup (with a cheese crust), beef bourguignon followed by creme brûlée. All washed down with a rose or two. Miam miam (yum yum).

Tomorrow we make our way to one of Paris’ major train stations where we will alight our train heading deep into the French countryside to Sarlat.

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