Visiting Paris Guide

My background in Paris

I lived in France from 2012 - 2015, and spent all my time in Paris, in both the north of the city (the 18th arrondissement) and just outside of the Paris’s circular motorway in Pantin, in the north east.

I really like the north side of the city - it’s (in my opinion) the slightly grittier, younger, more bohemian side. Some notes:

Why is the city sometimes divided as the rive gauche (the south side) and the rive droit (the north side)? It is because the river Seine flows west, and, therefore, when you are looking downriver (to the west) the right bank is the north and the left bank is the south. If you, like me, conceptualize the city on a north south line, rather than east / west, this can be difficult to internalize. Alas!

Things to do

Museums

The Louvre - Raft of the Medusa by Gericault is my favorite painting in the museum

the Père Lachaise Cemetery - the Gericault memorial is a highlight

Latin quarter/ Pantheon - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Quarter,_Paris

Shops

Deyrolle - Taxidermy as art showcase http://www.deyrolle.com/en

Champs Elysee and Arc de Triomphe - Plenty of shopping and window shopping

Shakespeare and Company - famous english language bookshop onthe left bank of the Thames - worth a stop though it’s usually pretty crowded - https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/

Parks

Jardin Luxembourg - On the left bank near the Latin Quarter

Parc de Buttes Chaumont https://www.paris.fr/lieux/parc-des-buttes-chaumont-1757 - the best park in Paris? Not as dramatic a view as the one from Parc de Belleville, but the overall park experience is perfect for a picnic or a

Restaurants

Tour Montparnasse, Ciel de Paris restaurant - http://www.cieldeparis.com/

Grand Mosque of Paris - https://www.grandemosqueedeparis.fr - there is a cafe at the mosque where you can have a coffee or tea that is very nice

Falafel in the Marais - Rue de Rosiers is the best street in the city for falafel, and the most famous is probably L’As du Fallafel - but every falafel place on the street is good: https://maps.app.goo.gl/MPnbQbtZAxkn2f8d6

Les Cocottes de Christian Constant - terrific seasonal dishes served in cocottes - cast iron casserole dishes

Dans Le Noir - eating in the dark - if you’ve never been, I enjoyed the experience a lot - it’s sort of incredible to be in a totally dark rom and have to navigate the meal by touch and taste alone.

Bars and nightlife

Le Comptoir General - https://lecomptoirgeneral.com/en/ - on the banks of the canal st. martin - very relaxed vibe, with a garden and a big indoor area. 20s-40s type crowd

Le Marie Celeste - https://www.lemaryceleste.com/ - cool bar (or was cool when I lived in the area) - 20s-30s type crowd

General culture

Wandering St. Germain de Pres

Walking Canal St. Martin

Not to do:

Catacombs - the line is too long, sometimes up to 3 hours

The Eiffel Tower view - again, a question of lines and line waiting