Making the Most of Your Paris Stay: 5 Tips

There are so many books on the market this year about life in France that I can’t keep up. One book I won’t be reading just yet is Paris, I Love You but You’re Bringing Me Down, by Rosecrans Baldwin. Based on some of the reviews I’ve been reading, it could have been entitled What Not to Do: Being Miserable in Paris in 5 Easy Steps. Imagine William Hurt in Accidental Tourist grumbling his way through rainy streets and metro strikes with a background of breathtaking beauty and missed encounters unwinding behind him like a film reel. Here are a few tips for making the most of your Paris stay.  

A beautiful day or perhaps a night ... near a lake I fell asleep

© K-Rae Nelson

1. Learn Some French!

Unless you already speak French, learning the language for a short stay is unrealistic. However, anyone can learn a few essential phrases. Practical expressions like Combien? and Où est ___? (How much? and Where is?) are much less important than a few polite phrases. In France it is essential to establish a connection and to make a good impression before initiating any type of exchange. It seems like overkill to Americans, but you should always begin any exchange with a Bonjour or Bonsoir. Before you ask for a bus ticket, before you ask for directions, before you purchase a newspaper, always start with Bonjour, or Bonsoir in the evening. The Paris bus system has a campaign called Bus Attitude emphasizing politeness with its slogan “Adoptez la Bus Attitude !” Line 38 which runs through the center of Paris on the north-south axis even has a web site with pages in English explaining appropriate behavior. The Attitude in the Bus page in English acknowledges that:

“Relationships in big cities like Paris are not very easy...Stress, traffic jam, crowd, noise... and Paris citizens known for not being very friendly and talkative sometimes!... None looks at the other, respects the other... This is probably the most boring thing we're facing each and every day in our work driving the bus for you.

It's probably ours first to welcome you aboard with a gentle look... but you know, it's seems so rude to us when someone's boarding in the bus without saying the basic 'Bonjour'... This isn't a good start really, and it happens so often that smiles seems to disappear from our faces too at the end! It shouldn't be so... and we don't want it to be so!”

The page offers an initial French lesson and even an optional compliment to the driver, Vous êtes mignon (You’re cute). On another page, you can read an encounter from the passenger’s point of view as well as the driver’s point of view, and there’s even an amusing automatic translator for you to practice French requests for the driver, such as “I would like to eat frog legs not too expensive?” which produced “J’aimerais manger des cuisses de grenouille pas trop cher?”

You’ll notice an immediate difference when you preface any request with Bonjour. If you don’t feel comfortable trying out your French, follow up with Parlez-vous anglais? (Do you speak English?). Chances are the response will be ‘un petit peu’, a little bit, which is probably more English than your French. Don’t forget to end any encounter with Merci, if appropriate, and always say good-bye, au revoir, or à bientôt (see you soon). 

2. Spend time in cafés.

© Victor Vianu

Instead of breakfasting at your hotel, head to a local café. Grab a newspaper from the bar and dunk your croissant in your café crème. (Note: a café au lait is drip coffee with milk, usually served in a bowl and at home. Café crème is espresso with steamed milk. Don’t pay extra for a cappuccino and its dash of cinnamon. A café noisette, a Paris specialty, is an espresso with a noisette, literally, a hazelnut, or spoonful of steamed milk.) Parisians typically drink coffee with milk only in the morning. You can usually order un grand crème or un petit crème (un crème is masculine because it refers to un café crème).

Sit down to a three course lunch, or a formule, an abbreviated meal of either an entrée/plat, appetizer/main course, or plat/dessert, main course/dessert. A good lunch option is a salade composée, a hearty salad that may include foie gras, duck confit, and roasted potatoes (Salade Périgourdine). You’ll need another café to get going again!

3. Follow the Parisians.

The major tourist zones are in the immediate areas around the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame and the Champs-Elysées. Walk just a few minutes out of these high density zones and you’ll find quiet streets. For example, the medieval streets parallel to Notre Dame are often deserted, as is the beautiful Galerie Véro-Dodat (entrance 19 rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 1^st), minutes from the jostling craziness of the Louvre. On Sunday afternoons, the river bank expressway is closed on the north side. See here for more information on Sunday closures. The Viaduc des Arts houses art galleries, artisan shops and cafés in the renovated arches of an old railway viaduct, and La Promende Plantée, also called La Coulée Verte, a garden walkway that begins along the old tracks above and continues the length of the 12^th arrondissement.

Galerie Véro-Dodat, entrance 19 rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 1^st, M : Louvre-Rivoli

Viaduc des Arts, La Promendae Plantée, 1 avenue Daumesnil, 12^th, M: Bastille.

© Victor Vianu

4. Take the bus.

It’s very easy to use the subway system in Paris, and it’s fairly impersonal which can be reassuring to a tourist. The bus, however, is very Parisian. The bus drivers know and greet the regulars, children will take the bus alone to school before taking the metro, and it’s much easier for parents with young children and strollers, and the elderly with limited mobility to take the bus. The bus is more intimate and people are more likely to strike up conversations than in the metro. Remember your Bonjour, Madame, Bonjour, Monsieur!

Line 38 runs through the center of Paris on the north-south axis, Line 96 runs from Montparnasse through Saint-Germain des Prés, the islands and up through the Marais, Line 80 takes you from the Eiffel Tower to Montmartre, and Line 24 cruises along the Left Bank next to the Seine. For other routes, see this Paris bus map and the RATP, the Paris Transportation System site, to plan your trips.

5. Read up on local events.

Find out if there are any special events going on while you’re in town, such as Movie Festivals, la Nuit des Musées, Nuit Blanche, the Salon du Chocolat, la Fête du Pain or la Fête des Vendanges, the wine festival in Montmartre. Pick up a free newspaper - 20 Minutes and Metro are available at metro stations and on buses - or read the Paris City Hall web site in English to keep abreast of special events.

Paris Festivals in May

La Fête du Pain, May 16-21, 2012 in front of Notre Dame. The annual Bread Festival takes place around the St. Honoré, the patron saint of  boulangers (bakers) with events promoting le Pain de Tradition Française, traditional French bread.  The 2012 prize for the best Parisian baguette goes to Sébastien Mauvieux, 159 rue Ordener 18^th , M: Jules Joffrin, a good excuse to wander around this non-touristy area.

La Nuit des Musées, May 19, 2012. Information in English. Expect a crush for the annual Museum Night. Museums are open until 11pm or midnight, and and in some cases 1am. My particular favorites are the The Grand Evolution Gallery of the Museum of National History, the Orsay, newly opened after extensive renovations, Chopin piano recitals at the Musée de la Vie Romantique and Eugène Atget photography at the Carnavalet.

Monumenta 2012: Daniel Buren at the Grand Palais, May 10-June 21, 2012. The Grand Nef of the Grand Palais is only open to the public during special exhibits. Each year an artist is invited to play with the vast space. See today’s SF Chronicle article on the exhibit.