pierres de touche
Touch Stones
(we don’t know if this concept translates into French, but we have a predictable, simple, maybe pedestrian approach to defining and measuring our visit in Paris)
voyage (travel)
Metro: we travel by Metro instead of Taxi or Bus
Velib: when possible we travel by Velib through the streets
Walking: we do more walking during vacations,
we don’t utilize tours, bus tours or boat tours (just too touristy)
we prefer to discover things on our own, sometimes in error, maybe getting lost for a while
We fly to Paris overnight, leaving in the evening, served an evening meal and then the cabin lights go out. Soon after the sun rises again, we are in Paris and have most of the day to become situated.
les musées (museums)
Paris Museum Pass: this pass ensures that we will be in-line when the museums open each day
we would almost go the Le Louvre everyday if we could, there is so much to see
we look at the same art, but see something different, learn something more, make associations and connections
we also patronize D’Orsay, Pompideau and l’Orangerie regularly (and discovered Petit Palais last year)
Looking forward to: Cluny, Picasso, Rodin someday
quartiers (neighborhoods)
We move through Paris during our stay among five different hotels (2 nights each)
We see different areas of the city, but never become familiar and intimate with one place, it’s daily cafe, hotel staff, etc
Although over time, we establish familiarity with a place returning to it year after year, returning to the same establishments
épicerie (grocery)
most of our shopping occurs in the common grocery store
they provide plenty of opportunities to find some good bread, a memorable cheese and good wine
also Naturalia, a Paris health food shop
but we are always looking for the small bouchère near Pere La Chaise, where an elderly lady sold (dangerous looking) dry sausages and cheeses, for a real taste of Paris
And pop into a boulangère for the daily baguette
hébergement (lodging)
we have tried small centrally located hotels with rooms the size of phone booths
and settled on large chain hotels a distance from the center of tourism, “large, affordable and predictable”
which is not the reason you visit Paris, but we appreciate this at the end of the day
cimetières (cemeteries)
the best Paris cemeteries are well landscaped and disclose the history of its people
they present questions and subjects for further investigation
(and a good walk)
Paris for the Holidays 