Perfect Paris, France

In Paris you can live the dream.  Ignore the tourists and the rude waiters and every street corner holds the magic of an old black and white film.  The Eiffel Tower at night shimmers on the darkened skyline, remarkable yet unimposing.  The supermodel of city architecture perfectly embodies art and science.  The epicentre from which all of Paris radiates.  She disappears for a moment, the lights paused but a residual glow left emblazoned in your eyes, then the sparkling light show continues.  The night is heavy with the scent of the perfume of sophisticated Parisienne women, emulating the understated style their most famous land mark has exemplified.  Cafes and restaurants a buzz with chatter, great romances and high politics- or so I imagine.  Maybe this is the allure of Paris, it exists only through the eyes of idealistic artists, or so we wish ourselves to be, the struggling painter, the talented artisan, reinventing each scene to suit our own fantasies.

The Pigalle district, home of the ‘spectacular spectacular’ Moulin Rouge nestles at the base of a steep ascent leading to the blindingly white Sacre Coeur is every bit as bohemian as Luhrman would have us believe.  Patisserie windows offer up works of craftmanship on frilly paper doilies.    Street performers draw crowds of students only too willing to join into the chorus strummed on an acoustic guitar. 

Paris’ exhaustive tourist trail, made up of so many museums and art galleries that is sure to leave any art lover sated for years to come, leaves much unexplored and relatively untouched

Step out of Gare d’Austerlitz to take a shady stroll through the quiet Jardin des Plantes to the Natural History Museum, lounging peacefully on a bench, reading a book to soak up the sunshine.  Or to the Paris Mosque where you can have a traditional Moroccan The du Menthe.  If you’re looking for a more indigenous experience join the bustling breakfast rush of a bistro-café sprawling its colourful clientele onto street side tables cradling café au lait and picking at a croissant.  Even in the evenings along the Seine you can hear locals and sightseers alike, beckoned by the sugary aroma, for a gooey Nutella crepe folded expertly so not a drop of chocolaty goodness can escape. 

If shopping is more your bag Paris offers everything from the haute couture of Paris’ fashion houses on the Champs Elysee, to quirky vintage in the warren like flea market at Clignacourt.  The department store of La Fayette boasts a domed roof of dazzling blue glass supported by gilded lambasts and layers of red curtained balcony’s.   

Despite Paris’ nuances it is more than just tangible attractions that can be snapped on a camera and framed on a wall.  Paris for me will always have Jean Val Jean evading the clutches of the upstanding but flawed Javier or Quasimodo haunting the belfries of Notre Dame complemented by a sound track of accordions.