citylove: paris, france

paris, franceAh Paris. I have a love/hate relationship with Paris. I suppose my first experience there would have been a lot better hadn’t I gotten sick. But despite that–and the rude Parisans and how expensive everything is–I can see why Paris would be one of those cities of love.

It is a beautiful city. The movies do not exaggerate. Paris is picturesque. It’s very quaint in its hues of light pink, biege and sky blues. The city’s color palette isn’t quite pastel, but close to it. It’s a very light city; very vintage in look and feel. I suppose that’s what so Parisian about it? It’s hard to pinpoint the look of Paris. In some ways, its architecture is very romantic. Notre Dome is very Gothic, and yet you have other buildings that are very Baroque, like the Palace at Versailles. Then you have the distinct Parisian style, Beaux-Arts. Very much like Venice, this miss-matched style of Parisan architecture adds to the vintage feel of Paris. And I find that light vintage is very romantic.

Scattered across Paris are little quaint cafes and restaurants. There are tons of them, and yet, the really small ones are always packed with patrons. It’s very weird, but the claustrophobic closeness in these places can be quite cosy. Match that cosiness with good food, and you’re content.

I suppose my love/hate relationship of Paris blinded me to the more romantic–albeit cliched–places in Paris. While the views from the tip top of the Eiffel Tower are stunning, I couldn’t possibly see how any thing could be romantic in the huge crowds that gather up there. Honestly, if you wanted a more romantic view of Paris, with the Eiffel Tower in full view, the overlook area on top of the hill behind Sacre Coeur in Montmartre would be best. Especially at night when the Eiffel Tower is all light up, a nice stroll around Sacre Coeur seems very romantic and although there can be crowds of tourists, the crowd is relatively small compared to that at the Eiffel Tower. Plus, that hill at Montmartre is apparently the highest point in Paris, so the views–day or night–are quite stunning and its free.