Wednesday, September 29, 2010

THE FRENCH ISSUE: IF I WERE TO BE IN PARIS

Thinking about spending three days in one city is not exactly a fun thought. I mean, only three days? That's torture. European capitals are often victim of the three-day method of travel and Paris is no exception. A lot of people end up hating Paris. If we had all the time, money and visas in the world, maybe Paris would feel like a better city. Maybe we'd spend longer amounts of time there to erase the bitter taste in our mouth.

If you had three days in Paris, what would you do? Here's only the beginning of my must-do list, which excludes a lot of boutiques, dance clubs, and mouth-watering savoury French food.

Find Amelie. Amelie has been one of my favourite films since I was a youngster, so it only makes sense to track down the beautiful Parisian scenery in the film which is largely based in the neighbourhood of Montmartre. Could such a whimsical Amelie-esque moment in Paris be available elsewhere in the city?



Visit the Sweatshop. More than just a cafe, the Sweatshop is a creative concept situated near St. Martin. The space is equipped with ten Singer sewing machines and a communal table with rotating workshops. You pay by the hour if you want to use the machines, kind of like a stitch-and-bitch except not free. Sounds heavenly and productive. The couture counterculture begins here.



Admire Patisserie Pain de Sucre, because you can't visit France and avoid the bakeries, cafes, baguettes and wine even if you are gluten-free, child. This bakery was featured in Wallpaper Magazine and evidently dozens of bloggers have featured it as the go-to pastry shop, the most tempting, old-world and luminous of them all.


Image from Paris Patisseries


Go to Colette. A trip to Paris is incomplete without ogling over designer wears from Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel, Comme des Garcons, Lanvin, Chloe, and more. That's why I'd window shop at Colette, a boutique carrying lustful items mentioned by the fashion gods themselves. All those thousands of Euros. It hurts so good.



Next stop: actually learning French!

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