Love letters to Paris

If you’ve followed me for a while my being a card-carrying Francophile should come as no surprise.  I wear my love for all things French on my sleeve, or actually around my neck like a fancy silk scarf.  I defend any comment about how rude the French are by claiming it is a misperception.  I try to explain that the French are not opinionated but rather have a heighten love of conversation and debate.  When it comes to French arrogance, I justify it as warranted.  Afterall, this is the country which gave us Pierre and Marie Curie, Champagne, and Coco Channel.

I could go on for hours, but the point of this three-part post is to explain my affection for the country and its capital. Why does Paris pull at my heart strings like an insatiable lover? You are about the find out in this week’s “Love letters to Paris.”  Let’s start with the most obvious reason for my obsession: its uncontestable beauty.

The most beautiful city on earth

Whereas New York City boasts its skyscrapers and nervous energy, Paris captures our fascination with its breathtaking beauty.  Everywhere you look—from the Versailles-flashy historic monuments to the scenic Seine River with its stunning bridges to Paris’ couture-driven Rue Faubourg St. Honoré—your eyes are dazzled with splendor.

It’s not just the historic weight and aesthetic of the capital’s classic and art deco architecture which captures the imagination. It’s also how art is integrated into Parisian daily life. If you like to window shop, for example, the French know how to decorate their vitrines like no one else can.  To prove my point, check out the iconic Hermès Boutique on St. Honoré.  For decades designer Leïla Menchari was known for weaving an ethereal web of wonder for Hermès. Her fanciful designs elevated window dressing to an art form for shoppers to admire.

That same sensitivity to beauty displays itself even in the simple open-air markets throughout Paris. Here fruits and vegetable, fish, and poultry are displayed with the exacting eye of an artist. And the lavish flowers stalls with their vivid rainbow of colors! It makes you want to rent a kitchen or at least grab a vase for your hotel room.  

The French abhor anything ugly.  Take for example renovating a building. Merely installing unsightly metal scaffolding will not do. It must be covered with an attractive, decorative image. Usually that means an illustration of what the building will look like when completed.  Sometimes the exterior surface is used for advertising but usually, it is done in an imaginative, tasteful way so as not to offend Parisians’ aesthetic awareness.

Green is the new Black

 “Green” is more than a color in France, and in Paris in particular. It’s an awareness of the earth and the need to both enjoy and protect it.

A good illustration is the affection Parisians have for their gardens and parks. From the majestic Luxembourg gardens to the tiny, hidden neighborhood jardins, their green spaces are considered a necessity of life in the city. They are used for early morning jogging and afternoon strolls; reading a book; eating a lunchtime jambon-beurre sandwich; or merely lolling on the grass with un petit ami. Or perhaps a clandestine lover.

Recently,  part-scientist, part-landscape architect Patrick Blanc has given Paris another layer of green. His contribution is to transform building facades into luscious green gardens. These living walls or vertical gardens feature an integrated water delivery system and a special growing medium which allow plants to thrive. A few of Blanc’s man-made gardens can be found at the Musée du Quai Branly, BHV Home, and The Pershing Hall hotel. 

This love of nature has further expanded into a new way of modern life, one that genuinely respects the earth. Through aggressive legislative action France has become a Green Nation.  Well before we started paying attention to saving the earth, France had already taken dramatic steps to reduce its carbon emissions and promote sustainability.

Some of the eco-friendly things I’ve noticed in Paris over the past few years include aggressive recycling efforts; getting rid of all plastic bags; increasing the number of bike lanes and pedestrian streets; and recently, lowering the city’s traffic speed to 18 miles per hour. And, imagine my surprise when I noticed the French were no longer using cardboard tubes for their toilet paper rolls!

Paris’ café culture

One of the first things I do upon arriving in Paris is go to my local café in the Marais where I keep a small apartment.  I adore Parisian cafés as not only are they convenient and affordable watering holes, but they are also the center of social life in a neighborhood. Short of putting on a beret—which I would never do as it is a cliché—I imagine myself une Parisienne. Often, I pretend that I am waiting for someone (perhaps a lover who never comes!) but really spend my time discreetly ease dropping on other people’s conversations and of course, people watching. 

Cafés abound in Paris.  They’ve existed since the 17th century where they served, then as they do now, as a meeting place for friends to relax, refuel and do what the locals do best, bavarder. In other words, chatter, gossip and debate.

The most famous Paris cafés are Les Deux Magots and Café Flore in Saint Germain des Prés. Here Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Satre passionately engaged in intellectual banter in the 1950’s. Back then people ordered un café or Pernod, an anise flavored liqueur which turns milky white when water is added. Today, however, the beverage of choice is often either Belgium beer or Aperol Spritz reminding visitors that France, as an EU partner, no longer needs to be chauvinistic.

Don’t be put off by the high price of your beverage if you stop by at a café. Unlike in America, turning tables is not the point in France.  You can stay for as long as you like. There is one caveat, however.  Since smoking indoors in all easting establishments is prohibited through all of the country, the outdoor café is where smokers congregate.  And the French do love to smoke so be prepared.  Or, go inside!

The art of the scarf

For most Americans, a scarf is something worn exclusively in the winter. Not so in France.  In fact, no self-respecting French person would be caught without one. Women and men of all ages, even small children, rock un foulard (the thin cotton or silk kind) in spring and summer or the heavier, woolen one, called une écharpe, in cooler months.

We might think this is a mere fashion accessory, but for them, it is also a health consideration.  The French loathe having their throats exposed to any draft of air, no matter how small, for fear of catching a cold. In essence, a scarf for Les Français is also a form of security blanket.

The French claim they can tell when an American wears a scarf as we lack their savoir faire. So, watch this video if you’re planning a trip to Paris.  In less than five minutes, you’ll learn 25 different ways to put on a scarf so that you, too, can blend in with the locals as soon as you arrive:  25 Ways to Wear a Scarf - YouTube

However, this video may not be enough.  You also need to heed these rules, just to be on the safe side:

·     Wear a scarf with anything except a dress which the Parisians consider bizarre and unfashionable.

·     Always wear your scarf in a loose and careless manner.

·     Don’t wear a scarf when you go dancing. You’ll just want to take it off.

·     If it gets beastly hot, say around 95⁰ F, it’s acceptable not to wear a scarf.

·     Never wear a scarf when you’re making love. It gets in the way.

To be continued…