Ot Visit to Paris

[The Oldman]

Thank you guys. All most helpful.

 

[The Large One]

Oh, by the way, 'carnet' is pronounced 'carnay'. Just in case you wanted to sound proper Frenchie. Having said, they'll still claim not to understand you.

 

[Tricky Dicky]

Went a few weeks back with my good lady and my little lady.

Beautiful place - shouldn't have taken me 37 years to get there.

Blimey - I've been on some long train journeys, but that is bad even for Eurostar !

 

[Mtoto]

If you like seafood and money isn't too tight, La Coupole in Montparnasse is quite an experience. Huge, loud, bright and gleaming, with waiters scurrying everywhere, and seafood platters that include branches of the bivalve and mollusc families I've never come across anywhere else. Went there a couple of years ago and Jean-Paul Gaultier was sitting at the next table. You can't get much more Parisian than that.

More reasonable is a place near the Eiffel Tower called the Cafe De Mars, which I've been to a few times. It's basically run by a chef, and the snails are particularly good. It has a website with directions btw.

 

[The Oldman]

If you like seafood and money isn't too tight, La Coupole in Montparnasse is quite an experience. Huge, loud, bright and gleaming, with waiters scurrying everywhere, and seafood platters that include branches of the bivalve and mollusc families I've never come across anywhere else. Went there a couple of years ago and Jean-Paul Gaultier was sitting at the next table. You can't get much more Parisian than that.

More reasonable is a place near the Eiffel Tower called the Cafe De Mars, which I've been to a few times. It's basically run by a chef, and the snails are particularly good. It has a website with directions btw.

Great Stuff Mtoto. We love Seafood. Thanks

 

[The Oldman]

Oh, by the way, 'carnet' is pronounced 'carnay'. Just in case you wanted to sound proper Frenchie. Having said, they'll still claim not to understand you.

Wonderful

 

[Gwylan]

If you like seafood and money isn't too tight, La Coupole in Montparnasse is quite an experience. Huge, loud, bright and gleaming, with waiters scurrying everywhere, and seafood platters that include branches of the bivalve and mollusc families I've never come across anywhere else. Went there a couple of years ago and Jean-Paul Gaultier was sitting at the next table. You can't get much more Parisian than that.
.

In a similar vein, you could try Bofinger near the Bastille - it's another old-fashioned bistro.

Or for a real Parisian experience, there's La Polidor in rue Monsieur-le-Prince near the Sorbonne. It's been open since the 1840s and has served countless generations of students and artists. It's a bit pricier since then but it's a different experience - there's no booking and you sit on benches.

But if you like seafood you're in for a real treat in paris because there are plenty of places that are great.

 

[Bob!]

we did one of these last year Fat Tire Bike Tours Day Bike Tour
you get to see a few of the less touristy places, as well as riding a bike across the place de concorde

 

[Austrian Gull]

Would go along with the recommendations of Le Marais - really intersting area. Place des Vosges is a beautiful square in the area and it isn't overrun by tourists.

Ile de la Cite & Ile Saint-Louis are also lovely areas to stroll around.

The Montparnasse tower is good if you want a view but don't want to queue up for hours to get one. The building is pretty ugly but you get to see the Eiffel tower from a different perspective. The Parisians recommend it because it's the only place in the capital you can't see Montparnasse tower from!

Paris can be expensive - stick to wine and forget buying pints of beer (8 or 9 euros

Be a little bit careful in the streets below Montmartre hill. Last time we were there, we walked up out of the metro station (Abbesses, I think) to the sight of two female prostitutes having a cat fight. This was at 11 o'clock on a Sunday morning.

They should have charged people to watch...

 

[clapham_gull]

I like the area just South East of the Eiffell Tower.

Being so central, you think it's going to be a tourist hell hole, but the streets of Rue Cluer are a bit of an oasis. They have a good market down there and there are loads of places to eat.

Everytime I go to Paris I go down there.

There is also that area below the island that Notre Dame sits on that is very interesting.

 

[Beach Hut]

Port De La Villette is at the end of one of the Metro lines and is a superb science museum of the highest quality.

 

[alan partridge]

I love Paris. Really beautiful.

Don't tread in any dog shit, but walk around a lot. It's like an open air museum.

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

We always go back to this little bistro at 11 Rue Buci - L'Atlas (near Rue de la Seine and Boulevard Saint Germain on the left bank.

Opposite a brilliant bookshop (Phillipe Stark was their signing his book last time we went and then he ambled over to have a few oysters from the seafood barrow at the front of the restaurant). Lovely food - very trad bistro - great service. Get a table on the street, and pile of Fruit de Mare and a bottle of Muscadet and you can't go wrong. It's also in a lovely little bit of Paris for interesting shops. Look out for the incredible little toy shop (name to follow)

 

[bathseagull]

I'd highly recommend the Belleville area, where my girlfriend used to live, it's up on a hill in the 20th arrondissement. There's a couple of nice bars in Rue des Envierges which is at the top of parc de Belleville with great views out over the city. One is the le vieux belleville which is a classic old french bar with accordian player and singalongs and another is la mer a boire which is a bit more funky. Also try la bellevilloise which is very cool and has a little concert hall attached - saw Razorlight there last year in a little warm up gig.

Brilliant city.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Slightly off-beat, but worth the visit, is Père Lachaise Cemetery (French: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise). Métro station Philippe Auguste on line 2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PC3%A8re_Lachaise_Cemetery

Visit the graves of Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf and Jim Morrison. Plus hundreds of other famous people, including a famous ancestor of NSC's very own Dwayne.

Oscar Wilde, with lipstick kisses

Piaf

Jim Morrison

 

[blackprince]

A number of posters have already said that a carnet is a cost effective way of purchasing metro tickets. They can also be used on the buses. Theres a little machine by the driver which accepts the individual tickets, date stamps them and then spits them back out for you. Its on a one ticket per bus basis so if your journey involves using two buses each way to get there and back thats 4 tickets per person for the round trip.
The tickets can also be used on the venicular railway upto the Sacre Couer if you don't fancy using the steps.

 

[The Oldman]

Just wish to thank you all for the suggestions. The missus and I had a great time. Particular thanks for the advice about walking from Cheeky Monkey and others. Apart from to and from our hotel and Gare du Nord we walked everywhere and saw all the main sights. Best was Montmartre on a Sunday although a glass of beer at £8 was a bit of a shock. Thanks again.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

That is some hotel bedroom you had.

 

[London Calling]

Just wish to thank you all for the suggestions. The missus and I had a great time. Particular thanks for the advice about walking from Cheeky Monkey and others. Apart from to and from our hotel and Gare du Nord we walked everywhere and saw all the main sights. Best was Montmartre on a Sunday although a glass of beer at £8 was a bit of a shock. Thanks again.

and what an erection the Ms must have been happy

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Glad you had a good time fella. I'm guessing that photo's from the highest level on Le Tour Eiffel - somewhere my vertigo wouldn't let me go - the deuxieme tier was more than enough for me! Would go back again tomorrow - quite fancy TRHK's restaurant recommendation.