Remember the slam books we used to fill in school where we used to fill up stupid sections like favourite boy band, colour, food etc. One of the columns usually was dream destination. And I always filled Paris in that space. Under the influence of movies and hearsay, I thought this is a magical and romantic city. I needed to cut this off my really long bucket list so I knew I had to make a trip to this beautiful city. The only French word I could pronounce properly was Louis Vuitton. And with this basic knowledge of French, I reached Paris - the heart of France.
When I stepped out of my overnight train from Barcelona to Paris (awesome train btw), I immediately liked the city. The air that greeted me in Paris was cold (literally) yet sophisticated. We checked into our modest hotel room and were excited to venture out again for our cruise on the famous River Seine. Truth be told, I was dying to see the Eiffel Tower. And boy when I saw it was I WOWED!!! It was such a tall imposing structure. Like a small kid I wanted to touch the structure but as soon I went close to it I was put off by the dusty iron bars. That's it - that's what the Eiffel Tower is all about, nothing but some iron bars painted in brown colour. I also went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and the sight from there was mind blasting. Its one thing that you can see entire Paris atop the tower, but its another feeling to be standing out there at a height of over 950 feet - the tallest I ever felt in my life!
The next 2 days in Paris was dedicated at playing typical tourists and visiting all the must see places in the city. The city glows in the night (literally), making it look like it wears a yellow blanket over it by night. It is a good blend of old world charm architecture along with modern and fashionable locals. The sights and ambience of the city is truly romantic. Yet I must confess, I hardly saw any lovers in the most romantic city in the world!! (me thinks they all shifted base to Spain to avoid tourists like me and to understand this statement better - read my blog on Spain). Also, I was expecting a really snooty, racist and arrogant bunch of French people. But I was amazed to meet many helpful locals who assisted us with our heavy bags and directions to our destinations. But I did get shooed away by an old grumpy french man in a flea market coz I was bargaining too much (the mumbaikar in me had to come out).
We had another French destination to visit before we headed to the land of gondolas, pastas and pizzas (read: Italy) and that was Nice (pronouced: Niece). A very calm, clean and quiet destination, Nice is a charming beachy city. The first day itself we were tempted to hit the beach which was at a walking distance from our hotel. The Indian in me forced me to choose shorts and t-shirt to the beach instead of a swimsuit. Never before had I felt so overdressed in my life coz even in my shortest shorts and skimpiest top, I felt like I was wearing a burqa!! The sight I saw on the beach was of women clad in ONLY bikinis or were topless. Not that this was a jaw dropping sight (we have our Goa remember), but I felt highly embarrassed for covering too much skin. Nonetheless, it dint stop me from entering the crystal blue sea. We also travelled to Cannes (highly overrated), Monaco, Monte Carlo and St Paul Vence (gorgeous quaint town).
Things I learned/realized while touring in France:
- When pronouncing a french word, a lot of English alphabets are silent. eg - Temple is pronounced Tomp in French. So the correct way to pronounce any French word is to ignore atleast 2-3 alphabets in it, mostly the last 2 alphabets. And if you don't know French, don't even attempt to pronounce their words. My attempt was met with a lot of rude stares, occasional rolling of the eyes and my partner abandoning me out of embarrassment.
- The Paris metro trains need serious upgrading. The metro trains in Madrid and Barcelona were far more sophisticated. And they definitely need escalators or/and lifts in their stations.
- There is no such thing as pure French food (not even french fries, they originated in Belgium). Its a mix of a lot of cuisines.
- There is a dirty, poverty stricken side to even Paris. We visited it and it felt like dharavi (though minus the slums). Very different and downmarket compared to the classy and upmarket Champs Elysees (pronounced 'shanz ay-lee-zay' btw)
- 80% of the people who live in the French Riviera are above 50 years of age and the rest 20% are tourists. Places like Nice, Cannes, Monaco are like retirement cities for old and really rich people.
- The French like to sleep early!
 |
| On the Seine River Cruise |
 |
| In front of the Eiffel Tower |
We had another French destination to visit before we headed to the land of gondolas, pastas and pizzas (read: Italy) and that was Nice (pronouced: Niece). A very calm, clean and quiet destination, Nice is a charming beachy city. The first day itself we were tempted to hit the beach which was at a walking distance from our hotel. The Indian in me forced me to choose shorts and t-shirt to the beach instead of a swimsuit. Never before had I felt so overdressed in my life coz even in my shortest shorts and skimpiest top, I felt like I was wearing a burqa!! The sight I saw on the beach was of women clad in ONLY bikinis or were topless. Not that this was a jaw dropping sight (we have our Goa remember), but I felt highly embarrassed for covering too much skin. Nonetheless, it dint stop me from entering the crystal blue sea. We also travelled to Cannes (highly overrated), Monaco, Monte Carlo and St Paul Vence (gorgeous quaint town).
Things I learned/realized while touring in France:
- When pronouncing a french word, a lot of English alphabets are silent. eg - Temple is pronounced Tomp in French. So the correct way to pronounce any French word is to ignore atleast 2-3 alphabets in it, mostly the last 2 alphabets. And if you don't know French, don't even attempt to pronounce their words. My attempt was met with a lot of rude stares, occasional rolling of the eyes and my partner abandoning me out of embarrassment.
- The Paris metro trains need serious upgrading. The metro trains in Madrid and Barcelona were far more sophisticated. And they definitely need escalators or/and lifts in their stations.
- There is no such thing as pure French food (not even french fries, they originated in Belgium). Its a mix of a lot of cuisines.
- There is a dirty, poverty stricken side to even Paris. We visited it and it felt like dharavi (though minus the slums). Very different and downmarket compared to the classy and upmarket Champs Elysees (pronounced 'shanz ay-lee-zay' btw)
- 80% of the people who live in the French Riviera are above 50 years of age and the rest 20% are tourists. Places like Nice, Cannes, Monaco are like retirement cities for old and really rich people.
- The French like to sleep early!
No comments:
Post a Comment