In Paris, they have a meeting place for trains that is just like an airport! I suppose they are trainports. There are security lines and passport checkers and all the trimmings. Europeans use trains the way people use aircraft. Imagine the effort and resources in laying and maintaining all that track and associated equipment!
While in Paris, I visited one of the many art warehouses, the D’Orsay. It is a large storage facility that attracts a sizable crowd during the day. In the olden days, people didn’t simply take a photo of a pretty person or scene. Instead, some pecked away with a hammer at a large rock, sometimes as big as a house, until it resembled a person or whatever. Others smeared colored grease on large bedsheets (the flat ones, not the fitted ones) to get a likeness. Seems like an awful lot of effort.
When you go, be sure to buy a timed entry ticket well before your desired visit date. Otherwise, you will stand in a very long line and get cranky.
Sundays in Paris are chilly and very windy, there is also a chance of rain showers. It is not unreasonably inclement as long as you have proper clothing. The weather Mondays through Wednesdays improves a bit, although a jacket is still required in the early mornings and evenings. Keep these points in mind as you plan your trip here.
The French, at least those in Paris, are intuitive to the point of being psychic. When I speak French to them, they somehow divine that I’m an English speaker and switch immediately to accommodate me! Incroyable!
The Parisienne sidewalk cafe is neither myth nor exaggeration. One can hardly take a dozen steps without passing yet another cafe! By my observation, there are about 1,000 cafes for every grocery store; one does not eat at home in Paris.
It is safe to stroll through Paris. I suppose it must have some rough areas, like all major cities. But average tourists will not find themselves there. Never once did I feel the tug of intuition saying “Maybe I shouldn’t be here.”
