LoriS

I've been to Paris many times, but usually with my husband. I'll have a whole day there in July before he arrives around midnight.

We're also thinking about moving to Paris in the near future, so I want to get a good feeling of living in the city. (I've seen all the major sites, visited all the museums, etc.)

How would you spend the day (please include your favorite lunch & dinner spots for dining alone?

laclaire

You can't really get a feel for a place in a day. Moving somewhere is much different from visiting. You don't permit yourself so many amenities (at least I don't. . . no cabs, eat out way less, spend entire days inside, etc), and you get into a routine.

You are very right in that you will get afternoons alone while living there, so doing this will be a good confidence booster, particularly if you are shy about spending time alone in public. I have no specific recommendations for Paris, but I loved walking around the quieter, more residential areas, thinking about what it would be like to live there.

SeaUrchin

loriS, since you are thinking of relocating there, your one day there without out husband wll be a good time to take a little step in making the city your own.

ira

Hi L,

>...I want to get a good feeling of living in the city. ...include your favorite lunch & dinner spots for dining alone?<

If you want to get a feel for living in the city, go to the Monoprix, get some take out and eat it in your room in front of the TV.

LoriS

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the responses so far. I guess I'll go ahead and add some more caveats. My husband and I both travel a lot (I mean a lot), for business. So even at home, we tend to eat out every night--I'll sometimes cook at home on the weekend though.

I realize that one day won't give me a food impression of living in the City--but I'm looking for one day to spend, as I would spend a day off at home. I hate to be cooped up in the house, so I doubt I'll spend much time there.

Keep the suggestions coming!

SeaUrchin

I don't think I understand still, you have been to Paris many times and travel really a lot on business but you want someone here to suggest what to do for one day?

Well, in that case, I suggest having coffee and bread at a cafe for breakfast, taking a stroll in your neighborhood for the early afternoon, having a nice lunch in a cafe, go shopping for clothes in the afternoon, go to a neighborhood cafe for dinner and then go back to your room and wait for your husband to arrive.

Sound good?

SandyBrit

LoriS

On your days off at home you just about always go out for lunch and dinner. Where is home? Is the possible move to Paris work related?

Sandy

Scarlett

Get up early, make your own bed, have some coffee, go to the dry cleaners, pick up something at the market, stop at a cafe for a bite, take a walk ( too bad you don't have a pup with you ), run more errands, then do as SeaUrchin says, go home , make dinner reservations, then wait for your husband LOL
This was a typical day when living elsewhere for me..I find that no matter where I live, I take my habits with me, just in new places..which make them seem much more exciting and interesting habits, for a while at least
Good luck on the possible move to Paris~

LoriS

Scarlett, SandyBrit, and SeaUrchin:

Yes, I think I may not be asking for what I'm looking for--all of your suggestions are right on point (with maybe the following changes):

Sleep in,
Leave bed unmade,
Have some tea (I gave up coffee several years ago),
Pick up a baby gift for a friend,
Buy a bottle of wine,
Stop at a cafe for a bite,
Take a walk/bike ride,
Go to the bookstore/Run more errands,
Go home and check email/work,
Grab dinner close to home,
Go home and check email/work,
Go home and wait for my husband.

Sounds like a pretty typical day to me. I'm not looking for or expecting a significant change in lifestyle--other than giving up my car and downsizing my living space to about a 1/3 or less of what it is now.

I travel alot for business--so if you also do this, you know that you spend most of the day in the hotel, restaurants, and an office building--not necessarily out on the streets by yourself. So while I'm familiar with the bigger hotels, restaurants, sites, etc., I don't have a good feel for the little neighborhood places.

My question was more of which places would you go to fill in the details--for example, I know a great little Russian cafe in one of the neighborhoods--no tourists, great food, fine for dining alone, etc. Those are the things I'm looking for.

Oh, and I currently live in the States--the move is related to my husband's job, but I'll be able to continue mine there as well as we also have an office in Paris. And yes, I currently eat out for lunch and dinner about 95% of the time--even on my days off.

Thanks for your help!

moxie

As an expat living in Paris I would not recommend it UNLESS you set a limit on the number of years you to plan stay here.

Your planned day sounds like a tourist day not a normal day.

You should get up at 7.30;
leave the house by 8;
take the metro during rush hour to where your office branch is located. Walk around that neighbourhood and buy your baby present and wine (since that is what you will have to do when you work).
Eat lunch in that area between 1 and 2pm.
Go to a real estate agency and start looking for an apartment.
Take the metro/RER back during rush hour.
Buy food for dinner.
Go the airport and pick up your husband (you will be making lots and lots of trips there to pick people up, you may as well start with him

Good luck!

nessundorma

What a funny thread -- except it sounds like you aren't very thrilled by the prospect of relocating to Paris, or already have a bad feeling about the city you want to dispel. I'm sympathetic if that's the case. Work -- both mine and my husband's -- has sometimes made it necessary for us to live where we don't really want to, and I've had to deliberately to out and find things about the place that I liked.

If it were me, I would spend the day in the arrondisement most likely to be my next neighborhood, and see what I can discover there.

Where do you think you'll be living? Where is the office?

laclaire

My cousin used to live in the Marais and I got to visit her there. She had a teeny tiny flat on the 4th floor (walk-up), and it was smack dab on Rue de Rivoli. I went to visit and it sort of ended up being like we were married for a week. I was the housewife. So, in the morning we did coffee and bread together at home, then we picked up and left the house. I dropped off dry cleaning, spent one morning at the laundromat, picked up flowers and ingredients for dinner, and basically lived a short life in Paris. Of course, during the day I went out to lunch and we dined out a few times for dinner. And I visited all the regular attractions. It did give me a great feel for the neighborhood, which is perhaps the most important when you are thinking about moving. I loved the Marais for early 20s living. It was the perfect location for a young couple or for a single person. However, I would not like to live there with children (not enough open areas, a little too much nightlife, etc). Those conclusions I drew in one morning while waiting for the laundry to get done.

If I were you, I would do a little research and figure out which neighborhoods are desireable and walk around them, trying to spend a day.

LoriS

Moxie-
Thanks for this. Luckily, I won't have to stay within the normal work day hours for my job. There will be an occasional day when I need to go into the office, otherwise, I can work from my apartment.

nessundorma-
I think I'm trying to reconcile the differences between traveling to Paris and living in Paris. My "office" will be in La Defense--but I won't need to actually go into the office, but occasionally. My husband will be in a similar circumstance--and we'll both be often traveling outside of Paris. I'm not sure where to start to determine the best arrondisement to actually "live" in Paris. Friends of ours actually have decided to live in Versailles--but I'm leaning towards the city.

LoriS

Thanks laclaire. I appreciate your insights--I think the Marais is probably a little too "young" for me.

laclaire

My favorite of favorites for living is the 16th. Everything you need and then some.

nessundorma

Do you have a budget? Some areas of Paris are far more expensive than others. And some are inconvenient to La Defense -- which you might not want even though you don't need to commute every day.

You also seem averse to being in touristy places, so that might be another reason to eliminate certain arrondisements and to spend your day in one closer to La Defense that is not generally thought of as a tourist destination to observe what's going on on an everyday basis.

Finally, do you need convenient access to the airport? That might also be a clue about which neighborhoods to explore.

But in general, I don't think the gap between living in Paris and being a tourist is all that wide (I've done both), especially if you plan to continue to eat in restaurants. One thing to remember is that Paris has some of the finest "take out" on the planet, and most French professionals buy prepared food to eat at home. You might try that for your evening meal. Eat it in the park and people watch or at your hotel.

Oh -- and rent a bicycle for the day.

moxie

Ahhh then you are one of the lucky ones Lori! =)

I admit Paris is lovely if you do not need to do the regular grind.

Parts of the 16th have everything, others are purely residential and quite remote. Since it is a rich area, there are less people on the street and sadly it is a bit dangerous at night (imported elements they say).

Back to the original question, I'd spend the day then where I think I'd like to live. Start walking from rue Mouffetard, stroll Ile St Louis, metro to la motte piquet, walk to M° charles Michel. Cross the river and walk up Boulainvilliers, continue up rue de la tour, bus to Trocadero.

Lunch can be had along any of the route and you get to see a variety of interesting places to live; 5th, 4th, 15th, 16th and 8th arrondissement.