kwren

get your OWN boat to sail at the Tuileries

watch the guys dressed up as white statues do their thing whenever someone tosses a Euro in their hat

look at the carvings on all the bridges

see how many Smart Cars the Parisians can fit into one parking place

buy a bird at the bird market

find the 'center of Paris' plaque in front of Notre Dame

buy a gargoyle at the tacky souvenir shops near Notre Dame (my son now has a collection of huge gargoyles - that somehow I always end up carryng around Paris for him!)

Go to Paris Plage - an small area at the side of the Seine with sand, beach chairs and umbrellas

ride a double decker train - sit upstairs

go to Parc Asterix

go to a fashion show

kwren

wow! I had the honor of posting the 200th reply! Pretty cool considering I've only been a Fodorite for less than a week. Glad to be here!

DejaVu

What a great thread!
-Don't eat any old crepe, eat a crepe filled with _Nutella_!
-Try to visit in late June for the Fete de la Musique, when there are free concerts all over the city [I stumbled on this one by accident and had a blast]
-Have a seat in front of the Nike of Samothrace and just contemplate her.
-Stand in front of the Madonna of the Rocks in the Louvre and snicker at the Da Vinci Code author...just because you can ;-)
-go to the less frequented churches: St Germain des Pres, St-Sulpice, St-Severin
and here's one I haven't gotten to do
yet, but it's on my list for next time:
-Take the train to the suburb of Auvers-sur-l'Oise and take flowers to the grave of Vincent van Gogh, then wander around the town finding the locales of the paintings done in the last weeks of his life

DejaVu

Oh, one more: Browse the antique shops at the Louvre des Antiquaires

AJPeabody

Stand in back of Venus and see the Papparazzi de Milo.

janeos

I'm going to Paris (again) in two weeks and can't wait! A suggestion for those who have been there a couple of times: pick a theme for your trip. One time I looked for carousels all over Paris; another time, terra cotta architecture;another, markets.
These pursuits took me all over into neighborhoods I would not have visited otherwise.

Momliz

What a wonderful thread! But, how many of the older suggestions are still valid? I would love to go see the Eiffel Tower sparkle, but, do they still do that? The world is changing so much these days... If anyone knows of a tip that is out of date, would you mind posting it?

AJPeabody

Yes, it sparkles, if you look at the right time, about 11 pm Paris time, I think. You can check it out yourself from the comfort of your home at:

www.abcparislive.com/eiffel_tower_webcams.htm

AJ

luveurop

Bookmarking.

suze

^^^ for heavens from the US board

Momliz

ttt

katzen

bookmarking

JBQ

I hope this was not mentioned... but get a great haircut while in Paris.

mdtravel

JBQ...I think you should explaain that one.

Worldismyoyster

This is a great thread. Wondering if people also have a top 10 (or 100) of day trips from Paris. If it is ok, I'll start:
One day in Champagne (which should get better in 2007 when they claim there will be a new TGV stop somewhere in the region). The itinerary might go something like: train to Epernay, stop at Laurent-Perrier, Moet, lunch in the town at La Theatre restaurant or some small bistro followed by a visit to Krug (if they allow such things). If I could get a taxi, might replace Krug with Bollinger and Duval-Leroy in Aÿ, but that may be stretching it a bit. Then the 1.5 hour train ride back to Gare de l'Est. No?

i_traveler

Wow, so many of my favorite things to do in Paris were already listed, but here are a few more that I thought of...

- visit the following types of stores and marvel at the different (and more stylish) choices they offer: lighting fixtures; kitchen utensils (ex: E. Dehillerin); plumbing fixtures (ex: sinks, faucets).

- see an Opera (fantastique)

- wander and just get lost (6th, 3rd and 4th are my favorite places to get lost)

- attend a mass at Notre Dame (even if you're not religious, its very spiritual; and often have choir/organ music)

- visit the Pantheon

I love Paris!

Photobear

marking for later...thanks everyone.

abbebrel1

> but get a great haircut while in Paris.

Ce n'est pas trop difficile d'explicque - mais c'est diffile de faire en anglais. You see, difficult as it is to believe, not everybody speaks Anglais in Paris. My first haircut was difficult because I didn't speak french very well, and the person who cut my hair didn't evidently speak Anglais comfortablé. The second and third time (la deuxieme et la troixeme fois) que j'ai mes cheveux coupe par les artistes francais it was much more comfortable as then I could parlé a bit better in french and then finally J'ai peut parle avec mme. au suject des sa fille et sa vie une peu, et croyais mois c'est plus joyante quand on puis parle avec les citoyens et les citoyennes de la ile de la cite en la langue native naturelement.

But please don't let the this low language hurdle slow you down. Just please respect the French Language. It is a beautiful thing and I find it a wondeful thing to listen to French music and poetry in French - try Cabrel, Jacques Brel, Brassens, Isabel Boulet, Parapluies de Cherbourg, Notre Dame de Paris (by Cocciante and Plamondon and ah bien dur Hugo),etc. Ah comme ca c'est suffit.

peppermintpatti

HAHAHA! I have let my Gourmet subscription run out, and almost went to the store to buy the March issue! Oh well, 5 years too late. Here's my additions!
--Let one of the people at Sacre Couer that everyone else is shooing away, actually do your sketch. My family and I posed for one, and it is our favorite souveneir(sp?)
--Try driving in Paris, get lost, and ask for directions, then blow a kiss to the person who helped you!--Then you have a nice story to tell everyone back home about how nice and helpful the French were.
--Say a little thank you prayer that you didn't get hit while doing the above in the crazy traffic in Paris
--Take the bus a few times instead of the Metro so you can see some of the city as you drive by.
--Go to the Eiffel Tower on a drizzling day, but approach it from Trocadero Square. The Tower is reflected in the wet pavement and makes for some interesting pics.
Enjoy Paris for whoever is going now!

tod

Posted a 'a great thing' I did in 2004, now have another!
Walk the "La Promenade Plantee" with entrance in Avenue Daumesnil (The beginning) Open 9-6 in Summer.
This green strip runs 4.5km (3 miles) on an old railway viaduct. It's elevated position makes it easy to gaze down at the street below. Planted with roses, lavender and other shrubs some of which are climbing over archways and trellises.
The walk ends just beyond Jardin de Reuilly which in itself is beautiful.
Going down steps onto the street once more one can walk up rue Daumesnil to
the metro at Place Felix Eboue. Sit and relax over a beer, glass of wine or a coffee before heading back.
One of the nicest great things I've done in Paris!