I realize I am restricting myself in the questions I am about to ask, but..HEY...I'm old and have earned the right to be illogical.

I want to walk inside Notre Dame. I want to see the Eiffel Tower. But since I do not speak French ...and am at an age where I'm have difficulty learning a new language..I am a little anxious about being there for several days AND I don't want to travel with a group that's on a schedule all the time.

Any suggestions for a base city (where English is spoken) from which I can arrange a day trip to hook up with a guided walk to cover the few places I long to see?

BTW, I've been to Amsterdam and Brussels..so any suggestions besides these?

If you survived Brussels, why are you scared of Paris?
Loads of Parisians speak English. Not only that, but you can walk into Notre Dame and visit the Eiffel Tower on your own without a guide (a good guidebook can give you loads of information to absorb ahead of time and on the spot).
Don't understand how Paris could possibly be so frightening that you would actually want to commute there from some English-speaking city (which Brussels and Amsterdam aren't anyway).

How about Luxembourg? Not that much of a problem with the language . . . pretty city . . .

Don't worry about the language. You don't have to learn French. Carry a phrase book so you can point to sentences or words if you have to, and <u>always</u> greet the person you are about to speak to with

Bonjour (or bonsoir), monsieur (or madame).

Get an all-in-one guide like Fodor's Paris or AAA Spiral.

We took our daughter to Paris for 3 weeks his summer with one of our goals being to have her speak more French. The moment someone realized she spoke English, that is what they used with her and we had to encourage everyone to help her practice her French...

..agree with the posters but if you truly wish to stay elsewhee, try London. There are excellent connections via Eurostar.

I think you would be paying an awful premium in time and money to deal with a phobia. If you want to go to Paris, then that is where you should go. It's worth far more than a day trip.

Bon voyage!

Stay in Paris - you won't have any problems at all.

Is it the anonymity of a post board that brings out the harshness of some folks...or you just naturally rude? It would behoove you to actually read the posts; I said nothing about being frightened or having a phobia. I do, however, have some medical problems that could potentially create a problem if I cannot communicate well with people around me.

Thanks to the rest of you for being helpful without being judgemental. I appreciate you.

Take care,
sal

You could consider booking Michael Osman (or his friend Scott whom I have not met) to take you on a tailored tour of Paris. He is often recommended on this Board and I found him a helpful and informative guide and pleasant company. His personal tours cost around 75 Euros and I paid for his lunch and coffee etc. It was well worth it. This site has his email address http://www.geocities.com/parisfinder/ Be warned that you might have to chase him a few times as he gets busy and forgets to check or forgets to reply or whatever.

Michael usually collects you at your hotel at about 10 am and takes you back there at about 5 or 6pm, depending on your program, or of course he could meet you from the TGV etc at Gare du Nord or other station and take you back there. Obviously it would be ideal if you could stay overnight for one night before or after the tour, as you would get more sightseeing in if you are not having to travel 2 or more hours to and from your base either side of the tour. One possibility would be to stay for that one night in one of the large US chains like the Hilton. English would definitely be spoken fluently by all relevant staff. You should check but I believe they can always arrange for you to see an English speaking doctor, at the hotel or otherwise, if that was required.

sallyjane3 you need to calm down and listen to what some very smart people are trying to tell you. If you know it all, then don't come to a public forum and ask for advice.

sallyjane3: My goodness, such an over reaction. Not one person above was rude to you -- not one.

In fact the ONLY even close to rude response was yours.

You said &quot;<i>I am a little anxious</i>&quot; and StCirq responded w/ &quot;If you survived Brussels, why are you scared of Paris?&quot;

That isn't rude - just a reasonable question.

I agree that everyone I met in Amsterdam was very fluent in English, but Brussels is a French-speaking city, so it shouldn't be too different from that.

I can understand your concern about medical problems, but I think you can handle it the same way you did in Brussels, as there should be enough English speaking people around those central sites if you have problems. You might also try to get something written in French by someone who knows the language well to explain your problem, if that is possible. The guide idea is a good one, also.

Other than that, I don't think there is a real good city for a day trip to Paris. Brussels is the closest big foreign city I can think of that makes a day trip do-able. YOu can do it from London, of course, as others said, but it's a more expensive and longer trip. But you can do those major sites on a day trip from London.