ceila Lynn

Got my ticket, my hotel reservation (a view of Paris for two weeks!) and some great books to read on the plane.Please keep the great tips and experiences coming. Know where to buy soaps/ bath stuff, needlepoint, and neat places to sit and watch. What on earth more could there be? Talk to me!

Meg

Lucky you! L'Occitane shopw which are scattered around Paris have soaps for 1/2 the price I pay here for them. I love the cinnamon-organge flavor. Anywhere you sit and watch in Paris is great! I like gallery browsing around the Place des Vosges. There was a recent thread about needlepoint - yarns, threads, etc. recently. Run a search to see if you can find it. I think Elaine and/or Elvira posted to it - and they're always on the mark about Paris. Eat a crepe for me. Bon Voyage!

elvira

Don't miss Notre Dame at sunrise, or the Eiffel Tower at sunset; visit the Deportation Memorial, and realize what they were facing, and what they were leaving; go to MickeyD's once so you can order a BigMac and a beer; be sure to visit more than the Mona Lisa, Nike and Venus de Milo at the Louvre; buy a painting from a street artist; walk through parks whenever you can - it restoreth the soul; eat someplace without an English menu; if you pass an open door, peek inside; buy a French decorating magazine; wander inside a church that's not in a guidebook; go to a street market and buy something, even if it's just a handful of grapes; learn a new French word every day; do not kill mimes.

janice

jealous hatred courses through every vein (just kidding)
If you get a beautiful sunny day, try to go to St. Chappelle - the stained glass windows are breathtaking, and a brilliant day will make them unforgettable.
eat many pastries
watch out for dog ****
admire the beautiful in the everyday: wonderfully designed gratings around the trunks of trees, lovely trash cans, street lights you would take home with you.
know that with every breath you draw in Paris, some of us are filled with envy, and abundant best wishes.

s.fowler

You guys sure know how to make a wait seem *longer* -- we leave mid-March for a week in Paris and Amsterdam. Keep those cards and letters coming

Al Godon

Sounds like the need for a hard game of basketball or volleyball followed by a cold shower.

Richard

If you can find it buy Cadogans City Guide to Paris, some great walks. Visit the Pere-Lachaise Cemetery, the Catacombs. The flower market, on Sundays I think, is lovely. I respect Elvira's advice, but coward that I am would avoid a BigMac, try a McDo (Mickey D's version of a croque monsieur (sp))and a beer. If you get a clear day, climb the steps to the Notre Dame tower, spectacular views. Have a crepe at one of the vendors on the side street off of Sacre Couer. So much to see, but I think Cadogan's is the best guide for Paris walks.

celialynn

Thanks, everybody! Guess when I'm not on this site, I'll practice my french and listen to the tapes... And Edith Piaf sing!

arjay

Talk BACK to us! Weon't leave til 3/1 -- 2/28,if the weather is bad -- to make a 5-hour drill to the MN airport --

Will be watching for an up-to-date ledger of what/where-to-see once we make it over-there..

celia lynn

You're leaving in March? I'm not leaving till April! Am I anxious, or what? My stuff really is packed and the cat is sitting on top of it all! And....this isn't even my first trip to Paris! What is the travel obsession we all seem to have...my Dad had wanderlust, as he called it. Guess I've got it, too. So do all you Fodorites!

Judy

Celia Lynn, Me too! But I am leaving for London in 11 days, 6 hours 20 min......, NOT that I am counting or anything! ;-) Judy

Gigi

We are leaving in 32 days for a couple of weeks in Austria and the Czech Republic. If my husband said we are leaving in ten minutes, I would be ready!
This pretrip planning... days of discovery... the excitement that is building...

To make good use of this time and allow myself more time on my vacation, I am going through some of the various online photo sites and gathering pics of the places we will be visiting.
(I have shared this idea before, and it was called "wonderfully devious") I will use these photos in my online postcards that one may arrange to have sent while one in on vacation!
I will have these cards organized so everyday my children and friends will receive a card with a picture of what we may be seeing. Since I can specify now that I want the cards to be sent at that time, I will be free of this "postcard burden"!
Have a wonderful trip! Say 'hello' to Paris from Gigi, please!
Au Revoir,
Gigi

mikey

Count us in, 12 days in Rome just to relax and eat. Going with a couple who said two years ago that they can't understand what's so great about Europe. This is the third trip over with them. They can't get enough now.