Only hear praise about the "City of Light." Is there anyone who dislikes Paris for any reason?

beautiful cage with ugly birds

I may be one of the few who is not totally in love with Paris. After 4 visits, I can list both good and bad features. I think my major dislike is the Metro and the suburban train system, on which I am semi dependent for transportation.

I am not sure why you are asking, therefore I am hesitant to play out the whole spiel. Let me say that a series of upsetting icidents continue to bother me. The chief one was the night at Gare de Lyon when I got pinned completely in the door of a car on the Meteor route. Were it not for the quick action of my wife and two young Brits to wrestle the door open and stop the train from moving, I would not be writing this. I would either be dead or have no arms. It was a very frightening and sobering experience.

Hey dixon,

I can understand why your memories of Paris are not rose colored.

I think I could do without the dog poop.

Amen to that. Doggie doo all over the sidewalks! Watch your step!

I also have had many bizare and often frightening accidents in Paris.

Perhaps the worse one was when I was at the top of that big metal structure, the name escapes me now.

Anyway, it all started when I lost my grip on a large virgin bag of hot American Fries.

My stylish fanny pack got caught on an exposed rivet and despite my cat-like reflexes, I lost my balance when some dazed Japanese tourists stepped on my ankle.

A few tasty fries tumbled towards the floor and I dove quickly to catch them, only to miss and go sliding through a defective railing.

I held on with my strong hands and powerful arms. And despite a gale force wind blowing in my brave, but concerned face, screamed vile curses that could be heard as far away as Nice.

After what seemed an eternity, a few arrogant waiters from the restaurant below casually strolled over and said they would like to help, but french labor laws forbid them exerting themselves at work.

It was only after my "little wife" offered them 5Es that they took action. Some allies! It took six of those weak weasels to pull a mere 300 pounds less than seven feet over the railing.

My lawsuit is working its way through the French legal system now.

You know, I can honestly, truly say that I did not see even ONE pile of doggie do on the streets in Paris. And we were there for 5 days and walked all over the place. I was really looking, too. Our travel group even had a discussion about it on night two (everyone else had heard the same thing) and we started a kind of gross little game called "Did you see any dookie today?"

I'm not sure what the big deal is about the dog poop, but I am now convinced it's just "one of those things" people say about Paris (kind of like "people are rude&quot.

My least favorite thing about Paris is CDG airport. That place (at least Terminal 1) should be condemmed. I can't believe a world-class city like Paris has such a gross airport. My first reaction upon getting off the plane in Paris was, "Mon Dieu! How ghastly!"

Jennie

Once again, Degas, you have my total admiration and esteem for adding the right tone to a [fill in the blank] thread!

Jennie, believe it or not (and believe it I do, after three years living there), 16 tons of dog poo are deposited daily on Paris's streets by the city's canine inhabitants. And that's just the conservative estimate. (if you don't believe me, Google it!!)
It has to be the thing I hate most about the city. You have to keep your head down and surveying the pavement with every step. Perhaps they keep the streets cleaner in the touristy areas, but the streets of residential Paris are literally strewn with dog mess.
It's such a big problem that the city council has teams of cleaners that zoom round on motorbikes with special devices that freeze the muck and then vacuum it up. But it's never long before another little old lady toddles out onto the pavement with her faithful terrier and lets it crap everywhere. It used to drive me mad!!

hanl:

16 TONS?! Jeez . . .

Well, I will take your word for it and accept your explanation about the more heavily trafficked tourist areas being kept cleaner (although we did go to a couple of places that were "off the beaten track&quot than the purely residential areas.

I was just surprised at how little (and by little I mean zero) poo I saw.

Jennie

The worst thing about Paris is the tourists looking for something wrong to complain about.

Degas, loved your post, btw.

Degas, I can't stop laughing!!!!! What a mental image

I love Paris, but have the worse luck in that great city. It has made me a big believer in travel insurance.

Mr Degas
This is to inform you that I was the unlucky girl to be standing beneath that Tower when those greasy but tasty little fries fell to earth. Or more specifically, fell on my head and shoulders! Imagine my dismay to see my lovely new French scarf, stained forever with little greasy French Fry patterns !! And not to mention the shock and fright it gave me! Mon Deiu!! I thought some airsick tourist might have decided to lean over the side to be sick!
For all the pain and suffering I suffered, I would like to be compensated for the room at the GeorgeV that we had to move to because I was so in need of cossetting at that level. And for the meals at Tour D'Argent, Le Grand Vefour,, Guy Savoy and Taillevant, who all assured me that no french fry would ruin my dining experience.
I also need reimbursing for the Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Hermes bills that I acquired while trying to find something that would make me feel less sad about the loss of my dear scarf, the one with the little Eiffel Towers on it, that is now greasy and I cannot look at those towers!
Thank you for your quick reply and I will be watching for that check in the mail.
Sincerely,
Scarlett

scarlett, is the Yankee forcing you to talk of money? No matter, a Southern Gentleman always takes care of his debts. You are at the top of the list after the courts award me my just due.

But please think of all the priceless items that tumbled out of my fanny pack. They are gone forever. Those wild french crowds below must have thought the heavens had rained down ancient treasure upon them!

LOL Degas. You may have a tough time in those French courts.

"Monsieur Degas, do you recall what the name of the tower was, on which you slipped?"

"I fell"

"Ah, so you WERE warned..."

Clifton, I'd just as soon you not tell anybody about me being warned of danger - it might impact my chances for a large eight figure settlement.

Two words. "Hush money"

Viva la capitalism!

Like Jennie, I also just returned from 5 days in Paris and I did not see ANY dog poo either. The closest I came to dog poo was the vile posters they had spread around the city showing a pile of dog poo and how much the owner of the offending dog would be fined if their dog sh*t on the sidewalk.
To be honost I was prepared for the worst and somewhat expected not to like Paris, but I came away with a totally new view of Paris. We did not experience one rude person, see any dog poo or feel unsafe in any way. We rode the subway EVERYWHERE and ate out quite often with our 9 & 6 year old children. The day we left Paris my wife and I each mentioned that looking back all the stereotypes we had expected had not occured.
In some ways Paris is so touristy that unless you really get off the beaten path I can't imagine a waiter or merchant being rude. It would almost be like a worker at Disneyland being rude to someone that didn't speak English. Much of Paris is a hive for tourists and most of the merchants understand that and deal with it.

We were there for 6 days and the only bad thing I can say is that we didn't have nearly enough time to see all that we wanted to. People were friendly and helpful, the city is beautiful, the metro is extremely easy and convenient to use, and we were even able to drive around pretty easily! We saw some dog poop but for me the benefits of being in Paris far outweighed watching my step now and then. We took the metro at all hours of the day and night and walked all over and never had any problems with pickpocketing or pushing or feeling unsafe. I love Paris and now my husband does too!