Kay

I have been to Paris 2X and being an art lover, concentrated on museums. This time I am going for 8 days and hope to see some of the city. I am not crazy about going to the usual tourist locales, but would like to see quieter areas with interesting shops where one could get a real "sense of place." I am staying in the 7th and will be in Paris the last week and May and first week in June.<BR><BR>Kay

Ursula

Kay, hello. First buy a real good travel book not only with the "normal" touristic information. If you want to discover the "real" Paris (very good idea) then just stay away from the "big musts"! The 7th is a rather quiet area, but still worth to be discovered just by walking and discovering whatever. Choose smaller museums as well. There are tons of them, like the Musée Bourdelle, Zadkine, du Vin, etc. Also go to the Institut du Monde Arabe (5th). It's a "must" for me, but not for everybody. Usually, it is not that crowded and you get a superbe view. Discover La Défense and go up the Grande Arche. Less people than Eiffel Tower, Samaritaine, Sacré-Coeur. <BR>Do a lot of walking. Why not the Père-Lachaise cementary or the one in Montparnasse. Discover Place du Marché-Sainte-Catherine, Place des Victoires. Have a look at the very nice old covered galleries (Choiseul, Vivienne, etc.). Discover some parts of the Marais, Montmartre, but stay away from Place du Tertres. Walk along the Quai St.-Martin. Discover Chinatown (13th), Montparnasse or Rue de Passy (16th, VERY parisian and très chic!)Walk in the Monsouris Parc or the Monceau Parc. Less crowded than Luxembourg Gardens).<BR>Go to small bars and restaurants where no (or almost no tourists seem to be).<BR>Sit down in a terrace of a café and just watch the people and have a glass of wine or Pastis. Discover the Bastille area which has become an in-place because of the new Opéra, but still worth to be discovered.<BR>Some more?.. Well, let's "hear" the others.

wes fowler

Kay,<BR>I once had the luxury of three full weeks in Paris and, like you, wanted to find the "real" Paris rather than concentrate on the major tourist attractions and museums. Discovered some fascinating neighborhoods of Paris simply by boarding the Metro to its last stop on various lines and strolling back towards the center of the city. Unorthodox and eccentric, I suppose, but I did encounter a Paris few tourists know.

Peg

Two areas that I enjoyed on my last trip to Paris were Butte aux Cailles in the 13th and the market streets in the 17th on Poncelet and also rue de Levis. I noticed that Gourmet had a feature in their Paris issue(March) about both these arrondisments. I missed Les Batignolles in the 17th but will check it out in the future.

amrita

Hello Kay,<BR>Well, if you go to the Grand arch in la défence go and visit the gallery at the top.I am having an exhibition there from the 7th April to 8th May.I am a ceramic designer and I'll be with another 3 artists from Holland.We will be visiting Paris from the 29th April -1st May.<BR>Let me know if you have been the exhibition .Send me an e-mail.<BR>Amrita. <BR>

Rex

There are so many philosophical tangents a question about the "real" xxxx of any city might inspire.<BR><BR>Here in my own hometown (metropolitan area), I'm not sure where is the "real" Columbus, nor Westerville. I think it is in some of these places:<BR><BR>the mall<BR>the grocery store<BR>the movies<BR>the high school gym on a basketball game Friday night<BR>the emergency room<BR>McDonalds and Bob Evans<BR>the homeless shelter<BR>the bowling alley<BR>and maybe, more than any place else, in homes<BR><BR>I have been in a lot of these same places in France; so I'll give you my two cents worth on finding them for yourself.<BR><BR>First, plan on having the ability to travel by car, and then on foot, as well. You can get to the mall and the movies by public transportation, but a car will add flexibility and (sometimes) convenience that you might not get in any other way.<BR><BR>Second, consider strongly finding a program that involves an exchange opportunity for students (or more rarely, adults). The Association of French-American Classes - - http://www.afac.org is one such organization, and if there is nothing like that in your community, ask around, there might be more interest in bringing it there than you imagine.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

Ursula

Kay: Boarding the métro and go to the terminal is fine and a good idea, as Wes suggests, but doing this with a public bus is even more fun because you see a lot more... ;-)<BR>Nr. 63 takes you from the Insitut du Monde Arabe (I think it starts at Jardin des Plantes in the East though) to Trocadéro and ends somewhere in the 16th (in the West). It takes you through almost the whole Paris. There are some other interesting numbers. Just get a bus map at a métro stop.

elvira

I had the divine pleasure of spending 5 weeks in Paris; I rented an apartment in the 11eme, on a courtyard that was occupied by artists' studios and living quarters. I heard no English (other than my landlord's) in the 'hood; nary a tourist raised his head. I wanted to explore the neighborhoods of Paris, and found this terrific website (most of it is in French, but you can figure it out via the pictures and street names):<BR>http://www.parisbalades.com/<BR><BR>The street markets, like the Bastille or Aligre, are a real look at real food; the flea markets, like St Ouen, are a real draw for tourists, so find the 'brocantes' that spring up in unused stadia, churchyards and neighborhood streets; read the flyers posted on lampposts and in shop windows to find street fairs, artists' open houses, music competitions, etc.; rent a bicycle and join the Sunday velo extravaganza; visit ALL the cemeteries; get a list of ALL the museums in Paris, and go visit the "they have a museum for THAT?"; visit the parks, especially those in the less-touristy areas as Ursula mentioned, especially at lunchtime; buy French magazines, even if you can only look at the pictures; attend a religious service; buy a lottery ticket.

carol

www.paris-touristoffice.com has a schedule of neighborhood flea markets--by date and by neighborhood. Search for it under Events, then search under Second-Hand Markets. Spend some time wandering around the arcades of the Palais-Royal, and have a sandwich on a bench under the plane trees. If you can read French or know enough to dope it out, look for a little book called something like "Paris Vue du Bus". It describes tours you can do yourself by public bus, by bus line, and gives you a blow-by-blow of what you will see as you ride along, plus lots of historical and gossipy anecdotes.<BR>

wendy

Wander away everywhere (keeping good sense about you) and (no pun intended) get lost and see what happens..the real Paris will find you, envelope you, and never leave you.....

Nancy

Check out Bonjour Paris newsletter - http://www.bparis.com/ I have found a few interesting areas in Paris to visit not in the regular guidebooks.

btilke

I live in Brussels and do some work in Paris. We've rented apartments in the city before and my favorite neighborhood is the 16th, especially the Auteuil section. A wonderful food market Wednesday and Saturday mornings with no tourists, or very few anyway, unlike the Rue Cler. The Auteuil section of Paris is an upscale residential neighborhood, very close to the Bois de Boulogne. A wonderful walk starts at the bottom of the Avenue Mozart (metro: Michel-Ange Auteuil); walk up the Avenue until it ends around the Muette metro stop, cut over to the rue de la Pompe, walk up that, and then cut over to the Ave. Victor Hugo, and then walk that up to the Arc de Triomphe. Along the way, you will pass the homes, parks, cafes, shops and restaurants of the upper middle and upper class Parisians. The streets are broader and more tree-lined than in most other parts of Paris and the neighborhood has a lovely, peaceful feel.<BR>Btilke

Ursula

To the top for Kay<BR>

Pepe LePew

There is no "real" Paris. The place is just one big tourist trap for gullible Americans.

Ursula

Pepe! When reading YOUR post, I am glad NOT to be American!<BR>PS: BTW, I do know some VERY SMART Americans.