Everyone Who Knows Paris Knows

Later this week, there will be a filming of another episode of House Hunters International, following a couple from the beginning of the house hunting process to completion when they move in. In this case, it’s not a ‘house’ but a ‘pied-à-terre’ in Paris (of course) that will be for their personal use as well as vacation rental.

(If you haven’t seen the first episode titled “Settling Down in Paris,” you have an opportunity this coming July 16th at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT or July 17th at 2:30 a.m. ET/PT)

The producers, who are based in Los Angeles, are busy organizing for the shoot. They sent a questionnaire to answer that elicited a real chuckle.

QUESTIONS: Tell us about Paris — what is unique about it? Why do Americans move to Paris? Where is it on the map (Northern France?)? How is their life going to improve by finding a vacation home and vacationing in Paris, France?

“How much time have we got? These are big topics!,” and I wondered, do we take Paris so for granted that we think EVERYONE knows what makes Paris unique? Surely EVERYONE knows where Paris is located, no? Or that EVERYONE’S dream is to live in Paris? (They say it’s the Number One American dream.) And that yes, doesn’t EVERYONE know that life will d

efinitely improve by spending time here?

Of course, Paris is the Number One tourist destination in the world. (In a recent report on 2007, 10% of tourists were Americans, followed by 9% from the U.K. with a total of 15,400,000 visitors.) We all know that Paris is the most beautiful city in the world (The City of Light, ‘n’est-ce pas?’) and the most romantic (doesn’t EVERYONE fall in love with Paris, if not with SOMEONE while in Paris?).

And wow! There is nothing quite like owning a pied-à-terre in Paris and spending more time here to improve one’s quality of life. The response: “Seeing life from the other side of the ocean will change anyone’s perspective, broadening their viewpoints, not to mention open up all of Europe and further destinations by being so centrally located service by such a fabulous transportation system! They will learn some French, they will discover another culture, they will become enriched in every way and life will never be the same again…for the better, of course!”

Then I thought about just the last few days of life in Paris and how enriching every moment was — like a lifetime of experiences in just a few days. Without going into too much detail, here are just a few highlights…

Wednesday night American musician in Paris Paul Tannish introduced his newest compositions and wowed a mu lit-national crowd at The Beaver on the Ile Saint-Louis — NO ONE wanted him to stop playing!

Thursday night the “Superdome” exhibit opened at the Palais de Tokyo (13, avenue du Président Wilson, 16th), composed of five solo exhibitions “balancing between entertainment and desolation, decibels and prayers, high-tech and chaos” named after the stadium in New Orleans EVERYONE now knows (since Hurricane Katrina), which hosted numerous Super Bowls, a Rolling Stones concert, Pope John Paul II, the Republican Convention and of course, refugees of Hurricane Katrina.

You can get lost here among the “Last Manoeuvers in the Dark,” an army of 300 Darth Vaders or feel dwarfed by “Würsa,” a life-size elephant sculpture balanced on the tip of his trunk by Daniel Firman. Its on until August 24th, so don’t miss it, if you can help it.

In the courtyard between the Palais de Tokyo and the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, The Gypsy Sound System held a Superdome after-party with ‘DJ Olga’ and ‘Dr. Schnaps’ until midnight. Olga and Schnaps couldn’t stop dancing themselves while jockeying gypsy music — addictive to EVERYONE in the near vicinity. “We could have danced all night!”

Saturday afternoon, an intimate group celebrated the 23rd birthday of young author of “The Bright Side,” a book for kids about ‘surviving’ your parents’ divorce, Max Sindell at “La Closerie des Lilas,” a vine-covered historical restaurant made famous by the literary and artistic giants who frequented it, such as Hemingway, Apollinaire, Miller, Picasso, Gauguin, Cézanne and others. The host ordered a platter of mixed French oysters to start…”Bélons,” “Claires” and others. One of them was so enormous, like none other ever seen — so large that it had to be cut into pieces to be eaten.

And on Sunday afternoon, a Dixieland jazz band entertained the tourists on the corner at Saint-Germain-des-Prés backdropped by a BIG little girl. While having coffee at the Café de Flore, I bumped into the gentleman next to whom I dined last week at Au Pied de Fouet — “par hazard.”

So, let me ask again? What is unique about Paris? Why do Americans move here? How is their life going to improve by finding a vacation home and vacationing in Paris, France?

You know the answers, right?

A la prochaine…

Adrian Leeds
(with the largest oyster she’s every seen!)
Editor, Parler Paris

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