Results tagged “Paris” from Intelligent Travel Blog

Today is an exciting day for Francophiles around the world: Bastille Day. Having just spent time in France, I wanted to learn more about this holiday and the history behind it.

Bastille Day became an official French holiday in 1880, but the reason for the holiday happened several years prior. On the morning of July 14, 1789, citizens of the country stormed the Bastille prison in Paris, overturning the absolute--and arbitary--power of King Louis XVI. This event marked the start of the French Revolution, forever changing the way France was governed. As the French Embassy notes on its website, by storming the Bastille, the citizens of France were stating that "the king's power was no longer absolute: power should be based on the Nation and be limited by a separation of powers."

Traveler photographer Bob Krist recently paid a visit to Paris... Paris, Texas that is. Here, he shares some of the charms of the city on the far, far, left bank of the Seine.

NG News Editor Christine Dell'Amore is recently back from a trip to Paris, where she had the chance to use everyone's favorite bike-sharing program, Vélib. After a bit of a delay, D.C. became the first city in the U.S. to launch its own bike-sharing program, so Christine decided to check in and see how they're faring.

What's all the rage in Europe usually trickles its way across the Atlantic in due time, and such is the case for bike sharing, which made its high-tech North American debut in Washington, D.C., in August 2008.

SmartBike DC launched with 120 bikes in 10 greater downtown neighborhoods with the aim of cutting down on traffic congestion and reducing air pollution.

D.C.'s program rides on a wave of bike share initiatives sweeping Europe, from Barcelona to Copenhagen, but it's Paris that's arguably the most besotted with bicycling.

Since its program, Vélib, began in July 2007, more bikes have been added for a total of 20,600.

I decided to see the City of Light via Vélib in December and found it remarkably user-friendly (even for a foreigner). A one-day pass costs just one euro - less than a Metro ticket - and in case a particularly enticing pastry in a shop window steers you off course, there is almost guaranteed to be a bike rack nearby. Surprisingly, weaving through the city's lawless roundabouts isn't too harrowing, as long as you don't mind squeezing between cars. (Though note that helmets are not required nor provided!)

If there's anything I particularly love about Washington, D.C., it's that most of our museums charge no admission. The City of Light seems to be following our lead and, beginning this April, 18 of Paris's national museums will be free to those under 25. The list of national museums includes favorites like Le Louvre (above) and Musee d'Orsay.

Of course, those over 25 must still pay full admission, but it beats paying admission for younger kids who might not fully appreciate the experience. For more free things to do in the city, check out Traveler's Free Cities guide to Paris.

Photo: Jennifer Kijek via the Intelligent Travel Flickr pool

NG News Editor Christine Dell'Amore is just back from a holiday in Paris, and she got to see the city with the help of one helpful local...

Anyone who's visited France has heard about the country's legendary rudeness - even the Mona Lisa only cracks a half-smile. That's why Paris Greeters, a volunteer group of enthusiastic locals-turned-tour-guides, has made its raison d'etre to shatter the snotty stereotype once and for all.

These multilingual welcomers lead free, private tours of the city to make you feel like "a Parisian for a day." The tours, as I learned in December, show you behind-the-scenes neighborhood gems that you probably wouldn't find on your own.

We've already looked to Paris for our World of Christmas series, but were smitten with their many Christmas markets. Luckily, friend of IT Julie Falconer has the scoop on where you can pick up Parisian holiday treats.

Skip Strasbourg. Forgo Germany. If you want traditional European Christmas markets, head to Paris. The City of Light is getting ever more famous for its holiday markets, and this year the number of wooden market stalls scattered throughout the city seems to be at an all-time high.

One of the largest and most well known of the Parisian Christmas markets is at La Défense. If you only have time to visit one market, this should be it.  Away from the city center, the traditional wooden chalets provide a stark contrast to the steel and glass of the city's newest office buildings. The juxtaposition makes the market seem even more surreal than the five-foot-wide saucepans full of bratwurst.  

The market at La Défense is home to dozens of stalls offering everything from winter scarves to Belgian waffles, mulled wine to beaded bracelets. There are plenty of chalets with seating areas where you can rest your legs while enjoying a cup of mulled wine and listening to live music.

Another of the biggest (and newest) Parisian Christmas markets is on the Champs-Elysées. The market lines both sides of the street from Place de la Concorde to the roundabout at Avenue Montaigne.  It features traditional food vendors, huge outdoor sculptures, and a small children's carnival. Its wooden chalets fly flags from all over the world, while inside the merchants sell a plethora of holiday crafts like handmade silver jewelry and wooden toys.

Today we're kicking off our month-long effort to showcase the best of the holiday season in cities around the world. We've asked local experts for the essential ways to celebrate the holidays in their cities: the places they'd take their friends and family, the best ways to make merry, and events no one should miss. From the lighting of New York City's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree to a midnight service at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, visitors and locals alike come together to celebrate the holidays and the New Year, and we encourage you to share your own favorite traditions with us as well.

Adrian Moore, Concierge
Four Seasons Hotel George V

• The restaurant Pharamond serves the seasonal dish Bouchée a la Reine--a sort of vol au vent puff pastry filled with mushrooms, sweetbreads, and a delicious earthy sauce, served only in wintertime at this gorgeous 18th-century traditional French bistro. Also, fresh oysters are a very holiday type dish, and there is an excellent, fresh selection at the nearby Brasserie Stella or served with a glass of Champagne at outdoor markets. 
  

• The iconoclastic chocolate-maker Patrick Roger always has a spectacular window display.

• The holiday window display by Karl Lagerfeld at Le Printemps department store (with Chanel dolls).

• The Marché de Noël (Christmas Market) at the bottom end of the avenue des Champs-Elysées.
  

• The open-air ice-skating rink in front of the Hôtel de Ville (Paris town hall).

• The food stores Fauchon and Hediard, located around the Place de la Madeleine, both have beautiful window displays (cakes, fruits, foie gras, holiday dishes).

• La Grande Roue, a gigantic ferris wheel that is at the Place de la Concorde for the holiday season, with excellent views of the rooftops of Paris and the Eiffel Tower.

While trying to track down the name and address of an illustrious Parisian umbrella maker in the 14th arrondissement who may or may not have a remarkable moustache (this is what we fact-checkers do), I happened upon a concierge company called At Your Service, founded eight years ago by transplanted Boston native Christine Leonard.

Her company caters to private clients as well as corporations with newly relocated employees who need help getting settled, running errands, and generally finding their way around Paris. They can help you locate an apartment, a chef, a personal trainer, pediatrician, plumber or pet-sitter; they can create a customized itinerary, reserve a restaurant table, arrange an out-of-town weekend, provide a chauffeur or plan a shopping trip. 

Pricing (it's not cheap) is based on monthly or yearly membership plans, but they also offer on-call services with hourly rates for non-members.  Christine knew the answer I needed and responded instantly, saving me much time and bother.

The name of that famous umbrella maker, if you haven't already guessed:  Alexandra Sojfer, (above) at 218 boulevard Saint-Germain, which has been making umbrellas by hand since 1834.  Now I know.  Thanks, Christine!


Photo courtesy of Alexandra Sojfer, Paris

Friend of IT Alyssa Abkowitz is just back from a jaunt to Paris, where she uncovered a bar perfect for those who want a little bit of creepy with their jazz.

On a recent rainy Tuesday evening after a bike ride around the city, my Parisian friend Anne-Sophie took me to a pub tucked away on a narrow street in Paris' Latin Quarter. Called La Guillotine, the bar looks like a typical hangout for Parisian "bobos" (someone who is a mix of bohemian and bourgeoisie), ex-pats and Sorbonne students. Below the dimly lit bar lies a marvelous little room called Le Caveau des Oubliettes. Steep stone stairs lead into the cave filled with small wooden tables. Here on most nights, beginning around 10 p.m., an unannounced mix of jazz and blues groups seduce an eclectic crowd in a room that once housed the forgotten.

In medieval times, Le Caveau des Oubliettes, which translates to "the cave of the forgotten," held prisoners awaiting the guillotine. The tight door and thick stone walls masked the prisoners' wails and howls. Iron handcuffs on the walls, chains along the staircase, and a barred window remind listeners of the room's past and give the intimate club an uniquely eerie feel.