Checking out the B side in Paris


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Europe » France » Île-de-France » Paris
April 15th 2014
Published: April 15th 2014
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I suppose I’m somehow dating myself here, but I can’t help thinking back to the days when you would buy a 45 or an album because you liked a particular song you heard on the radio. Invariably you took it home and played it a million times. It was your favorite song and you felt as though you were the one who had discovered it.



Of course, as time went on, you noticed more and more people were also enjoying “your” song. It actually became popular and it seemed everywhere you went people were humming the song or talking about how great the band was. It was still the same song you discovered, but in some way it seemed different now that so many other people liked it. Other people were interpreting the meaning of the song and it didn’t seem as personal as it had.



Luckily enough there was a side B or other songs on the album. While everyone else was learning the song you originally liked, you found new subjects and meanings on side B. It was almost as if you had discovered your favorite band again.



Because we usually stay for at least a month in each place we visit, we have a similar thing happen when we travel. We arrive in our new city and madly run around visiting all the big name places. It’s exciting and it seems like we are the first people to ever visit. It doesn’t take long to see everything and then we usually slow down. As we pass back through the places we earlier saw, they seem to be filled with huge crowds of people who are now acting as excited we once were. They are making the same comments and jokes as we did and seem to be claiming the places for themselves. How dare they!



Luckily we have learned to turn the record over to side B.



Tired of endless lines to climb or visit Notre Dame? No problem. Head over to Saint Eustache near Les Halles. I thought it was just as impressive as Notre Dame. The arches tower amazingly high over beautiful stained glass windows. The church was having a pipe organ concert that night and we were able to hear the sound checks for the show during our visit. We have been in hundreds of churches over the last few years but have never experienced the full power of the pipe organ played by a master.



Perhaps you are dreading the massive crowds at Versailles (they are huge!!!). Just check out the equally impressive and much less visited Chateau Fontainebleau. We easily caught the train there a few days ago and absolutely enjoyed it. The architecture and gardens are just as amazing and we virtually had the entire place to ourselves. Standing alone for 15 minutes in the royal apartments where Henry IV, Louis XIV, Napoleon I and III and even Marie Antoinette had spent their time was amazing. It was so quiet we could almost hear their ghosts. You won’t get that at Versailles!



Enjoy following the trail of the famous artists that left their mark in beautiful Montmartre? Maybe there are a few too many others taking the same picture as you are? Just head out to the Belleville neighborhood. The starving artists of Montmartre moved out long ago and with the costs of rents I doubt they will be back any time soon. Belleville is a working class neighborhood filled with cheap restaurants, cafes and bars intermixed with loads of art galleries with real working artists. Many walls are covered with graffiti and it doesn’t take long to find a future Hemingway or Toulouse-Lautrec sitting at a corner table scribbling away in their journal. You can even have a conversation with them if you like. It’s half the price and twice the fun.



Paris has literally hundreds of art museums. One look at the 2 hour line at the Louvre or Musee d’Orsay may have you second guessing your idea of taking a selfie with the Mona Lisa. While not as famous, you can avoid the lines easily by spending an evening with art students pondering the photography exhibits at the Maison Europeenne de la Photographie , a photography museum displaying some thought provoking work by some of the great photographers working today. Or perhaps visit some of the less known museums like the Petit Palais across the river from Invalides. The permanent gallery is free and pretty stunning.



The famous cafes along Saint-Germain or Montparnasse boulevards are stunning and have a past clientele that probably couldn’t be matched by many other restaurants in
Champs Elysees SunsetChamps Elysees SunsetChamps Elysees Sunset

Arc de Triomphe
the world. I wouldn’t tell anyone not to go there because having a meal in the Paris springtime sunshine won’t be forgotten. However I heard a lot of languages other than French being spoken and sometimes it seems like perhaps there might have been a tourist bus parked somewhere nearby. You can enjoy an equally authentic meal on one of the market streets like Rue Mouffetard near the Latin Quarter or Rue Montorgueil in the Marais. When you order the café owners even run down the street to a vendor to get the freshest ingredients. Maybe even select your own picnic at the markets along the streets. Be assured that all those famous people probably shopped here along with going to the famous cafes on the Boulevards.



Maybe you are headed out to the Pere Lachaise cemetery to see Jim Morrison’s grave. It won’t be hard to find because there are plenty of people with flash cameras posing in front of it. Maybe pass on Jim and visit the French singer Edith Piaf’s grave on the other side of the cemetery. She has an interesting history also and you can visit her birthplace while you’re in Belleville.
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Paris City Hall
The place where she was supposedly born on the street is marked with a plaque. Perhaps you could visit Dalida’s grave in the Montmarte cemetery. While not famous in America, everyone in France knows this famous singer. Another interesting personal history and when you see all the people, young and old, posing in front of her mansion in Montmarte, you’ll know who she is. You might even pose for a picture yourself.



I am not in any way saying that you should not see some of the more famous places of Paris. We went to them all. Just be aware that others will be “discovering” them along with you. I know that not everyone has as much time to spend in one place as we do. Perhaps you have already been to Paris and think you have already seen “everything”. Be aware that there is always a B side to be checked out. You may even find that it is just as good, if not better, than the A side everyone else knows about.


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15th April 2014

Nice as always
As always, great photos. I totally agree with you on the B side of places; most of the time people (and I include myself here) don't have enough time t see the B side: we were in Paris for just 3 days so, unfortunately, we barely had time to see the "must see". Also, I'm old enough to remember listening to the radio in bed and jumping out when "my song" was being played in order to press the "record" button on my tape recorder... those were the days!
15th April 2014

The B side of Paris
it is wonderful that you stay in a city long enough to enjoy and embrace both sides. On our next trip to Paris we will check out your B side suggestions. Sounds like you continue to have a fantastic time. As always the photos are wonderful.
15th April 2014

Well written...
and the pictures are great! Oh the joy of spending time in one place.
15th April 2014

Thanks for reading
I remember the speed travelling days well. We visited the Great Wall of China, Potala Palace in Tibet, Mt. Everest, Khatmandu and saw the Taj Majal in just about a week of travel. Now it takes us 3 days just to figure out the Metro in a city. Both ways are fun. I still miss my 8-track tapes. Ha ha.
15th April 2014

Thanks!
Love the Dublin stories. Jealous that a pint costs so much in Paris. There are so many things to do here it is amazing and well worth multiple visits. Every time we go out we discover something new.
15th April 2014

Thanks as always!
This is a wonderful place. Even though we will have stayed a month, I think it could be more. I know why so many people love Paris now...
16th April 2014

What a treasure!
I really really love that feeling of finding the 'B' side... while reading the start of your blog I smiled to myself as I recalled a similar feeling about the Trevi Fountain in Rome...the first time we saw it we were awe struck by every aspect of it, and then after a few days we'd walk past it with barely a glace, as we pushed our way through to a favourite gelato shop near it :)
16th April 2014
Fountain at Versailles

stunning!
i love this photo! thanks for introducing the b side of paris. this will be helpful for me
16th April 2014
Fountain at Versailles

Thank you!
Thanks for the nice compliment and thanks for reading.
17th April 2014

VEry Good
An amazingly written blog. You should be a writer for one of these travel catalogues...really well done!
7th May 2014

Thank you, that is very nice!

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