Back from Paris! My first time there, while DW lived there for a year while we were in college, and has maintained her fluency in French. Trip highlights (long boring post, feel free to skip):
Flights: I went full BTD and surprised DW with United Polaris service. She wondered why I told her (a) no need to bring a snack to the airport, (b) we will not be buying food at the airport, and (c) we should get there about 4 hours before flight departure. When I took her to the Polaris line to check in she exclaimed “don’t tell me we’re going first class??” The Polaris lounge in the U.S. and Star Alliance lounge at CDG airport blew her away, and she felt incredibly spoiled by the experience.
We took taxis between the airport and our hotel. The train would have saved some money and put us not too far from the hotel, but DW did not want to deal with a checked bag through the steps of the metro and along the street, so happy wife, happy life
(we did see more than a few people walking around Paris like this).
Money: though I had Euros left from an Ireland trip a few weeks ago, and we withdrew more from an ATM after we arrived, we really did not need any cash. Every store/restaurant/street market accepted credit cards ( and no PIN was needed). We used Capital One cards and we received pretty much the market exchange rate with no foreign transaction fees.
Weather: We were very fortunate. No rain, and the sun was out on many days. Highs were around 70, lows at night in the mid to low 50s. For us that was perfect weather.
Lodging: We stayed in an apartment hotel in the 6th Arrondissement, along the Seine river. Our room had a small but useful kitchen area with fridge, stove, microwave, plates/glasses/utensils/pots, and dishwasher. That gave us flexible eating options. The location was excellent – reasonable walking distance to our main interests, and 5-10 minutes from several metro stations (including 2 major ones) that gave us direct access to almost all of the metro lines and several of the RER lines. We bought Navigo passes with 10 tickets each, and that is exactly what we used.
Despite being near the metro we preferred to walk around (and are blessed that at 65 we are still very mobile). We were comfortable walking 8-13 miles each day. Walking around Paris is like walking through a historical museum, it is interesting and it never felt tiring.
Local people: My perspective was that the locals may not be outgoing, but they were polite. Often when negotiating a crowded intersecting point they would gesture or kindly say “allez” or “s’il vous plait” and want us to proceed. The restaurants in Paris had English translation in the menus. DW said there was a lot more familiarity with English (and willingness for the locals to speak it) than she encountered when she was in school.
Major sightseeing: DW kindly gave me priority for deciding what to see. But she is the history/art person of the family, and has taught French history at the college level, so I listened wisely to her advice. Our stops included The Trocadero, Eiffel Tower, The Louvre (DW visited every month when she was in school and still has not seen close to all of it), Les Invalides, Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Elysees (had to stop in the McDonalds to verify "Pulp Fiction" was wrong
), Notre Dame (walking around outside of it), Saint-Chapelle, Pere Lachaise, Saint-Denis, The Pantheon, Le Petit Palais, and L’Opera . In addition to Notre Dame, several of these (and other) places are undergoing renovations, most likely in preparation for the Olympics next year. The tourist traffic was relatively light, from my view, compared to what I had heard about the crowds. The "worst" was the Louvre, but we went on a late Friday afternoon and it did not seem bad (we did have advanced entry tickets, and the line for the Mona Lisa was less than a 10 minute wait).
We walked along the banks of the Seine, through several neighborhoods (such as the Latin Quarter), as well as where DW lived and where she attended school. It was huge thrill for her to see the apartment building she lived in. It is now a nursing home, but they let us into the courtyard. We took the subway route she took to school, and visited the school itself (due to security we were not able to get onto the grounds, but she could still see and recognize some of the buildings).
We also took a day trip to Normandy, via the very comfortable train. We saw the Bayeux Tapestry (amazing to see the artistic detail telling the tale of the Norman Conquest, in an object now over a 1000 years old), and toured several major WWII related sites (Point du Hoc, Omaha Beach, American Cemetery). Being there brings a whole new meaning. We were in the cemetery when they lowered the flags and played taps. This visit reinforced our gratitude for the military sacrifice that took place there.
Food: Oh la la
. I liked dining and knowing that the menu price was the final price – no need to figure out what the tax might be, or a tip. The weather was nice enough so that all our restaurant meals were either outdoors or by a window, so we could people watch (that in itself is entertaining). Even with our eating, we both had lost about 5 pounds during our visit– all that walking must have burned it off
.
I did not find restaurant meals expensive, as we drank only water and did not get dessert (we saved that for the pastry and candy shops
). Meals were between 19-50 Euros. The only exception was the “fancy” (meaning we dressed up somewhat
) dinner river cruise we took, which included champagne and wine).
Safety: Despite what we read and watched about pickpockets and various scams, we were fine and never felt in or near trouble. Growing up in no-so-nice neighborhoods in large cities already tuned our "street smarts" antennae. There were a couple of times on the metro that we were in packed crowds. But we had neck wallets under our tops and drawstring backpacks so that was fine. I had my phone in my front pocket, but had it attached to a lanyard hooked to my belt loop, and that worked (the lanyard also kept the phone from hitting the ground a couple of times).
We were approached a few times for potential scam situations, but once DW replied in French they left us alone. I remembered enough French to reply “sorry, I do not speak English”
.
While there are protests and strikes, none occurred while we were there. I believe some are scheduled for June, so our timing was good in avoiding them.
No trip is perfect: I got food poisoning, but fortunately only for a day. I am sure it was either macarons or ice cream I purchased from a street market near our hotel. And, against her judgment and my recommendations, DW could not resist purchasing a handbag from one of the “vendors” outside of the Eiffel Tower. Within an hour it broke. Oh well, worse things could happen.
In sum, a “triumphant” early honeymoon celebration of our upcoming 40th wedding anniversary!
. But, by that time it was too late to get there before it closed. So D'Orsay is on her list if we ever go again 
