Je t'aime, Paris!
Reflecting on living in Paris for over a year
It’s been over one year since I’ve lived in Paris (and in France in general). If there’s anything I’ve learned, the City of Lights is nothing like Emily in Paris (which I must admit I love to watch-hate). It’s not as clean, not as nice, and certainly not as easy to live in.
But despite not living in a fantasy world and not wearing Chanel and Louis Vuitton everyday or at all, I still love Paris.
And since it’s the season when everyone reflects on what they’ve accomplished in the past year, I thought I would think about what I’ve learned from living in Paris, and share my favorite illustrations. Here are seven things I’ve discovered about Paris and French culture:
1. Apéro time is sacred
The French love their apéros. It’s short for apéritif and is an hour or so before dinner is served. It generally consists of a few nibbles, like olives, crackers, or crisps, but never cheese. And it’s always accompanied by drinks, such as a kir royal, lillet, vin blanc, or beer.
But it’s not about getting drunk. Instead, it’s a social time, when you get together with friends and family and discuss the day, complain about the metro strikes, or get together to play tarot (one of my favorite French card games).
For some, the apéro turns into a dinner-like occasion. There have been numerous times when I’ve been invited to a French friend’s house for an apéro, only to find myself drinking lots of wine and very little food and coming home at 2 am.
The apéro hour of 5 pm to 8 pm is also the best time to grab a drink on a terrace in Paris if you can find a spot. This is when you can get happy hour prices on drinks, making going out for drinks a tad more reasonably priced.
2. The French love their paperwork
There are several scenes in the French comedy series A Very Secret Service where one of the characters is trying to get reimbursed for expenses. But instead of just getting a quick approval or stamp, the agency insists on a double stamp— “tamponné, double tamponné” as they say in the series.
Whether you are applying for a visa, trying to get the coveted Carte Vitale (the French health care card), or starting up a business, you’ll need a ridiculous amount of paper and then some.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from living here, it’s to take copies of everything and include more paperwork than you are asked for. While they likely won’t ask for that random letter from your neighbor’s third-cousin, if you don’t bring it, they will ask for it.
3. Everything requires patience
If you are waiting for the waiter to bring you the check, trying to get an agency to call you back about your dossier, or getting an appointment to pick up your visa, you need to be patient.
Everything takes time in France, and that’s even more true when it comes to admin. Case-in-point: it took 11 months for me to get my carte de sejour (my French residency card) when it’s normally supposed to take six months. And the main reason it took that long is because they kept telling me I didn’t have enough paperwork.
Living in France has forced me to learn to become a patient person… or at least to pour myself a glass of wine and complain to all my friends while I wait for things to get sorted.
4. Always speak French even if it’s just bonjour
While a lot of people in Paris and especially the center of Paris speak at least some basic English, you will get better service as a foreigner if you try to speak some French first. I’ve seen tourists come up to people having apéro and immediately asking for directions in English, without so much as a bonjour or merci. Needless to say, they were rather abrupt and rude to the tourists for interrupting the apéro hour.
Living in France means speaking French. Although I sometimes get asked why I’m not fluent after one year of living here (spoiler: learning a new language at 30 is difficult), as long as I try to speak some French, people are generally nice to me.
5. No one eats croissants every day but they do eat bread
As much as I would love to, eating croissants is more of a Sunday treat than an everyday occurrence. But one thing that is a must is bread. I don’t know any French person who doesn’t eat bread every day. My French partner insists on having bread with nearly every meal, so there is a constant supply of gluten in my house. Not that I’m complaining.
Consuming so much bread isn’t just cultural. It’s also damn delicious. It is nothing like the bread you get in the U.S. which usually contains a lot of added sugar. Good bread has a hard crust and moist interior with lots of flavor and is not sweet at all.
6. Nothing beats a promenade
Having a bad day? Go for a walk! Paris is a very walkable city and there are lots of places to enjoy the city. Not to mention that nearly everyone walks or takes the metro to go anywhere.
In fact, there’s a French word for someone who just walks around–le flâneur. This is my favorite French word and also my favorite Paris activity. Strolling around with nothing in mind, exploring neighborhoods and finding new places to sketch.
7. Parisiens disappear in August
Like many other European countries, August is a month of holidays. Most Parisiens will go on vacation for the entire month, either to the countryside or the sea, or to travel around. It’s a month of respite, a time to reset and enjoy the sun before everyone returns for la rentrée in September.
Depending on what you plan to do in Paris, it can also be the best time time to visit, as many things are empty and you can enjoy Paris with just the usual tourist crowds and not the local crowds on top of that. And you’re more likely to get a reservation at trendy restaurants, provided they aren’t also closed for the month.
Votre Chenonceau est fantastique!
Love your sketches!