La Goutte d’Or en Paris

We’re not breaking any new ground in this part of our trip. We stayed in the “Drop of Gold” quarter near Gare du Nord. I would describe the area as a charming and multicultural hub that is brimming with character. The interwebs do at times describe this arrondissement in less flattering terms, calling it dicey and filled with gypsies, pickpockets, runaways, and refugees. In either case, it makes for an interesting transition from the swarms of tourists near all the major Paris attractions. Restaurants specializing in Bangladeshi, Pakistani, and North and West African cuisine offered some interesting alternatives to the typical French bakeries, bistros, and cafes. Our Paris visit spanned five days, so we’ve had enough time to sample a mix of things. I have certainly enjoyed the French pastries, breads, and cheeses. However, I must admit I’m going to leave this place thinking of the assortment of Indian sweets on offer in our neighborhood, particularly the malai chum chum  and gajar halwa mithai (basically a spiced carrot fudge).

My impression of Paris has been a bit different than things I’ve heard over the years. I’ve heard plenty of people complain (in re France in general) that the people are rude and everything is extremely overpriced. I can’t say that I’ve seen much of either really. I’ve found everybody to be quite friendly and there are some really great eats around Paris for very little money. Also, for being such a tourist hub, attractions are modestly priced and touts and scammers seem mild mannered. The thing that becomes apparent doing a little people watching is that there is a whole other strata of tourist that can be observed here. For every American that doesn’t even own a passport, there are plenty that do and simply go to one or two places overseas in a span of decades. Some of the people piling out of tour buses are traveling overseas for the first (and as crazy as it seems, sometimes last as well) time. If impressions of the place trickle back in part through that sort of filter, well, it doesn’t surprise me that there are people who are offended that French people tend to speak French in France. That being said, my expectations were a little mismatched for the place in other ways. I certainly have no complaints regarding the food and drink here…. everything has been great. I guess I expected things to seem a bit more… foreign… and they just haven’t. Again, it’s been a great time though, easy and cheap to get around and lots to see and do.

We completed the highlights of the typical tourist circuit in Paris: Notre Dame, Champs-Elysees, Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Sacre Coeur, Luxembourg Gardens, Pere Lachaise, and the Catacombs. We visited Pere Lachaise and the Catacombs in succession and I was really struck by the dichotomy of the two. The Catacombs began acting as a repository for human remains in the late 18th century and ultimately holds the remains of about six million people. The skulls and long bones are fairly organized in stacks, but the rest are piled behind them in quantities that are really hard to fathom. In the whole place, there is only one tombstone. All of the human remains are in mostly anonymous piles. Pere Lachaise cemetery opened close to the same time around the early 19th century and is still an active burial site. Many famous and noteworthy people are buried there. There are around one million human remains in Pere Lachaise. Besides the famous graves there, the thing that is truly remarkable are the elaborate family crypts, many with remarkable artistic and architectural features. It’s like no other cemetery. Visiting both places, it’s pretty striking seeing the haves in beautiful sealed crypts and the have-nots anonymously piled by the thousands deep underground.

The Louvre…. wow. You can really make a day out of that. A great deal of the museum is peaceful and quiet. The only place that’s a real circus is the Mona Lisa room, packed with people shoulder to shoulder trying to shove their way through, selfie sticks in the air, to get their moment fifteen feet away. After a full day at the Louvre, I don’t see how you would want to see any more museums. I feel like we had a pretty full visit here. Our last day was really leisurely, giving some time for laundry and to prep to get moving tomorrow. We’re off nice and early to Luxembourg.