#who wants to join this paris date? i'll be your local guide

[musicallisto]

Story time + quesyion!!

When I came to Paris (I was, like, 12, I went there with my father [derogatory] and twin sister as a gift for graduating primary) we stayed for, like, five days and I had the time of my life!! But when we went to explore Paris...

My dad was a lame guide. Only showed me the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, the gardens of the tower and the Arc of Triumph all in two days.

The question is... what would you show me of Paris? Would you take me to a club and meet cuties? Or be a pair of coquettes at a fancy garden? Perhaps the Seine? 👀

ow, yikes at your father. I've been the guide to all my visiting relatives, so I know what it is, I know the sights pretty well, and I could probably be a guide at Versailles at this point if it weren't for the fact that I refuse to step in that godforsaken place for one (1) more time.

having said that, they'd probably say I'm a fake parisian because even though I was born there, I moved to the suburbs since, and "true" parisians cannot bear anyone from the other side of the périph. if they can bear anyone at all. but I still know a few cool places :)

an absolutely certain stop we'd have to make would be the Marais, which is where most of the gay community is. we could start the day with a croissant at a cute café, and then we'd browse LGBT bookstores in the area and take cute pictures with the rainbow crosswalks. there's also a ton of art galeries there, particularly the Musée Picasso, if we suddenly feel nostalgic about Spain. so if you're in an artsy mood, we'd definitely be heading there! I'd also take you to the Place des Vosges, which is such a beautiful and underrated square in the area, and also the oldest of all Paris - and it has a playground and I'm a child so I'd totally play on the swings. the Marais also has one of my favorite diners in Paris, Breakfast in America, because sometimes, even in Paris, all you crave is a milkshake taller than you. totally would take you there too! alternatively, we could go have lunch to the Indiana Café, which has the best (and hugest) burgers I've had in my life, and is near the Arc de Triomphe. This is a full-expenses-paid, no-credit-card-limit trip, of course, so after that we're heading straight to the Champs Élysées for a little bit of shopping. There's a Ladurée there; they're famous for being The Blueprint when it comes to macarons, and even if they cost an arm and a leg, I'll be buying you a full box because you CAN'T leave Paris without trying macarons. after that, we'd be taking the subway to head to the Rue de Rivoli, for more shopping. Because there's never too many books, we'd go to WS Smith, Paris' biggest anglophone bookstore, where you're sure to find all the books you like (and there are even some in Spanish, too!). Rivoli borders the Jardin des Tuileries, which is a magnificent place to get lost in and see the Louvre from another angle... but also because in the summer they put up a Ferris wheel and funfair rides and it's generally just so much fun in the evening. And last but not least! I'd take you to my favorite part of Paris, which is the Quartier latin, to see the Pantheon can't believe your dad didn't take you there... it's the coolest thing we have imo, wander in the Jardins du Luxembourg, and show you the street where d'Artagnan lived (because that's at least as culturally important as seeing the Mona Lisa).

obviously that's a very small itinerary, and we've covered very few of the amazing places in Paris, but that's only one day! we must go to the Trocadero aquarium (I haven't been since I was like six and I miss it so much); and then, leave the center, see the north, a concert at the Élysée Montmartre, and obviously I can't let you leave without showing you the real Moulin Rouge!

anyway, this made me realize there are so many things to do in Paris and I've only scraped the surface of what I know (which is not even a lot). omg, I forgot the Cat Café in the 15e. You'll have to come for several days!