Parisian Life… The Beginning
Sometimes the "Motherland" "sends" on a business trip not to its next distant point, but to "normal" and "image" places. I was lucky and I went to Paris for 3 days on a working visit.
On March 6, at 7 am, I was at Sheremetyevo-2, where an Air France plane was preparing to take off. At that time, it was still one of the most reliable airlines in the world. The airline was randomly chosen by the secretary of the company where I happened to work. I will say right away that I flew with Airfrance for the first time. Friends who flew with them on the transcontinental say they lose their luggage very often, and since I flew without connections, everything went more than smoothly.
At check-in, for some reason, I got a seat at the end of the salon, although I did not come last. The pre-flight procedures did not take much time, and soon I found myself in the seat of an Airbus-320. If we compare the board with a similar one of the same Aeroflot, then the planes of the latter in terms of comfort will be “more interesting”: the pitch of the seats is clearly larger, and the structure of the seat is more adapted to the person. The food on board is average, half of everything brought is clearly inedible, while the second part is 5 out of 10. The staff is polite, always ready to help, though "French English" leaves much to be desired.
Charles de Gaulle Airport was empty that morning. All passengers went through immigration control very quickly and got their luggage. A surprise was waiting at the exit - my driver was lost somewhere. It's funny, but another 10 Russians faced a similar problem, although everyone flew with different goals, and, accordingly, different people met us.
After about 40 minutes, a young man in a black coat appeared at the exit to the free zone. His name was Yura, and it was him that I was waiting for. He has been living in France for 10 years, working, as you probably guessed, working in tourism. He immediately offered the services of a guide and gave his business card.
The road from the airport runs through the "famous" northern regions. It was in this part of Paris and the suburbs that mass riots took place several years ago. According to Yura, even the police prefer not to come here at night.
I liked the look of the city. In early March, fresh foliage appears on the trees, flowers begin to bloom, it is warm, but not hot. The most important thing is that at this time there are still few tourists who, according to the Parisians, create a certain fuss.
The hotel was frankly disappointing. I won’t even write the name, I haven’t seen such a “ge” for a very long time. It is interesting that so many people with whom I had a chance to talk on this trip note this: very small rooms, cheap furnishings, a minimum of services and, of course, the high price of a room. Only 4+ or 5 star hotels are good, but their cost is unrealistically extortionate for a simple Soviet layman.
I will not dwell on the working part of my trip, I will tell you about the features of the city and what to see.
Let's start with transport. The most convenient way to get around the city is the metro. The cost of one trip is 1 euro and 30 euro cents. You can buy a ticket "Mobilis" - it gives you the right to ride all modes of transport unlimitedly during the day. Discounts are available for students and pensioners. Its cost at the time of the trip is 6 euros. Tickets are sold in special machines, the menu of which exists in French, German, English and Spanish. It is very rare to find the usual ticket offices for buying tickets, although “tickets” can also be bought in shops in the passages (these shops have a yellow sign with a ticket and a train painted on it). The turnstiles are mechanical, somewhat similar to those in Moscow, only narrower and taller. In general, you will not jump;
I recommend that you keep your tickets until the end of the trip. My friend threw away his ticket on the last day. In long passages very often there are inspectors, and 10-15 people each. Some block the entrance and do not let them back in, others stand in the center of the transition and stop everyone in order to check the ticket. I showed my ticket, but my friend did not. They offered us to pay a 40 euro fine. Naturally, they were sent with such a proposal. The controllers, apparently foreseeing this fact, called the police, while the fine increases by 2 times. I had to agree to pay the fine, although it was a shame. Only later Yura (the driver) suggested that it is very good for non-resident tourists to travel in the European Union. For example, you can break the rules of the road. The maximum that you "shine" - a fine. You say that there is no money, and they give you a receipt. And since there is no address in the passport, you call it “out of your head”, i. e. away, our favorite "Mukhosra... sk" is just right. When you leave the country, you throw away the fine and forget about what happened. The police sends a receipt to a non-existent address, which, of course, comes back. After that, the penalty is removed from the database. Perhaps a number of readers have a question, why not force tourists to pay them when leaving the country? Yura answered this question very well - “And this contradicts the constitution of the EU member states... Freedom of the individual, damn it! ”. Simply put, they do not have the right to detain you at the exit / entry into the country due to unpaid fines. You can simply refer to your temporary lack of money. By the way, the European Union does not have a single base for fines.
But then we did not know this yet and paid the controllers 40 euros. But we got invaluable experience. I will remember this case for the rest of my life, and I will also tell my grandchildren how to avoid paying a fine in the eurozone.
In conclusion about transport: You can also use the services of a taxi, the cost of a trip around the city is approximately 15 euros. I recommend to take a ride on "Taxi-Bentley", the cost of the trip increases by 2 times! But what a chic! Moreover, nowhere is it written that this is a taxi, you can safely “glamour”.
Now about how tourists are deceived. First, there are a lot of fakes on the streets. This is especially famous for the dark-skinned French, who sell something on every corner.
Secondly, tourists are constantly "bred" for money right on the streets. I'll tell you about the last "chip", the hit of the 2009 season
You walk calmly down the street, a boy or a girl of an ordinary appearance, white-skinned (many believe that the basis of crime in Paris is dark-skinned, this is far from being the case). And unnoticed by you (they think so) they throw a ring at your feet. Outwardly - like a gold wedding band, even some kind of test is worth it, the width, however, of the ring is about a centimeter. In general, big and thick. Before you had time to come to your senses, this boy (girl) throws himself at your feet, raises the ring and says: “Ooooh, sir, hang from gold !!! ”. Then he gives you a look at the ring. I will say that externally it is impossible to distinguish. As you probably guessed, this is a fake, worth 2 euros. After that, in good English (French, German, Spanish, Russian, they say, they have not yet learned) they begin to “breed” you. The meaning is that, they say, take your ring in memory of Paris, and give me 30-50 euros. When you write about it, everything looks more than primitive. But when you see "gold" in your hands, the thirst for "freebies" takes its toll. In front of my eyes, one "craftsman" lured a couple of pensioners out of 50 euros for a fake.
I'll tell you one more story about how we struggled with the "wire" in Paris. We took our delegation on an excursion to Montmartre. We stopped near the house of a certain famous woman, where everyone went on an excursion. And in our group there was a man, about 40 years old, flew to Paris right from Yakutia. We gave him a Yakut to drive. So, he did not go into the building, but stayed to smoke on the street (apparently, the amount of alcohol he had drunk the day before had an effect). A small boy comes up to him, throws a ring under his feet and says: “Ooooooo, sir, hang from gold !!! ”. For 4 days in Paris, this ring was thrown at my feet only four times, not to mention my other comrades.
So, "Yakut", without hesitation, says: "What the hell, gold! " and punches him in the face with his rather big fist. He flies about five meters, abruptly jumps up and runs away. "Yakut" remains face to face with the ring.
And at this time, our group leaves the building. He, without hesitation, throws a ring at our feet and shouts "AAAAAAAAAA, hang from gold !!!!!! ". The hysteria of our group at that moment knew no bounds. The female tour guide even asked where we got this ring. And after the tour, which, by the way, I’ll tell you about below, we decided to scare Russian tourists by throwing a ring at their feet. It was a lot of fun. And the reader is advised to be careful.
Now about nutrition. There is a lot of "fast food" from the banal "McDuck" to the "hippo" network. The latter, by the way, is very fond of the locals. Cafes and restaurants are expensive, a dinner in a restaurant with wine for two will cost 100-150 euros. Prepare, I will say, not very much. Despite the fact that I explained to them in good English how to fry the meat, they always brought it to me raw. Moreover, they bring raw chicken, and even veal liver. A vile spectacle. By the way, it doesn't taste better. For ourselves, we found the Indian restaurant "Nirvana", which is located near the metro station "Liezh". It was here that we finally had a tasty and satisfying meal, and even for a reasonable price.
A couple of lines about what to see. I will not dwell on famous sights in detail. I will try to talk about something that is rarely written about. For example, it is better to go to the Eiffel Tower in the evening on weekdays, there are many tourists there. On the second tier, when everyone is queuing for the elevators upstairs, you can slip through faster. The fact is that the whole queue stands like a snake to the right of the elevators (if you look at them). On the left, the snake is empty. It is for VIP delegations, and is also of a technical nature. There is a guard standing there and not letting anyone in. Not allowed, except for: parents with a baby, pensioners, police officers and people with special certificates. And once again in 5-7 minutes this guard leaves his post for 2-3 minutes, bypassing the site. At this moment, boldly "press the trigger" to the floor and go to the elevator. Save at least 30 minutes.
Visited, of course, the Louvre. It was very disappointing that there are guides in all languages, including Arabic, but not in Russian. In general, the absence of Russian-language booklets and pamphlets in Paris is affecting. Honestly, it's a shame that our Ministry of Culture is promoting the Russian language "to the masses" only in words. And this despite the fact that "English" with a French accent is very difficult to understand. After watching "Mona Lisa" I got bored and went for a walk in the city.
On a walking tour in one of the districts of Paris - Montmartre - we were taken centrally. We looked at several monuments, the house-museum, and ended up on the square near the Sacré -Coeur. I recommend to sit in numerous cafes at the local flea market, where people known to us spent their time. The temple is impressive. Inside there is a shrine, by rubbing it and making a wish, you get a chance that it will come true. They say it really comes true. Although I don’t know, mine hasn’t come true yet Downstairs, near the Abbeses metro station on R. Tardieu street, there are art design studios where even a sophisticated buyer will find a myriad of cool accessories.
On the night before the flight, I decided to go to the Moulin Rouge. The ticket costs 100 euros, champagne is included in the price. At the entrance, of course, queues. A wardrobe is paid, costing 2 euros, and if you refuse to undress, you will not be allowed into the hall. Leave photos and video cameras at the hotel, they are not allowed inside with them (although you can drag a soap box, but you are unlikely to be able to take decent photos in an unlit room).
Many tourists are lured to the store of "official fakes" - the Fragonard Museum. It is located in the very center, near the Opera. In words, they say that perfumes of famous brands are sold 3-5 times cheaper than the original, and the smell is the same. I am ready to argue with the first statement, and with the second. The smells are harsh, they are not transferred exactly to the original, and if you buy several bottles, the amount is 20 percent less than if you bought the originals. In general, they deceive "our brother".
I recommend visiting the castles of the Loire, everyone unconditionally praises this excursion. Adds color to it, no doubt, and the tasting of French wines held there.
Now about shopping. According to local residents, most people dress in stock stores in large shopping centers. I even wrote down a few of them - "Printham" (they say the largest), "Bon Marchais" or "Lafayette Gallery", however, I did not visit any of them. Shops of low and medium price category are located on the street "Avenue Chansolize" up to the intersection at the Grand Palace and the residence of the French President. Security, by the way, failed. We, like brave guys, decided to look through a hole in the fence of the residence. We did not know that it was forbidden to approach closer than 20 meters. So, we not only approached and saw everything, but also walked along the fence for 300 meters, until we were caught by the “security guard” and transferred “by the handle” across the road. Moreover, he could not explain what he wanted, only mumbled and shrugged. It was very funny. And behind the residence is a street of expensive boutiques - “Faub. St Honore. From the prices in those places I want to sincerely cry.
Interesting shops are located in the Latin Quarter - near the Mobillon metro station. Many of those products are made individually, while sellers maintain a moderate price level.
The return flight was extremely early in the morning, we took off at 6 am local time. Another thing was upsetting - that until 12 o'clock in the morning we drank "free" champagne in the walls of the Moulin Rouge, and then we also rolled into the hotel. As you probably guessed, I slept through the entire return flight! And the plane was no better than the one on which we flew to Paris.
Probably, the reader would like to hear at the end of this story some kind of summary, which, in general, is inherent in all my essays. You know, perhaps for the first time in my "writing" career, I did not have a clear opinion about the city. On the one hand, I didn't like it. The feeling that the French are insanely glad that they are French, and all other nations are sincerely sorry, did not leave me the whole trip. On the other hand, there is some special charm, looking at the tourists and residents of this city, there is a certain lightness in those moments when you are walking along its famous streets. To put it simply, I didn't get inspired by Paris, as, for example, Hemingway did. But I will not leave attempts to do this... Never!