*They love dogs. Big dogs, little dogs, does not matter. They are all over the place, outside of shops, inside shops, in cafe's, outside cafe's. And they leave their "relievings" everywhere. That apparently also does not matter.
*There are only foreign nannies. Very odd. And I mean REALLY foreign. African women and Asian (mostly are what I see) women nanny here for French and Parisian children. Apparently it's a job looked down upon as not very important (or not important enough for it to be acceptable for a fellow French woman).
*Everyone stops for coffee, wine, sparkling water. There are cafe's next to cafe's.
*Butchers are remarkable people. A good butcher is kinda hard to find, but when you find one, keep them until you die.
*The middle aged French women tend to love their sun. They are VERY dark. And I mean orange, dark. It's not really pretty. They also seem to like plastic surgery (they don't really look all that natural, something is just "off").
*Parisian men (young to mid-aged in particular) seem to care about fashion and their appearance more than some women of the same age group.
*There are two sort of women. Those who will strut their stuff and hide the pain while wearing THE most amazing high heels ('cause Paris is one of the shoe capitals of the world!) and those who opt for more sensible flat ballet flats (which still are very sweet and fashionable, just pain-free).
*Parisian old ladies always look nice and very well put together. No matter what. Whether it's well coiffed hair, stockings and dress shoes or very nice (read expensive) jewelry.
*There are LOADS (technical term mind you) of Embassies. 171 (if I counted correctly) and it's weird 'cause it seems as though they are literally everywhere. I never really noticed them when I lived in London, but here, well, there are about 5 on my street a few blocks away. Everywhere I turn, there is an Embassy.
*Even in the heat, they'll wear sweaters and long sleeves. I don't get it. I want to curl up and die it's so hot, and they walk around in sweaters. What?
*Parisians smoke as much as they love fashion. Odd, but somewhat very French. Though, they don't smoke inside anymore.
*They love art and are proud of the history of art based in Paris. I counted 75 museums, ranging from dolls to post offices (huh?), to the police and crime fighting (haha), to archeological digs. There are museums on the French Revolution and WWII, Arab art, money and minting, medieval and Second Empire, fashion and textiles, magic, rare documents, history of freemasons, wax museum, history of making fragrances, history of Marie Currie, hunting wildlife, tunnels and buried bones (weird and somewhat creepy!), history of the city of Paris, history of hospitals in Paris, architecture and urban planning museum, French military history, French architecture and monuments, history of the 1930s....just to name a few! There are also whole museums dedicated to various important Paris artists.
*The Parisians are fantastic at pastry chef-ing. The pastries are OUT OF THIS WORLD. You have not had a croissant until you've had one made in Paris (or France). Ooh. La. La. AND, I have NEVER EVER tasted anything as good as a Parisian macaroon. And when I say never, I mean never. They blow my mind, they are so delicious!!! If I wanted to keep my figure some-what non-potato-shaped, I would eat them day and night. Mom, I'm bringing some home for you to taste! They'll blow your mind too!
*There are "Little China" parts in Paris too. There's also a street where LITERALLY 90% of the shops are owned by Asians and are only handbags. The other 10% are restaurants. NO kidding!
Paris is quite an amazing city. I don't know anywhere (well, nowhere I've been) where a fruit & veg market owner, the owner of the mom & pop shop (who also have fruit & veg) outside the apartment and the owner of the mom & pop shop across the street (who also have fruit & veg) all will chat and socialize outside on the streets. It's a pretty cool place.
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