La Joi d'Paris

As the Eurostar approached Gard Du Nord station, my impression of Paris looking out the train window was that it was a slum.

The station itself seemed nice enough, but the neighbourhood lacked a distinct feeling of respectability.

Graffiti everywhere, decrepit housing, filthy streets, poorly maintained buildings, a plentiful supply of pornography dealers - it was not the image of Paris I had in mind.

Spending a few days in Paris, I've found the subways to be reeking of urine, the city layout a confusing arrangement of 20 arrondissements in an irregular spiral, and the streets booby trapped with doggy poop.

And yet, I found myself loving Paris. Despite all her faults, I've fallen under the spell of her charms - it can't be anything other than true love.

I love the enchanting Parisien lifestyle, I love the charm of the old architecture and the beautiful wide boulevards, I love watching the beautiful people come and go by the cafes as I soak up the atmosphere. I love how friendly the locals are when you attempt to speak French, and never once encountered the supposed arrogance of the Parisiens.

And I LOVE the many artisan patisseries dotted along almost every corner, producing the most wonderful looking and tasting pastries in the world. Randomly choose anything from the gorgeous displays, and it will be delicious.

It was like a torrid, but ultimately doomed, love affair - with only six days in the City of Lights, the focus was very much on enjoying every moment I had here. And yes, no matter what happens from this point on, I'll always have Paris.


The Hotel Nouvel Orleans

Another highly recommended hotel from TripAdviser.com, this was a surprisingly easy hotel to get to via the Paris Metro. On the same line as Gard Du Nord, I took the (purple) #4 line to Mouton-Duvernet station, and exited at the middle of the platform.

With a convenient escalator to help haul my luggage up, the Hotel was directly and diagonally opposite the Metro exit.

As a Best Western Hotel, the helpful staff speak english, and the rooms are clean and comfortable, if somewhat small. However, the elevator is particularly tiny - about the size of a small closet, so it's adviseable to pack light (d'oh!).

The shower is even smaller than the elevator: I'm not a particular big guy, yet I could barely turn around in it without my elbow knocking the tap to "freezing cold" every few minutes.

The only thing keeping me from woofing down more pastries like popcorn was the fear that if my waist expanded by just a couple of inches, I'd not be able to fit in the shower at all.

Nonetheless, it is clean and modern with a comfortable bed and a plasma TV. It should also be noted that the walls are paper thin - having some rowdy guests on the same floor meant that I could hear every sound they made... even at 3am.

Even more so when they are drunk, lost their keys, and banging ever louder on the door for 15 mins, waiting for their supposedly sleeping room-mate to wake up.

At least it gives you some productive and creative time, such as working out how one can commit murder with some dental floss, toothpaste, a subway map and assorted leftover croissant crumbs.

In the 14th arrondissement, the Nouvel Orleans is on the main street of a residential area on the southern outskirts of central Paris.

Devoid of tourist traps, it has a genuine local feel to it, and a great variety of shops, restaurants, cafes, market stalls and patisseries all within a five minute walking distance. However, it is adviseable to be able to speak and understand some passable French, as the locals don't tend to understand English.

Of particular note are two bakeries on the opposite side of the road - one around the first corner to the left, and the other around the first corner to the right. The pastries there are excellent, and very reasonably priced. I found myself in a daily morning ritual of visiting either store to stock up for breakfast, and again in the afternoon for a snack.

Especially for the tarte mirabelle, an addictive concoction of caramelised local plums on a flaky, delicate pastry base.

While Sydney has its fair share of bakeries, there is nothing I've found that compares to how good the simplicity of this one treat.

Also on the main street is a local Monoprix supermarket, which was a great place to stock up on bottled water (6 bottles of Evian for less than 2 Euros), fruit and other assorted snacks. Armed with supplies, I was ready to take on Paris.

To be continued...