Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to be nominated and accepted for an exchange at Sciences Po Paris for the Fall 2015 term. After several months of logistical procedures and preparations like attending the pre-departure orientation, applying for a student visa, and sorting out course equivalency approvals, I’m finally living in the fourteenth arrondissement of Paris (near the Catacombs) and, needless to say, extremely excited to be here.
As amazing as everything has already been so far, this is ultimately a learning experience for me. In the month that I have been living here, I’ve picked up on a couple of things that I think could be useful for anyone with plans to visit Paris someday. So, without further ado, here are a few basic things to know about Paris before arriving:
1. Les bisous
This is an especially important convention to familiarize yourself with if you’re going to be interacting with French locals. In France, people greet each other by kissing each other on each cheek. The number of kisses you do depends on what region of France you’re in, but in Paris, we generally do two. You’ve probably seen this around on campus or in Montreal, but if you’ve never personally taken part in it, la bise can be a bit of a culture shock. Don’t worry though! Once you learn and practice a few times, les bisous become second nature and automatic. If you’re interested in learning a bit more, here’s a short video about L’art de la bise in French, with an English translation in the description box.
2. Weather
Before I say anything else about the weather, I must say this: umbrellas are essential in Paris. The weather here can be somewhat unpredictable and it rains quite often in the City of Lights. It’s best to always keep an umbrella handy¸ as a sunny day can very quickly dissolve into a downpour. On the other hand, on warm days, it may still be wise to keep a jacket with you – at least in the fall – because while it can feel extremely warm when you’re standing in the sun, the temperature can drop dramatically as soon as you step into the shade.
3. Geography
Paris is geographically split in two by the Seine River. The bank to the north (and right) of the Seine is known as Rive droite (literally: “right bank”), while the southern river bank is known as Rive gauche (yep, you guessed it: “left bank”). To give you a very general idea of what is where, the Louvre museum and the Arch of Triumph (l’Arc de Triomphe) are both located on Rive droite. On the other side of the river, on Rive gauche, you’ll find the Musée d’Orsay, the Eiffel Tour, and Sciences Po – as well as most of the Parisian universities. The city is also split up into twenty arrondissements, or districts, which spiral out from the centre of Paris like a snail shell. The lower-numbered districts cover the “downtown” areas, while the higher-numbered districts are closer to the outskirts.
4. Getting around
To be quite honest, the Parisian metro system dwarfs the one we have in Montreal. There are a total of fourteen metro lines, and that doesn’t even include the RER (Réseau express regional) lines. Navigating the subways can be a bit confusing at first, so it’s advisable to download the RATP (the Parisian equivalent of STM) application onto your phone. That way, you’ll always have a map of the metro system with you. As a side note, Google Maps is not the greatest app to rely on in Paris, since its results sometimes exclude certain routes that the RATP offers. Another important thing to remember when taking the metro is to always keep your ticket until you’re out of the metro system and your ticket becomes invalid. In several stations, you need to pass your ticket through the machines again to get back out to the streets after you’ve gotten off the metro. In addition to the trains, Paris offers Vélib, a bike rental service, like the Bixi in Montreal, as well as Autolib, which is the automobile equivalent of Vélib.
5. Sundays
If you need to go shopping while you’re in Paris, make sure to do it on any day of the week besides Sunday. Why, you ask? Because almost everything is closed on Sundays. There are a few select grocery stores that are open on Sundays, but for the most part, most stores and restaurants are not open for business on Sundays. The grand majority of the public and school libraries are also closed on Sundays, so if you need to check out or return any library books, you’ll have to do that before Sunday as well. Of course, there are a few exceptions of places that will remain open on Sundays; most of these are shops and restaurants in tourist areas, for obvious reasons.
Hopefully, you’ll find these tips useful for your own trip to Paris. Whether you’re coming here as a student, tourist, or resident, just remember Audrey Hepburn’s wise words: “Paris is always a good idea.”
Check back again soon for the next article in the Paris Periodical series!
Photos are the author’s own.