Illustration: Elliot Elam
Putain! It’s almost 8h and you still have to catch the métro into Châtelet. Normally you wouldn’t worry because the ride is only 25 minutes — du coup you might have to add an extra 15 minutes, but you never count them. Mostly because you stop at the tabac for a packet of Gitanes (Gauloises if it’s sunny outside) and a croissant aux amandes. You may not be rich but you can treat yourself. There is no better breakfast than bread and a smoke. The stomach can’t handle more at that hour. Voilà quoi! There’s nothing to it. You get up, you go to work, you come home, you feed the kids, bref, you know what I mean. You’re a parigot tête de veau. Or at least both your potes make fun of you for that. But whatever, they’re the same as you. You grew up together. En fait, they’re practically like family, or at least good friends who appreciate the classics like you do. PSG isn’t doing so good, but you’re from Paris, what else are you supposed to do? Putain mec! C’est claire, fin, tu vois? Win or lose, you listen to Piaf after every game over drinks at Aux Folies and non, tu ne regrettes rien.
Our favourite places to spot a Parigot
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Little Jaffna – métro La Chapelle
“Little Jaffna“, around metros Gare du Nord, La Chapelle, and Louis Blanc, you’ll find shops selling handmade Saris (Saree Palace, 182 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis), cheap and cheerful supermarkets, jewellery shops, Indian music stores, travel agencies (with good deals on … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
A Taste Of Africa In Paris
Image: Flickr CC emkeller Text: Ndali Amobi Home to over 5 million people of African and Arab descent, France enjoys a rich culinary diversity; and where better to experience this than in the cosmopolitan metropolis of Paris. Stroll around any … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
July 14th Festivities – Bastille Day In Paris
Image: Paris.fr Tomorrow begins festivities for le quatorze, France’s national day of celebration commemorating the storming of the Bastille in 1789. Here’s a roundup of how Paris is getting it’s fête on. Tomorrow and Saturday nights are the Bals des … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Marché de l’Olive La Chapelle
Text and Images: Emily Sands-Bonin Newly refurbished and opened in late September last year, the Marché de l’Olive has been hailed as very “Baltard” by Bertrand Delanoë, mayor of Paris, an allusion to French 19th century architect Victor Baltard, designer … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Outdoor Swimming
Text: Nick Forrester Image: Grenouille O_O Swimming isn’t really the same in summer unless you can do it outside. But where can one possibly hope to find outdoor swimming in central Paris? There are 30 or so public swimming pools located … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Marché Saint-Quentin
Text Brendan Seibel Today it’s hard to imagine Les Halles as anything other than an architectural disgrace. Centuries ago it was the “Belly of Paris”, but now teems with a distinctly different commerce. The tradition of visiting the neighborhood grocer, … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
L’Alhambra
Text: Nick Forrester A quiet street around the corner from the Canal Saint Martin. A few up-market restaurants, trendy shops and bobo boutiques as well as a job agency, a workers union and a few ateliers that never seem to … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Le Musée d’Edith Piaf: a little-known Paris museum
Image: Musée d’Edith Piaf Text: Sara Waldron Tucked away in northeastern Paris’ Ménilmontant neighbourhood is the Musée d’Edith Piaf, a small, unassuming collection of mementos of the singer’s life and work. Truly one of the city’s musées insolites, the only … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Doisneau, Paris les Halles
Photos: Atelier Robert Doisneau Text: Thirza Vallois Last week, walking along rue Pierre Lescot, threw me back forty years: the Forum des Halles, currently under partial demolition, afforded me a surreal “déja vu” vision of the demolition of old Les … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
The Smoking Museum: for Les Fumeurs and Les Non-Fumeurs alike
Text and photos: Sara Waldron At first glance, the Musée du Fumeur, a tiny museum near Père Lachaise, has a bit of a head shop feel – with cigarettes, lighters, and all manner of smoking contraptions for whatever your choice … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
C'est L'Amour: Last Porn Theatre in Paris (Is More than Just Porn)
Images: Meghann Lee, Susie Kahlich Text: Brian Clark Upon taking a seat at Le Beverley Cinéma, the first thing I notice is that all of the patrons except my girlfriend and I choose to sit at the back of the … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Paris on Film: Chacun Cherche son Chat
Image: Vertigo Productions Text: Christophe Dumay This is the second in a monthly series about Paris on Film: a cinematic tour of Paris by a lifelong Parisian (and film buff) to explore and discover the world’s most beautiful film set. … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Paris on Film: Paris vu par…
Image: Les Films du Losange Text: Christophe Dumay This is the first in a monthly series about Paris on Film: a cinematic tour of Paris by a lifelong Parisian (and film buff) to explore and discover the world’s most beautiful … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
L'Apollonide: secrets of a house of pleasure
Image: toutlecine.com Text: Tristan Stansbury Worthington Fin de siècle would seem to be something of a fashion in visual media at the moment: first Maison Close, Canal+'s successful television series about a 19th-century Parisian brothel and now L'Apollonide: souvenirs d'une … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Martin Parr's Goutte D'Or
Text: Anna BromwichImage: Martin Parr / Magnum Photos The Goutte d'Or, a predominantly immigrant quartier tucked just behind the Gare du Nord, does not have a fantastic reputation. Synonymous with poverty, drugs and violence, it is often avoided by Parisians … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Jossot’s Lessons From The Past
Text: Elliot Elam Image: Le président s’adressant au principal accusé lui dit, 1905 Liberté, egalité, fraternité: it’s a phrase that may trip off the tongue. But in France votes are still cast in their thousands for far right parties, the … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Moebius – Transe Forme
Text: Elliot ElamImage: "La Chasse au Major", 2009, Acrylic on canvas. Even back in the late fifties, Jean Giraud was going places. Drawing professionally since his teens, he’d been receiving plaudits (and even work) from great bande dessinée artists such … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
In the Belly of Paris – Baltard, Les Halles de Paris
Text and photos by Omid Tavallai The first time I set foot in Paris, it was at Les Halles. As a bewildered young backpacker without much of a clue, I'd exited the RER B out of Châtelet-Les Halles station and … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Gras Savoye Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris
Text: Nick Forrester A trip to Auteuil racecourse can feel a bit like going to a village greyhound race, in Brittany, in the 1970′s. Taking a bus out to the track with Paris’ oldest and smelliest racing enthusiasts, all peering … [CLICK TO READ MORE]
Louxor – Palais Du Cinema to re-open in Barbès
Text & Image: Aidan Mac Guill On the corner of Boulevard de la Chapelle and Boulevard de Magenta, at the heart of noisy, relentless Barbès, stands a building. Amidst the clatter of the overground metro and the chatter of the … [CLICK TO READ MORE]