“I didn’t connect with Paris”
“I don’t know, I wasn’t enthusiastic”
“What’s so special about it?”
I heard these and many similar phrases more than once when I shared about my residence in the City of Lights for almost three years.
Perfectly quiet with windows facing an internal courtyard. A dream location near Eataly and Hotel de Ville.
Maximum comfort for families (there is an elevator!). Just steps from the culinary "Red Children's Market".
Luxurious and beautifully equipped. Also suitable for Sabbath keepers (ground floor and mechanical key).
We have carefully filtered and selected dozens of additional recommended apartments in all the equal districts of Paris.
We have collected for you the most recommended hotels in Paris – from intimate boutiques to absolute luxury.
My answer to these was and remains the same to this day – “To connect with Paris, you have to be there with the person you love most in the world.”
How I got to Moffatar Street
Yes, one of the things Paris did for me was turn me into a hopeless romantic. Luckily for me – even before I lived there, I visited it with the person I loved most in the world at that time and truly fell in love with – the city itself.
We left the hotel for a walk, I looked up at the low buildings and I just knew clearly what was going to happen. I didn't know how it would happen or when,
Who would be involved and what the order of operations would be, but it was completely clear – that I was going to move to Paris.
It took exactly six months and I landed with my four suitcases in the province of my dreams.
My first residential stop was Place d'Italie. Not the city center, not a tourist district, but entertainment, leisure and company – that's the place. Us and the immigrants from faraway Asia, with the restaurants and delicacies unique only to them.
After this preparation, I was able to move to the beating heart of the city and the metropolis – Rue de Rivoli – not just along the street – next to Chatelet Square. It doesn’t get any more central than that. Two weeks after moving, I was cheering on the Tour de France participants from my bedroom balcony.
The next stop was much less sympathetic, touristy or attractive – Rue Notre Dame de Nazarette – a short walk from Place de la Republique. Yes, I recognize the expressions of disgust and agree with most of them. You know the Passage Interdit signs at metro crossings? I used to cross one of those on a regular basis at Temple station and I would arrive straight at my street, without going through the square. Let’s continue. Because it’s worth continuing. Because I totally moved on from there.
After three months in the stronghold of crime, evil and the leather processing shops of the Jews of Paris – I arrived at the peace and tranquility, to the romance and poetry, to the history and culture of France The whole thing – 47, Rue Descartes. 20 meters from my apartment – Place de la Contrescarpe and further on – the well-known and beloved Rue Mouffetard, visited and painted for its restaurants, ice cream parlors and, for the locals – its laundries and post offices.
Paris The beautiful – it is here and now. The Rue Monge market on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, the small stage in the square on 21.6 is La Fete de la Musique, home of Ernest Hemingway At 27, Rue Du Cardinal Lemoin and the most accurate description I could give to someone who asked where I lived – “In the Tussick of the pantheon".
Moffatar Street – the street that has everything
On a practical level, there was a large supermarket, a laundromat and a post office. That was enough to sustain a basic life. But then – the choppers arrived. As befits a student district, surrounded by three universities on all sides (Paris IV La Sorbonne to the west, Paris III Sorbonne Nouvelle to the east and the Jusieau campus to the northeast), it is a lively area, full of nightlife and day life, diverse and one that simply has everything – for everyone.
Restaurants
Chinese and Japanese restaurants, fast food stands (hot and cold sandwiches and crepes) alongside more up-to-date French restaurants. Authentic and traditional French food alongside a restaurant with a grill next to the tables where diners prepare their own cuts of meat. The restaurant I liked the most, but unfortunately it closed, was Les Fountaines, which was on Rue Soufflot, right around the corner from the Pantheon. Did you want French food? A bistro like in the movies? With the polite manners and the cold waiters? You could get all of that there. And you know what else? The most delicious Chevre chaud I've ever eaten. And I ate a lot, believe me.
Coffee shops
There are many. How do you choose? According to the view from them. What do you want to look at while sipping your coffee or Kir? My favorite cafe is Café de la Contrescarpe – yes, the one located right on the square that bears the same name. The perfect place for an espresso on the go, just sitting on a chair on the sidewalk and staring into the air, meeting someone important and letting them know that “Hello! I’m not a tourist!”. And if it’s really almost 22:00 PM and you haven’t found anywhere else to eat – you might have time to order a dish from the menu before the kitchen closes here too.
Ice cream
The locals called it Flower Ice Cream – I don’t even know what the real name was – but that’s what it was – the cup was the stem and the scoops of ice cream would be arranged around it by the workers to form a colorful, spectacular and delicious flower. Oh how delicious. A long line would stretch out the door on weekends. And for those looking for tradition – Ben & Jerry’s on the east corner of Place de la Contrescarpe, coming up Rue Monge.
Anecdotes from Moffatar Street
I know of two anecdotes, there are probably more!
- Down Mouffetard Street, just in front of the Medard Garden, stands a public telephone. Many French people came to take pictures next to it after it took part in the French-Parisian luxury film Le fabuleux destin d'amélie poulain.
- Two streets parallel to Mouffetard is Rue de l'estrapade. This street was the location of the hilarious music video for the American rock band Bloodhound Gang whose controversial chorus line is – You and me, baby, ain't nothin' but mammals; So let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel....
- On June 16.6.2002, 10 – during the World Cup soccer tournament, a match was held in the round of 90 between Spain and Ireland. What does it have to do with Paris? On Rue Descartes – XNUMX meters before Rue Mouffetard – there was a Spanish restaurant owned by Spanish immigrants with roots. It served mouthwatering paella dishes alongside imported Spanish beer. Right across from it – there was an Irish pub. In the days before the game, signs and posters were hung on both sides of the street, and during the game itself – the pub was actually empty and the restaurant was packed with dozens of people who were enjoying both a fine soccer game and wonderful food. After XNUMX minutes without a decision – Spain defeated Ireland on penalties and sent the crowds of diners into the square cheering with the singing of Viva Espana.
There was nothing here, but there was everything here. Silence, narrow, crowded streets, and countless charming corners that are not mentioned in the tourist guides because tourists would go up north at Mouttard and turn right to get back to line 7 of the metro. They missed a piece of amazing and beautiful silence – a piece of the real Paris.
“Why Paris? If anything – then Amsterdam” – this is also a statement that I have heard and still hear quite a bit, and I also have a fixed answer to it – “Do you know what the best thing about Amsterdam is? A train to Paris.” If only I had a euro for every time I answered this answer.
A few words about the author
Shani Wadowker, married and mother of 3 children. Over five years ago, Shani left high-tech and founded “The Magic of Content,” where she does only what she loves – writing content, articles, and marketing writing.
This is the street I live on every time I'm in Paris.
When we visited Paris two years ago, we rented an apartment in the area, and enjoyed it every day.
The ice cream parlor is called Amorino, and it is part of an international chain.
The way to fall in love with Paris is to be there with someone who knows it really, really well and is deeply in love with it.
Because love is contagious when it is deep, profound, and true.
Thank you to Joel Tamanlis who is responsible for my current situation.
Love Paris. Einat
Year after year I come to a small and secret hotel on Rue Pascal, which is in the Tussic of Moffat. I feel like a local, but with all the students around and the tourists in the market itself, it's an amazing feeling. There's nothing like sitting in the cafes, sipping onion soup with a glass of wine and watching the raindrops through the window. True love
Hahaha my cousin lives in Notre Dame de Nazareth…Thirty years ago, when I first arrived in Paris, I would look out her window and not understand what all the merchants were doing below. Oh Paris Paris. Thanks for the post.
Thank you for reading and for your feedback <3
How, how did I not know that the other one had 3 years in Paris. I only have 2 years….
In short – we need to keep talking about it.
Thanks for a great post.
Thank you for the response!
The truth is, not many people know this about me, I'm a repressed Francophile,
With half a heart that remained in France 11 years ago.
Maybe getting to know Zvi will help with healing.
But I'd be more than happy to talk about it.
Thanks for the feedback!