When visiting the City of Light, the spirit of Paris can be felt everywhere. It’s packed with ideas for doing things a little bit differently-lesser-known artworks to see in the Pompidou, the best single-artist museums, where to go for walks on sunny days and where to find unusual souvenirs or the pioneers of the Parisian food scene.From the author of Hidden Gardens of Paris and The Streets of Paris comes a beautifully illustrated guide to the history of Paris through its renowned and beloved places of worship. The structure of the guide also sprung from recommendations I was giving to friends who visit every few months. My editor Róisín and I wanted the book to be accessible, with themed itineraries for those with limited time and neighborhood-by-neighborhood highlights spotlighting restaurants really worth visiting. For first-time visitors, there’s so much more to discover than the classic storybook experiences and the most-visited quartiers. Nancy: What does your book offer first-time visitors and those who have made multiple trips to the “city of love”?Įleanor: Paris has evolved a lot in the last few years.

The Sacre-Coeur Catholic Church in Monmarte (Photo Eleanor Aldridge) A Paris Guidebook Useful for First-Time and Those Who Have Visited Before There was no other guide for travelers who wanted to embrace contemporary Parisian culture-but also didn’t want to completely shun major museums and miss out on learning about the city’s history. I wanted to share the moments that kept me booking trips for so many years: shopping at outdoor food markets losing afternoons exploring little-known galleries solo lunches eaten at bar seats mornings sipping coffees in the outer arrondissements and discovering cocktail bars so passionate about French spirits they refuse to serve anything else. The real joy of a trip here isn’t in seeing the big sights but discovering a bit of Parisian life. Nancy: What inspired you to write, Paris: A Curious Traveler’s Guide?Įleanor: The Paris most visitors experience is very different to how Parisians see their city. Inspiration for this New Guidebook to Contemporary Paris

I’ve now lived here for nearly two years. Initially, I moved here for five months on sabbatical, but quickly realized I wanted to stay. I came back every year without fail-eating, drinking and writing my way through long weekends-and always left with more restaurants on my wish list than I had time to visit. It wasn’t until I co-wrote a budget travel guide to Europe in my early twenties that I really started to explore the city. Nancy Zaffaro: How did you first come to know and work in Paris?Įleanor Aldridge: I first came to Paris as a kid on a French exchange, staying just outside the center with an impossibly chic eleven-year-old.

Sacred Paris by Susan Cahill