Paris

Well I’m back!  Paris was indeed wonderful - warm to boot but at least 20 degrees! 
I thought I would list my 10 favorite things about Paris: 

1) AutoLib - Much like a Zipcar except that all the cars are electric! They’re sweet little easy cars to get around the city in! 

2) Their Playgrounds - Not only are they age appropriate (one of my biggest pet peeves about NYC playground) but they’re everywhere. While small, they offer the perfect amount space to play and enjoy the outside. Plus the bathrooms are well-kept and always seem to have soap.

3) Their Greenmarkets - While Union Square market is amazing it pales in comparision to even the most local of markets. Food does come from all over but its fresh, no crappy wax covering + all the meat has a face and somethings feathers and there’s often still dirt on the veggies. Farmers take great pride in their food and how they display it.

4) Blackout shades - Every place has black out shades! They roll up and down with ease and totally make sense if you want to keep the heat/cool in during the year. 

5) No plastic bags - Well they do have plastic bags but you have to pay for them. So everyone brings their own bags where ever they go. Wish more stores would start doing that here. 

6) Fast Trains - You can get to almost everywhere in the country by train and many places by fast trains that go 189/mph cutting travel time down drastically! Plus their reasonably priced. 

7) Monoprix - Much like a Target with a grocery store, you can grab some pants, a quart of milk and a birthday present. Unlike Target, they have fresh produce & liquor! 

8) Bakeries everywhere - While none are alike and they each sell their own special pastries, all are fresh and delicious. I would kill for an awesome bakery around the corner. 

9) Attitude - Relaxation and enjoying family is evident everywhere from their force 4 week vacations, free childcare to 35 hour work weeks. You can really tell that life is about living and less about making tons of money.

10) Fromageries - While I don’t exactly worship cheese, I do love it while I’m there and walking into a fromagerie to see the over 629 varieties of cheese! 

 And of course there are many things that make me bonkers like their milk (bleech!) and how badly they cut in lines. But for now I’ll just dwell on the good stuff. Happy New Year All! 

Photo: gypsy mess