I arrived this week to a brilliantly sunny Paris. After a very chilly and wet spring, la Capitale is warm again and ready for summer. The chestnut and sycamore trees lining the grands boulevards are a full, leafy green. And of course, les terrasses of cafés everywhere are packed with les Français sporting des lunettes de soleil (sunglasses) and drinking in the welcome sun.
France is my home for the summer season so French Affaires’ upcoming posts will be en direct from Paris and Provence. We’ll include a short travel or culture theme easy to “pack” and take with you on your next trip to France.
Je suis ravie (I am delighted) to be here, and I too have been making the rounds of several cafés. The Café de Flore is its normal, bustling self. This famous literary café sits on the Boulevard St. Germain in the heart of Paris’s Left Bank. The food and drink are fine – but the real attraction is the people watching of passersby and at the café itself. Yesterday, the outfit du jour was Scottish kilt and black leather vest worn by a tall, stout, tattooed Frenchman of about 40. Seated next to our table, he looked a bit like aging rocker about to hit the concert stage. While I couldn’t figure out his true vocation or avocation, his friends at the same table seemed to take his curious ‘costume’ in stride.
Another favorite Left Bank spot is the Café Bonaparte located around the corner from the Café de Flore. Though just a stone’s throw from the Boulevard St. Germain, it feels a world away in every sense. The food is good, the wines reasonable and the waiters genuinely personable. I like the more relaxed atmosphere and also being surrounded by French people – this is France after all! Plus, the rustic spire of the St. Germain des Prés church provides a lovely backdrop to the street view from the café. All in all, it’s a good stopping place in a great location – check it out on your next trip to Paris…
