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One autumn morning, Sam awoke to a sharp pain in the back of her throat, a burning fever, and the energy of Beth March. But unlike gentle Beth, she was not afflcited by scarlet fever, but strep throat. And although she knew it wouldn't do her in, she was sure that any trip to the doctor's office on either a taxi or a metro would end in her fainting. She could only do one thing-- she picked up the phone and dialled 3624. This is a number every sick person in France should know, it's for SOS Medecins, a network of doctors who make housecalls. The rates are higher than the basic fee for a doctor's office, usually starting around 55 euros, but this is dependent on what time of day you call and where you are in France. When Sam called on that dire November morning, the doctor…
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To compliment our fantastic guest writer's Restaurant section, I thought I'd contribute the quick research I did into vegan and vegetarian restaurants in Paris. A visiting friend from London who is Jain prompted this search, and I wanted something other than Indian to propose (as bringing a Londoner to an Indian restaurant in Paris is just plain stupid). A Jainist's diet, as I've come to undestand it, is stricly vegetarian and excludes onions, garlic, and other root vegetables, among many other things. This lovely site : http://www.happycow.net/europe/france/paris/ covers the bases, prices, cuisines, etc. of Paris' vegan and vegetarian restaurants, and those that offer options for Jainists. Check out our (non vegan) guides to Parisian eating here. See Sam's review of the Jain-friendly Krishna Bhavan restaurant.
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It might not be appropriate to use this website as a platform to blow off steam, but at the same time, there is a lesson to be learned in my most recent exchange with a paper supply store in Paris. It will remain unnamed, but please let the title of this blog post give you a good idea. I recently bought 140 cards, envelopes, inserts, return envelopes, and a batch of A4 paper to create our own wedding invitations. The paper was slightly metallic. When we bought it, we were told it could be used with inkjet printers. Let it also be known, there are signs EVERYwhere in the store that say "no returns". So we brought it home, printed a few tests on it, and low and behold, this metallic paper did not absorb the ink and even after 24, 48 hours the ink smeared easily. I called the…
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In Russia, Christmas comes in January, due to the Eastern Orthodox Julian calendar. In France, Christmas comes in January because of the secular commerce code. I am talking of course, about les soldes, the twice-yearly retail sales which, unlike in other countries, are strictly regulated in France. To be honest since 2009 the government has become more lax about sales, allowing periods of “floating sales” that last two weeks at any given period in the year. Nevertheless, in the heart of many French people, les soldes is something of a secular holiday. On the first morning of the sale period (the second Wednesday in January and then the last Wednesday in June) people line up in front of shops, waiting to get their hands on freshly marked-down fashion. People from the provinces come to Paris to scour the prestigious grands magasins, students cut their Wednesday classes, and office workers take…
Our household took on two new roommates in April 2012, a kitten by the name of Bibi (no relation to Netanyahu) and Toonces, my 16 year old cat I have had since childhood that my parents brought over. It wasn't more than a couple weeks of trips to and from the supermarket carrying 5-10 kilo bags/boxes of kitty litter that I said to myself, "there must be a simpler way". And there was - a thing called Zooplus.fr. Now there are many online pet supply stores that will deliver to your door, I imagine, in fact I ordered their "maisonnette" (see photo to the right) to hide their litter box from a competing site for a reason I can't remember, but I am a loyal Zooplus customer. They make it quite easy for you by storing your previous orders and allowing you to re-order them with a simple click. (I…
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Ever since I first arrived in Paris, I would regularly receive flyers in my mailbox with “useful” telephone numbers for whatever arrondissement I was living in. These flyers contained numbers for the police, firefighters, city hall, as well as plumbers, locksmiths, and electricians. They looked official and every time I got one, I put it on my refrigerator in case of an emergency. Well one day, I had an emergency—a plumbing emergency—and having unsuccessfully tried to unclog the toilet via tips on Yahoo answers, I called the plumber listed on the informations utiles tract. Big mistake. The plumbers turned out to be crooks: they left me with an exorbitant bill and I later discovered that what was originally frozen pipes became a broken toilet thanks to their “intervention”. Trying to track them down became futile—as it quickly became clear that taking them to court would end up costing more in…
How to Live in Paris projects Obama win. Life abroad for Americans remains easier.
Price: Pricey, but not as much as neighborhood rivals "Candelaria" or "Experimental Cocktail Bar". Our cocktails were 12 Euros each and packed a punch. Clientel: Mid-20s to late 30s, hipsters, trendy, friendly. Bathrooms: Clean. Location: 60 rue Charlot, 75003 Paris. Closest metros: Republique, Filles du Calvaire, Oberkampf, Temple A new cocktail bar has opened on Rue Charlot. Full disclosure, I signed a petition that circulated among our neighbors against the opening of a bar on Rue Charlot as it was close to our apartment. Well, a lot of good that did: Little Red Door opened its little door earlier this month. Turns out the little door has little functionality, but its red contrast with the black and white striped wallpaper are about all you can see when you walk by the place so it does peak your interest. Fortunately for sanity's sake, the crowd does not spill out on to…
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The neighborhood around the La Chapelle metro line is known as Paris's little India-- where brightly colored sari shops, Bollywood video stores, and cheap eyebrow threading salons dot the otherwise grey, urban landscape. For non-residents though, the main draw are the restaurants. Unlike say, London, good Indian food in Paris can be tricky to find; likewise vegetarian restaurants are an endangered species in the French dining scene. Enter Krishna Bhavan, an excellent Indian-vegetarian restaurant that quickly creates converts. Small, unpretentious, and shockingly inexpensive, Krishna Bhavan has some of the best dal curry at an amazing low €5.50-- also delicious is the chappatti flatbread, the poori, and the ginger tea (sorry tipplers, the restaurant appears to be dry). Neither Sam nor Brenna are reliable sources on the authenticity of the restaurant (as neither one has been to India)-- however friends who are often on the subcontinent are adamant that Krishna…
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Taxi sharing has finally arrived in Paris! Taxis G7 has launched the Wecab service which allows Parisians to get to the airport with a few more detours for a few less euros. To use the service, you need to reserve your taxi ahead of time online and specify pick-up address and which airport you want to be dropped at and sign up for a 30 minute pick-up time window. A few hours before pick-up, you'll receive an SMS with specifications on the arrival time of the taxi and a description of the car. Expect to make a few friends as the driver will collect new passengers along the way. Sam recently tested Wecab on a ride to the airport in the wee hours and ended up paying half of what she normally would have paid making it a perfect compromise between public transit and a classic taxi. What better…
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Random H2 Tip
Too cheap for a plane ticket to Tokyo? Head to the Rue Ste-Anne in the 1st for authentic Japanese cuisine. Brenna swears by Aki and Sam loves the soup at Naniwa-Ya.