It has been another fun day – Montmartre for lunch, the area around Les Halles and Saint Eustache in the afternoon, refreshments on Rue Montorgueil in the evening, and dinner at a great little Italian restaurant to cap things off. We made the short walk back to the apartment and settled in for the night.
We were too stuffed from dinner to go to bed, so we turned on television. The big story on the local news was a debate about stores in Paris being either allowed or prohibited from opening for business on Sundays. In small French towns, most stores and many restaurants are closed on Sundays. In Paris, because of the tourist business, most restaurants and cafes are open on Sunday. So are lots of stores that cater to tourists, but the general rule is that stores other than grocery stores and pharmacies are prohibited from opening on Sunday.
Well, a couple of big French stores had announced that starting soon, they’re going to be open on Sundays, regardless of what the law says. (That in itself is pretty interesting). One of the stores in violation was the French version of our Home Depot. (The French are big into do-it-yourself fixer-upper stuff, like us). Another one was a huge Sephora store on the Champs Elysée. This has caused quite a debate.
On one hand, the “traditionalists” argue that customs like resting on Sunday are in accordance with most French people’s religious beliefs. Plus, it’s also a good idea to have a day when people slow down from life’s hectic pace, stop to smell the roses, have family time, etc.
But those who want the change point out that unemployment is a serious problem. (It had been hovering around 9-10%). People who want or even need the work are being hurt by the law. They say they’re being denied the right to work.
Not only that, they say, but also, businesses can increase their profits significantly by being open on Sunday, and for some smaller businesses, that might mean the difference between staying afloat or sinking.
But people who don’t want stores to be allowed to open on Sunday point out that as France becomes more and more like the United States, people are becoming workaholics who are obsessed with making money. But the others reply that most people just want to make better lives for themselves and their families. Tough one, eh?
Our Paris Apartment at Night
Our apartment at night was a relaxing, comfortable place to be. Much cozier than a hotel room, that’s for sure. Little “tea candles” were scattered around the rooms, so we lit some to give a nice glow in the place.
Tomorrow is our last day in Paris. Our plan is to take a boat ride on the Seine. Then in the evening, we have an appointment at a wine tasting place that sounds interesting. They’ll spend an hour or so telling us about different wine regions in France while we taste samples from each. That should be fun.
There are a number of options to choose from when taking a boat ride on the Seine. We chose one that circled around all day long, stopping at major tourist attractions along the way. People get on and get off as they please. The closest place for us to board was near the Louvre museum, which is a short walk from Montorgueil.
Our plan was to board the boat at a dock near the Louvre. From there, we’ll head to where the Eiffel Tower is, then continue on to the D’Orsay Museum. We’ll stay on the boat and keep going to Notre Dame Cathedral, then to a big public park called “Jardin des Plantes.” We’ll continue on until we reach a dock near City Hall. After getting off there, we’ll go to a nearby restaurant that’s on our restaurants-to-try list for lunch.
Fortunately for us, we’ve been to most of the places near where the boat stops, so we won’t have to get out and go see ‘em up close, but it should be fun to see them from the boat.
To be continued…
See Renting an Apartment in Paris for details.
