You got very hungry when you did not eat enough in Paris because all the baker shops had such good things in the windows and people ate outside at tables on the sidewalk so that you saw and smelled the food. When you were skipping meals at a time when you had given up journalism and were writing nothing that anyone in America would buy, explaining at home that you were lunching out with someone, the best place to do it was the Luxembourg gardens where you saw and smelled nothing to eat all the way from the Place de l'Observatoire to the rue de Vaugirard.
...I certainly have memories of it, and things I crave when I'm away, but, justement , I keep coming back to Paris because I can't replicate the feelings I have when we're here.
If I had prizes, I'd give them away, but this quiz has more to do with smug self-satisfaction. Extra points if you know what words the letters say. 
But spare a thought for France, where the opposite is true: local authorities regularly force men to ditch their Bermudas and parade in skin-tight budgie-smugglers for the greater public good. In French public pools, from the racing lanes of Paris to the open-air lidos and water parks of the south, anything bigger than Speedos is banned and you must hoist yourself into a posing pouch as a civic requirement.
... This sounds like another attempt to shore up French industry, but it does have a certain logic in a country trying to welcome differences, but at the heart, trying to make everyone into a Frenchman.
Well, that used to be the case, back in the day when people took vacations where no one can reach you and you forget as much as you can about worklife for a week. ... I don't think you can discount the long term effect of the Haussmann reconstruction of this city that made it into a fairly uniform, but beautiful composite that also reflects a golden light that is unique to Paris, at least among large cities. ... We come from San Francisco so we know what natural beauty is, but we're always dismayed by urban San Francisco: the omnipresent work-live lofts which now dominate every neighborhood with an architectural style that no one would ever want to represent their city.
I love to read reports like this one from someone whose favorite meal during their stay in Paris was some crepes they ate at 10PM. Paris is full of city life; its bustling energy is one that I haven't found in many American cities. However, despite the tourism, the main roads and historic attractions such as the Champs Elysses, have become crowded and mind-boggling to navigate. ... My favorite and only desirable part of Paris was Montmartre; champagne made this New Year's night a wonderful experience as we walked through the streets like rebellious teenagers.
