FRENCH PRESS IN THE MORNING AND RICK STEVES HISTORY

I noticed the French press in the sidewalk restaurants one Paris local said cost $100K in fees for table rights.

Tight stadium seating from one place to the next looked formidable, but not to Rick Steves fans.

Stadium seating? All eyes forward in most cases, but what’s to see?

Traffic, on foot and in cars, pass like a river of humanity.

Shoulder to shoulder manners work in unison with waiters swinging full trays in and out of tight places made tighter because the French press is in play.

Where else does this happen?

When the kings of France lived in Versailles everyone watched them eat. They also watched the queens give birth like a spectator event.

The crowd at Versailles has made the jump to modern days.

Ride the Metro for a good French press. Shoulder to shoulder, front to back space taken up, and you’ll feel the breath of your new neighbor.

French press in museums

More amazing to me was the thrill of crowds lining up to see the Mona Lisa, Versailles, and every other museum. People love scooping up a little France, and little Paris, to take home with them.

From my American eyes I see the crowds waiting at the door for Black Friday sales, then the race once the doors open. Would rushing to the front to see Mona Lisa mean you care more?

France with Rick Steves

I’ve watched a travel show on public broadcasting for years. It’s a Sunday tradition, now good anytime with DVR, and didn’t project out to a time when I would visit the same places.

Call it a failure to project, but Rick Steves’ destinations weren’t my goal. What did I know?

Now I know. A Rick Steves Paris tour is like taking a class. No, it is a class. And it’s not just the guides.

Part of the deal is good guides, of course, but it’s also about the guides who take over in specific venues; the guides guide, and I need some guiding.

What’s it like listening to Parisienne voices explain the unexplainable? Pretty nice, I’ve got to say.

I like the voice of authority and nothing says listen than such a voice noting the march of time one brushstroke at a time, one chiseled chunk on the floor at a time. Art authority.

French press in the head

What I haven’t heard from anyone is what it’s like living in the shadow of world monuments littered all over town. If massive castles, churches, and museums amaze visitors with their ceiling heights and space, what is there to say about the common denominator of Paris apartments?

From all locals, living space is small. Maybe it’s a size thing? Hotel rooms are also small. Not train or ferry cabin small, but side step small. Not uncomfortable small, just smaller than the average Comfort Inn room on the side of the freeway.

Yes, the side of the freeway isn’t Paris, and I get the notion that a room is small because you won’t spend as much time there in either place, but in France small fits better.

Tight living in small apartments, tight spaces in curbside restaurants, crowded subways, gaggles of visitors at tourist attractions?

Those are the examples of the French press. If you navigate it, congratulations. If it sounds like too much, practice before you leave home.

Complaining is not an option. Rick Steves doesn’t complain, France doesn’t complain, and neither should you. That’s the deal.