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Street Art With Peter: Paris, France

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Street Art With Peter: Paris, France

Similar to my sentiments about the street art I found in Naples, I think the street art of Paris feels quite unique in the context of the murals I’ve seen overall. Indeed, these pieces of art like there were directly inspired by and connected to the city around them—which is not always the case! In North America—where there are some incredible works of art tucked away down alleyways in cities like Toronto or San Francisco—the artistry can weirdly begin to blend together after a few cities. Perhaps this is a symptom of the cultural homogeneity of the continent at large, or maybe I’m just looking for meaning in a place where this none to be found… but the murals I saw in Paris definitely felt like they belonged here.

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Peter's First Champions League Match: PSG v. Girona @Parc des Princes (Paris)

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Peter's First Champions League Match: PSG v. Girona @Parc des Princes (Paris)

Tonight is not a regular season match! No; this is UEFA Champions League (UCL). If you are not familiar, UCL is where to top placing teams from the domestic leagues all around Europe play against each other. So, for example, Arsenal plays in the English Premiere League, while Juventus plays in Italian Serie A. These are two famous clubs that would never play against each other during regular season play. The only place where you see international cross-over is UCL, and that is why it’s one of the coolest things in sports! Only the best teams from each domestic league will qualify, and the exact number of teams that make it into UCL from each domestic league depends on how good that league is. So, for example, in Ligue 1 (France) the top 3 teams qualify for the next season of UCL, where as La Liga (Spain) it’s the top 4 teams. This is because La Liga is more competitive than Ligue 1. How “competitiveness” is measured is subject to some controversy… but that’s the gist of it.

So this is a Champions League match, and PSG are up against the Spanish side Girona, who came out of nowhere to finish 3rd in their 2023/2024 campaign, behind only Barça and Real Madrid. Let’s do this!

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Peter at The Paris Olympics

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Peter at The Paris Olympics

During the 2024 Summer Olympics, it just so happened that I was living in Paris. Cool, right? Well, not if you asked any Parisian at the time. I love them, but they can be quite a negative bunch, and this proved especially true when it came to the Olympics. In anticipation of the games, they fled the city like an enemy force was about to invade. As a newly minted resident of Paris, I too took on this negative attitude, seemingly by osmosis. Maybe I just wanted to be included. 😂

THANK GOD I snapped out of that funk and bought some tickets! I attended 3 events at the 2024 Olympics, and it was one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever had.

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The Louvre: Peter Braves The Crowds to Gaze Upon the Mona Lisa

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The Louvre: Peter Braves The Crowds to Gaze Upon the Mona Lisa

Located on the right (north) bank of the Seine in the center of the Paris, the Louvre is, perhaps, the most famous museum on planet earth. But it didn’t always serve this function. Originally, when it was originally constructed all the way back in 1100s, it was actually a fortress. I mean a true Medieval castle, like you see in the movies, complete with turrets and a big moat around it. Eventually, as the urban footprint of Paris began to expand, this castle transition from a military installation to a palace for the French royals. I am really resisting the urge to jump down a history worm-hole here, so but to summarize centuries of history into a a few lines… the physical structure that was this castle was altered many times for many reasons through history. In the late 1600s, when King Louis XIV relocated to the Palace of Versailles, the Louvre was repurposed to house his extensive art collection… and things have evolved from there. It was first opened to the public in 1793 with a mere 537 paintings, and that number has now grown to include a breath-taking 500,000 objects, which collectively attract almost 9 million visitors per year, making it the most visited museum in the world.

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Peter Goes Tourist-ing in Paris (France)

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Peter Goes Tourist-ing in Paris (France)

Now that we’ve done a bit of ground-work on Paris in the previous article, let’s get out there and start tickin’ some tourist destinations off the ol’ list, eh?

In this article we’re going to cover The Eiffel Tower, Cathédrale Notre-Dame (outside), Madeline, Place Vendôme, Tuileries Gardens, Jardin Du Palais Royale, Sainte-Chapelle, Galeries Lafayette, Basilique du Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre, and The Louvre Museum (teaser)

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An Intro to the City of Light: Central Paris & Expat Life with Peter

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An Intro to the City of Light: Central Paris & Expat Life with Peter

Paris needs no introduction, but here’s one anyway.

Paris is the capital of France and—in terms of metro area—the largest city in the European Union by a HUGE margin. According to the OECD, the population is 11.2 million. For context, the next largest metro area population in the EU is Madrid, at 6.9 million. London (now ex-EU) and Istanbul (definitely not EU) clock-in at 13.4m and 14.6m respectively, according to the same OECD data set. So Paris is more than just a historic, beautiful place (although it is those things as well)—it actually fits the definition for a “mega-city”, in the same league as Mumbai, Mexico City or Los Angeles.

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Peter's Camera Roll: #TBT To Geneva & Salève Mountain

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Peter's Camera Roll: #TBT To Geneva & Salève Mountain

So have you ever considered coming to Geneva? I’m betting the answer is no. Geneva isn’t a common stop-over in European travel, because it has a reputation for being super expensive and (tbh) kind of boring. It’s mostly a hub for international organizations like the WHO, WTO, Doctors Without Borders, and quite a few different UN offices. It’s also got a reputation for being home to a lot of “old money.” So this is a city that really does matter in the world… but might not be quite as relevant for your average traveler.

However, that doesn’t mean the city isn’t still gorgeous! Geneva is surrounded the Alps on all sides, and sits on the southernmost shores of Lake Geneva. It’s just a hop, skip, and a jump from some of the most beautiful terrain in the world, and the city itself is also very pretty.

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