Right now, I want to experience spring awakening at it’s best and get a fresh shot of joie de vivre in my system now that the dullest winter months have passed. So where better than the City of Lights itself? After all, who doesn’t love Paris in the Spring? It’s when the city is at its most romantic and vibrant, and although the weather is known to be a bit hit and miss, Paris is one of the few cities in the world where rain only adds to its charm; just make sure you bring an umbrella chic enough to blend in with the crowds on the Champs-Elysees.
There’s also plenty going on this month to keep even the most weathered Paris visitors entertained. From sampling foie gras at the annual fair to listening to jazz at dusk, you can be sure you’ll leave feeling très cultured and ready to grab whatever the rest of 2017 has to offer.
Foire de Paris
One of the highlights of Spring: the annual Paris Fair takes over the Porte de Versailles convention halls from late April until the end of May and offers the chance to experience the best France has to offer in one giant 200,000m² space. A great opportunity to try all the regional delicacies of France without leaving the capital, check out the latest trends in interior design and architecture and even see which latest gadgets are being paraded in the tech world.
Warning: it will probably take you at least four hours to get past the wine and cheese stands so plan to spend at least half a day here.
Sweet music
Located in the suburbs just outside of Paris, the annual Banlieues Blues Jazz Festival is well worth a visit if you’re a fan of jazz, or even just good music in general. It’s already been a hundred years since the first commercial jazz recording (!!) and this is really one of the best places to see just how much the genre has evolved since then, with talented musicians taking inspiration from every music genre you can think of to experiment with the form.
A fine secret
If you long to escape from the bustling tourist cafes serving croque-monsieurs to find a truly unique dining experience, then look no further than Derrière (irony intended). Hidden behind a secret door on Rue des Gravilliers, you’ll feel like you’ve accidentally wandered into a stranger’s apartment, who will just so happen to treat you to some amazing home-cooked food in whichever room you care to take it, be that the salon, the garden, the bedroom… Basically, if you ever wanted to know what your life would be like if you were in a French noir film this is the place to go.
Another man’s treasure
If you like to combine shopping with adventure (who doesn’t?), then spend a few hours getting lost in the flea market Les Puces de Saint-Ouen: a ramshackle labyrinth preserving a time once past, which you can buy a piece of for very little indeed. Prepare to find delights you didn’t even know existed in this world and have some fun haggling and bartering with the stall owners. Just make sure you’ll be able to fit that vintage avant-garde lamp in your hand luggage on the way home...
Want to experience la vie Parisienne for longer than just a weekend? Study Abroad Apartments offers some great options for students planning to live abroad in the City of Lights. Just get in touch with us if you need any help finding somewhere to stay and we’ll make sure you have one of the best options out there :)
