I've went there a few times and I was quite underwhelmed. Not because it's a bad city but because it's genuinely just like every other European capital.
Belle Époque
>>18053991french is just a nice language
>>18053991Maybe because French was the language of the British nobility for the four hundred years? Or maybe because since the second half of the XVII century all of the nobility of Europe was speaking french as the second language and being intro Versailles high culture? Or maybe because during the Belle Epoque France has invented cinema and cars and being even ahead of the US ? The city of Paris was in epicentre of this.
>>18053991Is it true that it smells awful?
>>18053991Paris, at least the central parts, looks objectively nicer than other European capitals like London or Berlin. Paris looks like it has an HOALondon looks like a freeforall
>>18053991It's a Jewish city. Philosemites love Paris because it's where all the Jewish intellectuals hang out
>>18053991Compared to smelly filthy industrial shithole like London, Paris from 1850s to 1910s was probably the best, most beautiful city to live in with its wide boulevards, state of the art modern (for 19 century standards) architecture and amazing cultural and artistic life. French was still enough lingua franca enough to be enjoyed by anyone decently educated. France in belle epoque was really something else, not even germoid invasion of 1870 could spoil it.
Touristic hype often focuses on the Eiffel Tower and Louvre rather than lived culture.
>>18054494People shat in the streets of Paris. London was actually cleaner because they dumped the waste into the Thames
Paris is extremely beautiful. For centuries though, people have pointed to the fact that those who idolise famous cities like Paris or Rome and then go there often end up disappointed because the realities of modern urban centres (poor people everywhere, rubbish, bad smells, etc) are unavoidable and it "taints" the experience.Paris in the 2nd French Empire was indeed insanely beautiful and wondrous, because Nappy III specifically wanted to make it so. This obviously didn't last, but I can't think of any European capital of the same scale that would match the reputation of being brilliant and beautiful.
>>18053991It's like every European city because they all copied Paris.
>>18054219Central Paris where the tourist attractions and cafes are? No. The outskirts, yeah, that's where it's trash piled up in the streets and puddles and streams of human piss are.
>>18054127This. Plus, nobody realized that French civilization impact was mortally wounded in 1789 and it finally died around middle of 20th century.
>>18053991Paris is the first republican-liberal center with the French domain, after centuries of feudalism, in the world. Ever wondered why nobody considers Switzerland the paramount of republicanism, despite claiming to be the oldest democracy in the world? Paris/France: It is the deathbed of monarchism/feudalism-medievality. It is the birthplace of republicanism/modernity-contemporaneity. The legacy remains – is – no matter how symbolic or energetic.The kingdoms that still exist, the nobilities that still persist, together with the remnant nobilities under the same vein that escaped destruction, want back the Old World Order. The French may be as they are, that's true and subject to criticism, ridicule, and humor, they're not immune to wickedness or and counterproductive behaviours themselves. Just as any personalized human being... ...However... ...Attacking the ideals of the French Revolution and dismantling of the republican-liberal system – simply because it succeeded via the French – is similar to watching your mother or older sibling abused, raped, and murdered in front of you, standing still, because you're still mad at her for whatever insignificant reason of the situation . It's a very easy of a slippery slope, from criticizing the personal[sized] wickedness of the French from a case by cases basis, to make it into a criticism of republican liberal system, school(s) of thought, agency etcetera.Do you understand? Some French are pricks & wicked, some are not. The criticism/ridicule of their pricklyness & wickedness must be separated of the baseline background of republicanism and liberalism, their inherent legacy to the world. Do you understand, now? They're not immune from criticism & ridicule, regarding personal idiosyncracies (wickedness, counterproductive traits & vices...). The criticism & ridicule must not come at the cost of destroying the republican-liberal ideals of the French Revolution.
>>18053991It was the crucible of art culture. It influence in the matter was taken by New-York post-WW2.It's also a very old city, but that was harmoniously rebuild during the XIXth century (Haussmann architecture) and it remained mostly intact during the war
