Being McKinley: Becoming a true Parisian

Now that I have been out of Paris for a little while, I realized that when you are there conforming to their Parisian lifestyle is the key to a great trip. I put together a few of my favorite things that I learned over the past month.

To be a true Parisian while traveling in Paris, you need to …

- Learn a few words in French… if you walk into a bakery or a restaurant saying “bonjour” you will have a way better experience. Learning “hello” “please” “thank you” “pardon” “may I have” and “goodbye” goes A LOONNGG WAY in the eyes of a Parisian.

- Dress like a Parisian. And by that I mean don’t wear your short Free People or cute Jcrew shorts. You are telling everyone that you are an American and want to be looked at/touched/cat called/pickpocketed. [Quick story: I was doing my laundry and decided to throw on my one pair of jean shorts just to walk the 2 1/2 blocks to the laundry mat. On my 3-minute walk, I was cat called, honked at, grabbed, and glared at by a few people. The cat calling may boost my confidence for about half a second and then you look at the guys and realize they are gross fat old men 99% of the time. And that was the first and last time I wore shorts in Paris.]

- But seriously dress like you live in Paris. Fun fact about Parisians: they always wear pants. If it's 95 degrees outside most people will be wearing jeans with a shirt/blouse/tank with a winter coat thrown over their arm or in their bag. They are always cold. Buy some cute summery scarves and you are golden.

- Learn how to swipe your Metro pass without opening your bag to get it out. The first few days we (mostly me) would continuously hold up everyone in line to get home or work or wherever he or she is going at that moment. It sucks, and it makes all the Parisian annoyed at the stupid American. You can swipe your pass through anything. After learning that I always knew where my pass was in my purse, and it was an easy swipe to get through quickly.

- Do not use big bills to pay for small things. I think this goes almost everywhere in Europe, but if you have a 50€ chances are most people will not have change for it or will not take it even if they do have change for it. I have had times where I am buying something for a few Euros, and the cashier won’t even take my 20€ … UGH, Annoying.

- Do Not Smile. Okay, well you can smile, but not towards anyone. If you accidently do smile towards someone, do not show your teeth while you are smiling at them. In the French culture smiling with your teeth is a sign that you are interested in them and may or may not want to go home with them if you catch my drift. ;) On that note, don’t look at people when you are walking around. Most people in Paris enjoy keeping to themselves. Parisians do not look at people. Parisians look through people.

- Do not eat the Chinese food. When you walk around Paris, there are a bunch of little restaurants that have yummy looking Chinese food. Do not be fooled by the delicious colors and smells. The TWO places that we went to over the month both turned into hot messes. Learn your lesson from me. The food has been sitting out all day. Not good.

- Hang out on the Seine. True Parisian grabs a baguette and some cheese and a bottle of wine or two (if that is your thing) and hang out on the river. Some people bring their guitars, but usually you are there to laugh, hang out and make memories. It turns into a party late and night, but it is something everyone can enjoy.