We are looking at renting an apartment in 2nd arrondisement. Have been to Paris several times, but would like comments please: are there little supermarkets in that area to buy food? are there inexpesive bistros/restaurants for evening dinner? Is it an area that is pleasant to stay in - it seems extremely convenient to all the major sites, but I would like to iknow what it is like to live there, get the basic foodstuffs etc. Is there a good atmosphere in the evenings, or is it inner-city %26quot;dead%26quot; at night? As there as many Americans who contribute to this forum, I%26#39;ll give you an idea of what we like - we love staying in Upper West Side in Manhattan, that sort of environment. I%26#39;d love comments please.
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Do you have the address ?
The 2nd is large and the area is very differentbetween Rue de la Paix (overly expensive, posh,...) and rue Saint Denis (red light district)
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Yes, the apartment is in Rue Vivienne, thank you.
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Rue Vivienne is in a business oriented area (Banks headquarters and such) not residential (basic foodstuff will be on the expensive side).
If you are north : you are close to the big depatment stores (Galeries Lafayette and Printemps - boulevard Hausmann)
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The rue Vivienne is a nice area to stay. Lots of bistros, from high end to hole in the wall. Near the Palais Royale and the Louvre, not far from the Opera. Ste Anne is a street full of art galleries and Japanese noodle joints. Chabonnais has a couple of artisans and a cool tea salon. The Bibliotheque Nationale often has small, interesting expos. I like it a lot and often choose to go there to flaner.
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Phread, where did you find unexpensive places there (even a place selling sandwiches for less than 6 Euros) ?
I often have to go rue de la Vrilliere (Banque de France) and still have to find something i could afford to eat (luch seems to be minimum 30 Euros and i can%26#39;t remeber seein a grocery store or a bakery ) ?
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The apartment is at #47 Rue Vivienne - we need to be able to pop out and buy pastries, or eggs and so on to make breakfast. Also, some nights we might want to eat in the apartment, so need to near a local mini supermarket or similar. Maybe this isn%26#39;t the area for us? We want to be able to walk to most main sights, and have the luxury of popping back in the middle of the day for a rest/drop off things/ before heading out again. Other ideas??? Dont want to be too far out - last year we stayed with a lady in her own apartment and it was in the 12e and felt too far out of things, and not many places to eat etc.
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Rue Vivienne is as central as it gets, and you%26#39;ll even have the luxury of choosing between different métro stations: Richelieu-Drouot (2 lines), Bourse (1 line). It%26#39;s relatively quiet at night, but hectic in the day time: if you are sensitive to noise, make sure that the the bedroom is courtyard facing, since rue Vivienne is an infamous traffic corridor, full of buses, scooters, etc.
Don%26#39;t worry about supermarkets: there is always a Franprix or a G20 at hand in Paris. Plenty of restaurants, cinemas, etc. on the Grands Boulevards, even if it%26#39;s definitely more low brow than what you could find in Saint-Germain for instance. But it%26#39;s real Paris, full of banlieusards on week-ends! For a touch of a trendier, edgier Paris, you can wander off to the South end of the arrondissement, on rue Montorgueuil and its adjoining streets, it%26#39;s within walking distance.
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You will also be very close to the Passages Panoramas and (on the other side of the boulevard) Passage Jouffroy - with their small boutiques:
http://www.insecula.com/salle/MS01141.html
www.parisinconnu.com/passages/jouffro1.htm
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We stay at #40 rue Vivienne.
This is a great area. Closest Metro is Grand Boulevards. Several good bus lines. I can give you a circular city tour using 4 or 5 of them and a good local walk.
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Francophool, do you walk to the Motorgueril Street area to eat out at night? or are there little places nearby to where you stay? Or does it feel like a %26quot;downtown%26quot; /business area at night - somewhat deserted? many thanks.
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