Paris for Singles
As luck would have it, this year the usually unassuming event of St. Valentine’s Day is making itself known all around. At least in my (currently single) life. Many many people seem to be anticipating it as an almost fully resurrected Christmas, love-style. Maybe it’s because I’m editing reviews on lover’s getaways, and attending flower-arranging and perfume-making courses with La Belle Ecole (more on that soon). Maybe it’s an evil joke on the part of my favorite ugly aunt, Fate. Or it might be simply because I’m in Paris, one of the most ‘romantic cities in the world’.
But I don’t think so. Even in this red-and-pink tide of pre-Valentine swoon, I maintain that this is a wonderful city in which to roam as a loner. I’m not saying it’s great all the time, because it sure isn’t. But certain aspects of what the city has on offer can be enjoyed alone just as well as when you’re two.
Here’s a crazy idea: the Metro as an activity! Public transport can be a very solitary world, and after quite a long time I realize now that if you approach it as a time to commune, be ‘at one’ with yourself (forgive the expression), it doesn’t have to be all bad.
It must be said that the RATP (the company which ‘runs’ the city’s underground transportation network) is an absurd conglomerate, in the way that every single ticket clerk is on the phone at all times when you need to ask a question, and mainly in how the idea of the Metrocard has still not caught on here: if you don’t qualify for the special ‘Navigo’ pass, which you don’t, you still have to deal with ridiculously small, extremely losable bits of rectangular paper to be able to access the trains. It’s also faaaar from clean down there, but the same can be said for the Underground in London and the Subway in NYC. But somehow, people (men) feel disproportionately more inclined to treat the underground tunnels as bathrooms here in Paris. French people also stare at you when you’re riding in the cars, because culturally no one seems to consider direct eye-contact here as an intimate exchange, as they do in America. I am still at a loss as to what I do to attract all the attention, mainly from bored-looking middle-aged women. But I have gotten used to it, and now I simply stare them down.
So, what the hell am I talking about? Why would anyone want to spend time slinking through the lines, alone or accompanied? Allow me to specify: the line 6, colored turquoise on the map, is actually a great (and cheap) way to see some stunning and typically Parisien neighborhoods, as the line is at least 60 percent above ground. It crosses the Seine a total of two times, and generally is a wonderful way to get from point A to point B with a gorgeous view out the window in the meantime.
I have felt this way about line 6 for years, since back in my school days (a total of 5 years running now) when I boarded at Raspail in the 14th arrondissement to take the train across the river to Passy, where I had French immersion class 5 days a week. Now I live again in the same general area, just in the middle of the line, about 10 minutes from Edgar Quinet. Since moving back here, I have been prone to planning my trajectories through entire halves of the line in order to enjoy the languid and yes, scenic ride, even when it may not be the fastest way to get where I’m going (god help me, I might truly be turning French).
Let’s take it stop by stop. Board at Etoile, the labyrinthine station laid out underneath the grand Arc de Triomphe. Pass the station KLEBER, which must be written in all caps since that’s how it’s written in the station – significant, loud and bold. Kleber the man was a significant and bold general during the time of Napoleon who was instrumental in the latter’s campaign in Egypt. Before getting to Passy, where I have my first nostalgic moment while reminiscing about French class, go through Trocadero, which quietly reminds me of a link to London (there’s a Tube stop named Trocadero too). So far you’re still underground, but not for long. After Passy (which is an interesting station with stone staircases built on a precipice of sorts in the heart of one of the chicest ‘hoods in Paris – the 16th), explode out onto the river for the premiere view that makes this the best (or only worthwhile) line of the Metro. Even if you’re not a sworn lover of the Paris-phallus Eiffel Tower, one can’t help but stare at her as she hovers past and think, wow, what a trip to be able to see the most famous Parisian emblem while doing something as simple and everyday as riding public transport! You also have the river itself to look out over, with its péniches, banks, and statues on the bridge, all part of a surprisingly unobstructed view from the traincar windows. Definitely the best Metro river crossing.
After this seeming suspension out over the water, you ‘land’ at Bir Hakeim, which is the stop to use if you’re needing to see Ms. Eiffel up close and personal (I think the metro view more than suffices). Just after, the train commences the most pleasantly sophisticated leg of its repetitive journey, jaunting and swimming through the facades and faces of classic Parisian apartment buildings in the 6th and 7th arrondissements, whizzing by all the iron grillwork that accentuate all the windows. The stations are evenly spaced out and rather frequent as you glide through these rich quartiers—Dupleix, La Motte-Picquet Grenelle (quite a mouthful)—occasionally catching perspective glimpses of streets that launch themselves perpendicularly away from the tracks. And good old Eiffel continues to peak out at you, over buildings and in momentary spaces in between, as late as Sèvres-Lecourbe.
Although one can appreciate this ride at any time, the best time to enjoy this part is during the daytime, preferably on a cloudy day with a dramatic sky (of which there are quite a few in Paris). This provides for an arresting backdrop to all the architectural beauty shifting past for the eye to take in.
If you look carefully (out the left window and towards the back), you can even spot the golden-domed Invalides, just before dipping underground at Pasteur. This takes you through Montparnasse-Bienvenue, the busy train station for outlying lines, dominated by the eyesore of the Tour Montparnasse, which you should be glad you can’t see. Then it’s off to Edgar Quinet, which is the ideal pitstop if one should become necessary. This small nexus of streets has everything you might need, from cafés to a high number of crêperies to movie theatres. There is also a wide range of country-specific cuisine here, from Belgian to Japanese and Korean eateries.
When you’re ready to reboard (that’ll be another 1 euro 40 – still not too bad), you’ll quickly pass my second nostalgic station, Raspail, where I lived ‘way back when’. Then resurface at Saint-Jacques and swing by my favorite area in town – that of the Buttes aux Cailles in the 13th district. This laid-back and small town-ish neighborhood is the perfect balance of Parisien chic and developing ‘accessibility’. If you’ve had enough of the train, you can ‘descend’ at the Corvisart station in order to explore the Butte further.
We dunk underground yet again for Place d’Italie, which is just as good since there is no reason to actually see this enormous and completely unremarkable intersection either. We’re getting there. Now we break out into the open air for a decidedly different neighborhood stretch – still in the 13th. But now the train is sailing through different kinds of buildings, dressed in more modern and developing architecture. What I love about the 13th is that it’s newer, so it is possible to see its changes and developments. This makes for a nice change from the more historical and posher arrondissements we were examining on the first half of the line. The new Le Monde headquarters can be seen in this stretch, on the left, covered in an impressive glass dressing of sorts that is hard to miss. Be sure as well to watch out for the Church in the Place Jeanne d’Arc, poised at the end of a street to the right between Nationale and Chevaleret.
If you haven’t noticed by now, all the observations and reflections I make about this simple trip come from years of riding and spacing out on it alone. I don’t know if I would have come to know it so well, expecting certain sights and feelings every time, if I had always been riding with another person.
Quai de la Gare, the stop where I used to get off to go work as a bartender, is another trapeze-act of a station, hung between two large voids of space created by the river on one side and suburban train tracks on the other. Quai de la Gare is found in the most developing part of the 13th, near the BNF (The National Library of France, which makes itself visible during the impending crossing). This a highly modern district, with a rather flourishing gallery scene (in the rue Chevaleret), and again the change, for me, is welcome.
During the second crossing of the Seine, remark on how different it seems. Smoke stacks are visible, and every time I do it I have the sense I am on the edge of the city, which is actually the case. It is still beautiful, wide open, the river stretching out underneath you. If you’re a fan of weird/interesting architecture, you’ll be satisfied by two things: firstly the 4 open-book towers of the Library which float past behind us, and then the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, or Bercy Stadium. This state-of-the-art arena for sporting events and enormous rock stars (I’ve seen Madonna there – twice) has one of the most bizarre exteriors. Covered in large slanted walls of grass and blue piping, it almost looks like the robot-version of a mountain.
Back into the ground again, through Bercy. The rest of the line does remain there, except for one last peak above at Bel-Air. For those who like to finish the job, exit at Nation, a historic and giant plaza that is unfortunately always bombarded with traffic.
And there you have it! A varied, multi-faceted trip through the left bank of Paris, all for the price of a metro ticket. You don’t even need anyone else to entertain you, since you can just sink in among all the other passengers who are, whether they know it or not, along for the ride. Valentine WHO?
Link to interactive RATP Metro maps – www.ratp.info
