Please don't take what I am about to say the wrong way: I really hate being a tourist. I mean, it's great to be able to "see the sights," and I am genuinely so thankful to have this experience, but tourists are just ... annoying. And as wonderful as things like the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre are, I much prefer things ... less tourist-y. Cue the benefits of having local French friends.
Saturday night I met up with mon amie Valentine again. She told me there was this place near la Place de la République that I would love, and we pretty much left it at that. I had no idea what we were going or what we would do there, but boy, was she right that I would love it.
We went to this place called le Comptoir Général. It's hard to explain exactly what the building's purpose is, because it has so many. The space serves as a bar, restaurant, book store, vintage clothing resale shop, concert hall, movie theater, art museum and overall super cool hangout place. It turns out, Val's cousin-in-law is actually the person responsible for the establishment.
Saturday night I met up with mon amie Valentine again. She told me there was this place near la Place de la République that I would love, and we pretty much left it at that. I had no idea what we were going or what we would do there, but boy, was she right that I would love it.
We went to this place called le Comptoir Général. It's hard to explain exactly what the building's purpose is, because it has so many. The space serves as a bar, restaurant, book store, vintage clothing resale shop, concert hall, movie theater, art museum and overall super cool hangout place. It turns out, Val's cousin-in-law is actually the person responsible for the establishment.
Le Comptoir Général is decorated with a retro African theme with a splash of the bizarre. From displays like le Centre des Objets Perdus (the center for lost objects) to an African verison of the Little Shop of Horrors, one feels like they are anywhere else but Paris while inside le Comptoir Général. Val explained that her cousin drew inspiration for the building's looks from his dreams (talk about interesting dreams). Check out some more pictures of le Comptoir Général to "feel its vibe."
Val told me that le Comptoir Général first became popular with the "bobos," (hipsters) of Paris, but now draws a large crowd of adults, children and every age in between. There really is no other place like it, and I hope there never is. Its creativity and uniqueness make it what it is, and if there was every anything remotely similar, it would detract from its wonder.
So here's a tip from one non-tourist-y tourist to another – make sure you visit le Comptoir Général if you ever make it to Paris, because you won't experience anything like it anywhere else!
Val told me that le Comptoir Général first became popular with the "bobos," (hipsters) of Paris, but now draws a large crowd of adults, children and every age in between. There really is no other place like it, and I hope there never is. Its creativity and uniqueness make it what it is, and if there was every anything remotely similar, it would detract from its wonder.
So here's a tip from one non-tourist-y tourist to another – make sure you visit le Comptoir Général if you ever make it to Paris, because you won't experience anything like it anywhere else!