How can a beautiful Paris keep its soul? This is basically the question posed in this great article in The Guardian: “Battle for the Soul of a City” by Andrew Hussey. Turned onto this article by Notes from Paris (thanks F), I was delighted by the open and in-depth analysis of Paris, complete with a timeline of great events in Paris. Despite living in Paris and thinking I know the city well, there are always many more places to visit. The beauty of Paris continues to entrance me even after off and on 25 years of having lived in Paris. The dusk lights over the Concorde, the pristine sparkling Eiffel Tower, the grandeur of the Pantheon…all still impress me as on the first time I saw them.
Mr Hussey clearly is in the know as he enters in the deeper parts of Paris and is able to feel that Parisian conversation (with its well honed art of la Contestation) has moved inexorably to “worldly” topics including property prices such as one might hear in soulless Kensington in London.
And, I was amused to think that Bertrand Delanoë met up with Mayor Bloomberg (of NYC) to discuss the similar challenges between New York and Paris. Where there are lessons (and causes) to be shared are on the greening of the city: more recycling, more bicycling and, why not, more greenery…
