Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Supermarkets in Paris

In France there are two kinds of supermarkets. A supermarché is what comes up in most people's mind when they think of a supermarket. A hypermarché is a gigantic store that combines a supermarket and a department store. Besides food and drinks you can buy e.g. clothes, books, kitchen equipment, suitcases, office supplies and computers at hypermarchés

The following supermarché chains can be found at different locations in Paris:














Lidl
Lidl is the cheapest supermarket in Paris. Besides food and drinks, you can buy detergents and toiletries at Lidl. The disadvantage of Lidl is the lack of choice. You can buy three
different kinds of soap. That's it. However, soap costs € 0.80 at Lidl, whereas you would
pay € 1.50 at other stores. Another example is olive oil, which costs € 2.75 at Lidl and
€ 3.85 at some other stores. And a fresh pain au chocolat costs only € 0.35. If you want to
save money, I advice you to try to find what you're looking for at Lidl. If you can't find it there, go somewhere else.







DIA
DIA is a Spanish discount supermarket chain that has 90 stores in Paris. You're more likely to find a DIA in your neighborhood than a Lidl, the other discount supermarket chain. The difference with Lidl is that DIA comes up with great, but temporary (!) discounts, while Lidl has mostly fixed prices. DIA is slightly more expensive than Lidl, but sells a wider range of products. To give you an idea of the prices: 1 kilo of nectarines costs € 1.99, one lemon costs € 0.59 and a bottle of sugar free lemonade costs € 2.09. DIA's cheese is € 0.50 more expensive than Lidl's cheese.  







Carrefour City
Carrefour is a chain with both supermarchés (called ''Carrefour City'') and hypermarchés. Carrefour City can be found everywhere in Paris. In most cases it's a small store with a limited amount of products. Unlike Lidl, this is not reflected in the price. Carrefour City is the most expensive supermarket in Paris. You pay for the convenience of having a quality supermarket nearby, even if you live within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower. If you don't want to spend too much money on groceries I advice you to look for another supermarket.






 
 


Monoprix
Monoprix is somewhere in between a supermarché and a hypermarché. It combines food retailing with hardware, clothing, household items and gifts, but the stores are not as massive as the hypermarchés and can therefore be found in every arrondissement. In case you don't want to leave your house you can even buy Monoprix's products online and have it sent to your house. Monoprix is not a discount supermarket. The prices are similar to Carrefour City. People with a limited budget are better off going to Lidl or DIA, unless they need a dish brush or other household products.   



 
Franprix
There are regular sized and small stores of Franprix in Paris. In general, Franprix charges less for products that you could also find at Carrefour City and Monoprix. Lidl and DIA are cheaper though. A white baguette costs € 1.00, 3 big bananas cost € 1.40 and you pay € 2.25 for chorizo (100 gram).   

There are only two hypermarché chains that can be visited by metro. Most hypermarchés  are situated outside Paris, because the hypermarché chains are not allowed to have a store in the city centre due to the size of the store.  






Carrefour
Carrefour is a chain with both supermarchés (called ''Carrefour City'') and hypermarchés (called ''Carrefour Auteuil'', named after the neighborhood). The Carrefour hypermarché that can be visited by metro is situated in the 16th arrondissement. Carrefour is one of the more expensive stores, but the quality of the products is excellent.  

Practical information
Address
3 Avenue du Général Sarrail, 75016 Paris
Arrondissement
16th
Website
http://www.carrefour.fr/
Metro
The nearest metro station is Michel-Ange Molitor (red circle below).
 

 

 














Auchan
Auchan is cheaper than Carrefour. The food and drinks are more expensive than at Lidl and DIA, but at Auchan you have an endless choice of products. There is even a salad bar. To be more specific about the price differences between Auchan and Carrefour I'll give you an example. The cheapest plastic bin at Carrefour cost me € 7.50. One day later I found a similar plastic bin at Auchan for € 2.50. I regretted buying the plastic bin at Carrefour! Also, Auchan is a lot bigger than the Carrefour hypermarché
 
Practical information
Address
26 Avenue du Général de Gaulle, 93170 Bagnolet
Arrondissement
20th

Website
http://www.auchan.fr/
Metro
The nearest metro station is Gallieni (red circle below).

 

 

Monday, July 29, 2013

''Poilâne'', the best bakery in Paris

Thanks to the Poilâne family, the traditional French sourdough bread has stood the test of time. After World War II, the white baguette (which was brought to France from Austria in the 19th century) became more and more popular and ousted the French sourdough bread. Lionel Poilâne, son of a baker, resisted the trend of baking baguettes and he kept baking sourdough bread according to old French traditions. Nowadays, the bread is sold under the name Miche Poilâne. The Poilâne empire has three stores in Paris, two stores in London and its bread is sold in 1500 stores and served in 1000 restaurants in e.g. Brussels and Tokyo. American celebrities like Steven Spielberg and Johnny Depp order bread from Poilâne regularly.   

In 2002, Lionel Poilâne and his wife died tragically in a helicopter accident. Their daughter Apollonia, at that time only eighteen years old, took over the business and expanded the Poilâne empire while studying economics at the presitigious Harvard University in Boston, USA. She flew often between Boston and Paris in order to do so.

Besides the Miche Poilâne bread, you can now buy pastries, cookies, marmelade and cutlery at the stores.
If you ask me, going to the Poilâne bakery and eating Miche Poilâne bread is an absolute must if you are in Paris!






Practical information
Address
38 rue Debelleyme, Paris 75003 (3rd)
8 Rue du Cherche-Midi, Paris 75006 (6th)
49 Boulevard de Grenelle, Paris 75015 (15th) 
Arrondissement
3rd , 6th and 15th   

Price
€ 4.45 for half a Miche Poilâne bread (1 kilo), which is enough for two people for two days.  
Website
http://www.poilane.com/index.php
Metro
The nearest metro stations are Filles du Calvaire (3rd), Saint-Sulpice and Sèvres-Babylone (6th) or Dupleix  (15th) .


 

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Traveling from Paris to other European countries and cities

Many tourists who visit Paris plan to visit other European cities as well. International students form another group that could use some advice on traveling through Europe. As a European girl who has been to 34 countries (of which 28 were European), I have experience with discovering the continent you want to get to know!

Europe is a relatively small continent with countless cities that will take your breath away, so you will have to make a choice. You simply can't visit all of them. Answer the following questions to find out which places you should put on your list of must-visit destinations:

1. How much time do you have?  
This is the most important question. If you have only one week to travel outside Paris it's better for you to stay in Western Europe, so you don't waste too much time on getting to your destination. However, you could also fly to a farther destination in order to arrive the same day.

2. How much money do you have?
Western Europe, Scandinavia and Russia are the most expensive places in Europe. Due to the financial crisis, Spain, Portugal and Greece have become cheaper than most Western European countries. Food and drinks will be cheapest in Eastern Europe. I have been to Serbia in 2010 and I paid 0.04 for bread, whereas bread costs € 2.00 in the Netherlands. Bulgaria, Macedonia and Croatia are also relatively cheap. 

If you have a limited budget, consider booking a hostel. I advice you to pay a little bit more for a private room, so you avoid sleeping in a dorm with untrustworthy people. Don't save money on your safety! Another budget tip is to book a room with a kitchenette and fridge, so you can cook yourself, instead of having to eat at restaurants.

3. Do you want to travel by plane, bus, train or car?
The amount of money you are able to spend will influence your choice of transportation and therefore your destination.
In general I would say that traveling by bus is a lot cheaper if you plan to discover Western Europe. Flying is the best option if it would take a bus, train or car more than a day to take you to your dream destination.

Plane
Finding reasonably priced tickets can be a challenge, but it's not hopeless! In fact, there are several low-cost airlines. Examples are Ryanair (Irish), easyJet (British), Transavia (Dutch/ French), XL Airways France (French) and Vueling (Spain). Check out their websites for their offers.

Another helpful website is www.lowcostroutes.com/fr/flights_from_France
You can click on the French airport you would like to depart from and the website comes up with a list of countries you can fly to with a low-cost airline.     

Bus
When I travel to or from Paris I take the bus, because it is the least expensive option. I have tried 3 coach operators to travel between Paris and Amsterdam (I'm Dutch, family visits!).

Megabus is the cheapest coach operator you'll ever find in Europe. A ticket Paris-Amsterdam (roundway) costs only € 30.00. There is a toilet with a mirror and a sink to wash your hands on the bus. The seats are comfortable. With Megabus you can go to Brussels, Amsterdam, Boulogne and many British cities, including London.
uk.megabus.com/routemap

iDBus is my favorite coach operator, because it offers free WIFI on the bus and each row of seats has an electrical socket. There is a toilet with a mirror and a sink to wash your hands on the bus. The seats are even more comfortable than the seats of Megabus. However, it's more expensive than Megabus. The lowest price for a ticket Paris-Amsterdam (roundway) is € 78.00. With iDBus you can go from Paris to Lille and Southern France, Brussels, Amsterdam, London and the Italian cities of Turin, Milan and Genoa. 
www.idbus.com/map
  
Eurolines offers bus trips from Paris to 25 other French cities, 27 other European countries and Morocco. Due to the endless possibilities it's certainly worth taking a look at the website: www.eurolines.fr/en/destinations  

Train 
Rail Europe is the official distributor representing all the European railways and networks.
You can buy train passes and tickets at the website: www.raileurope.fr 


If you are a European citizen or if you stay longer than 6 months in Europe you can purchase the InterRail pass, which allows you to travel through Europe for a fixed price. For example, unlimited traveling within and between 30 countries for 5 days costs € 181.00 (if you are not older than 25 years). Check out the website (in several languages, including English) for all the options and more detailed information: www.interrail.eu

If you're not eligible for the InterRail pass, chances are that you could purchase a Eurail Pass. It's the same concept, but only people who have lived 6 months or longer outside Europe are eligible. Check out the website for the different passes and to see if you're eligible: www.eurail.com

Traveling by train is often more expensive than by bus. For example, the cheapest bus ticket (roundway) Paris-Amsterdam costs € 30.00. The cheapest train ticket (roundway) Paris-Amsterdam costs € 70.00.   

Car
In most European countries you have to be at least 21 years old in order to rent a car. Sometimes you need to have a driver's license for at least 2 years. Renting a car itself doesn't have to be expensive, but gasoline is. If you're American, you'll be shocked by the prices. Gas can cost € 1.80 per liter, meaning that filling up the car will cost you +/- € 80.00 = 105 USD. Also, keep in mind that driving in a country with a language you don't understand and where the roads look different can be stressful.

4. Do you need inspiration?
If you're not from Europe it can be hard to distinguish one country from the other. Therefore I have made a list with interesting and fun trips, depending on your wishes:

I don't want to go too far from Paris/ 
I want to visit historical cities with breathtaking art.
London, United Kingdom (Metropolis, shopping at Harrods, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, scones with marmelade and cream) 

Amsterdam, the Netherlands (Vincent van Gogh Museum, canals with adjacent historical mansions, Anne Frank House, Dutch cheese and stroopwafels, traditional caramel cookies)

Rome, Italy (Vatican City, traditional pizza and ice cream, Colosseum, fountains, Mediterranean weather)

Berlin, Germany (Holocaust Memorial, Reichstag, the Wall, imperial palaces, contemporary art, friendly people)

I want to visit an exotic destination.
St. Petersburg (Russia), Istanbul (Turkey), the Greek islands and Morocco are exotic and in your reach.

I want to enjoy nature/
I want to play sports.
Dogsledding in Finland, viewing the Aurora Borealis in Iceland, kitesurfing in the Canary Islands (Spain), hiking in the mountains of Switzerland, affordable skiing in pristine Slovenia.

I want a beach vacation/
I want to escape the rainy and chilly weather!
Southern France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Croatia, Macedonia, Greece, Cyprus, Malta and Turkey will make your sunny disposition return!

Feel free to ask me advice on visiting European cities and countries! I would love to help you with planning your dream vacation!