PARISIAN SHOPPING and other Paris, France Shopping Tips

A French couple in Paris

Name of Shop: ...around Paris

French shops are more formal than their American counterparts, especially designer shops.
When you enter a shop be sure to greet the owner with "Bonjour Madame" (or Monsieur) and *then* ask if she/he speaks English.

Touching store displays are frowned upon so ask for assistance and preface your request with "s'il vous plait".

A nice pair of slacks, a jacket, a fashionable top, and a comfortable pair of walking shoes are classic shopping gear for the sophisticated Parisians -- shorts, sneakers, etc, are a definite 'no no'.

Store Hours: Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Department stores remain open until 9 p.m. on Thursdays or Fridays and are open on Sundays during the Christmas season.

Shops in tourist areas, museum shops, etc. are open on Sundays year round.

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Theme: Other

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Shakespeare & Company: ENGLISH BOOKS

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Updated by Lady_Mystique

on Aug 31, 2006

The Famous Bookstore...

Name of Shop: Shakespeare and Co.

Il faut feuilleter tous les livres et n'en lire qu'un ou deux.

You must leaf through many books and only read one or two.
~ Jules Renard ~

The original Shakespeare and Company was opened in 1921 by Sylvia Beach, daughter of a New England Presbyterian minister, and was at 12 rue de l'Odeon, Paris.
For twenty years it thrived, and it was from here that Europe first heard of the writings by new American talent, like Hemingway and Fitzgerald.
Throughout the 1920s, literati frequented Sylvia's shop: George Bernard Shaw, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein, Paul Valčry, André Gide,James Joyce...

The Shakespeare and Company we know today opened on the Left Bank in 1951.
Its owner was George Whitman, another east coast American bibliophile, and at first he called it 'Le Mistral'.
Then in 1964, having secured Sylvia Beach's agreement, George decided to resurrect her Shakespeare and Company name, in order to honour and continue the ethos and traditions of the former famous bookshop.

You may ask... Is it a bookshop or a library?
Both. The library is upstairs and you're welcome to sit and read there as long as you like. The shop is downstairs. Books can be loaned out on special occasions, but you have to see George Whitman about this.

Hours:
Open 12 to 12 daily.

Readings:
Every Monday, in the library upstairs at 8 pm.

You may also be wondering...
Did Shakespeare himself used to live here?
No. But, curiously enough, the building was constructed in the same year that he wrote 'The Tempest'.

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Theme: Books
Phone: +33 (0)143269650
Address: 37, rue de la Bűcherie
Directions: Not far from Notre Dame.

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Galeries Lafayette: Designer Boutiques

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Updated by Lady_Mystique

on Aug 31, 2006

Galeries Lafayette

Name of Shop: Galeries Lafayette

You will find numerous designer boutiques and consessions from Yamamoto, Montanta and V.Westwood.
At the same time there's Gap, Agnes B. and the stores own label of goods for women.
...AND, you can take in one one of their fashion shows every Tuesday and Friday! :o)

Open:
Mon-Wed & Fri-Sat 9:30am-7pm,
Thursdays; 9:30am-10pm

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Theme: Other
Address: 40 Blvd Haussmann
Directions: Metro: Havre-Caumartin/RER: Auber
Website: http://www.galerieslafayette.com/

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%b%cr%s4Le Printemps: Established Designers

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Updated by Lady_Mystique

on Aug 31, 2006

Le Printemps decorated for Noel

Name of Shop: Le Printemps

Neighbour to Galeries Lafayette with three stores:
one devoted to the home, one to menswear, and one to women's fashions.
You will find established designers of every sort here.

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Address: 64, boulevard Haussmann, 9th
Directions: Metro: Havre-Caumartin/RER: Auber
Website: http://www.smartweb.fr/printemps/index.html

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Samaritaine: Take in the View Too !!!

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Updated by Lady_Mystique

on Aug 31, 2006

The Art Nouveau Style Inside

Samaritaine