By Barry Schlachter
Fort Worthian turned Parisian, Tanya Dohoney moved to the French capital in 2018. Now, fully entrenched in French culture, she shares her recommendations for visitors.
From an all-too-classic, 1840s Parisian apartment block, Tanya Dohoney can look out windows graced with blossoming flower boxes and catch picture-postcard views of the Right Bank. Six years ago, the retired Fort Worth attorney changed her life, taking early retirement and moving to the French capital where her daughter was establishing herself as an artist. Like the Edith Piaf torch song, “Non, Je ne regrette rien,” Dohoney has no second thoughts, no regrets.
“I never set out to be here permanently,” she told me at Le Peloton Cafe, where I found my former Berkeley Place neighbor sitting in the window of the tiny but friendly coffee house-cum-bike tour agency run by two expatriate families. “Paris was supposed to be an experience, a chapter, a place to visit, not a home. But life has a way of pulling you toward a place — and the people you love most.”
This wasn’t a sudden move. Dohoney visited in 2014 while her daughter Hillary was on an academic year abroad. “I did something wildly un-American. I took a whole month off. No drive-by tourism, no rushed itinerary.” It gave her time to find hidden gems, like the Musée Carnavalet, a free museum that tells the story of Paris from prehistoric times. “This city, with its history, rhythm and quiet surprises, felt more like home than home itself.”
But here she is, years later, still discovering new corners of Paris, still finding reasons to stay, she says. But it’s not all smooth sailing — language remains a challenge. “I’ve clawed my way to an A2 level in French — enough to hold simple conversations. It’s a slow process of immersion. But I persist, much like I do everything else in this city of endless surprises. It’s a city where an impromptu cafe stop might mean standing next to an Oscar winner, where bookstores turn into lecture halls for world-renowned authors, where history whispers from every cobblestone, living here isn’t just about the place — it’s about the people, the stories and the moments that make it unforgettable.”
But what about the famously brusque French we’ve all heard about? A French friend explained to her that, after repeated invasions and sieges by the Vikings, the English, the Germans, it had become natural for them to affect a blank expression, not to break into a smile, with every stranger they meet on the street. “Many times in French history, people’s lives depended on being careful about whom to trust,” he told her.
On the other hand, there’s an unexpected, everyday civility. Parisians wish every stranger a good day when entering a shop or restaurant or elsewhere. Once while waiting in her doctor’s waiting room, several of them sat quietly, waiting to be called. Each person had greeted the others with a “Bonjour” when they arrived.
Over the years, Dohoney compiled recommendations for Americans wanting to experience Paris at its best.
Try her neighborhood, Le Marais (The Marsh)
There’s no Louvre Museum or Eiffel Tower in this 4th arrondissement neighborhood, once an enclave for 18th-century aristocrats, then an East European Jewish immigrant quarter. Today, it is studded with enticing art galleries, boutiques and eateries. My brother and I took a bicycle tour of the area arranged at Le Peloton Cafe’s affiliated Bike About Tours led by an itinerant Anglo-Australian IT guy named Simon Jones who kept us in stitches. We were the only Americans in the friendly group of day cyclists from the Netherlands, Belgium and Britain, including a droll, retired police detective straight out of a BBC crime series who biked in a trench coat.
Join the International Council on Monuments and Sites
It offers free or discounted admission to many museums and historical sites, sometimes with no wait. Weigh the cost vs. benefit if it’s a short stay, since membership costs $210. A reserved adult ticket to the Louvre without the card, for example, is about $24. Bring earbuds to link up to Bluetooth audio tours.
What not to miss
The Louvre and Musée d’Orsay, the latter more manageable. Also try the Picasso and Rodin museums, and the historic, exquisitely renovated Hôtel de la Marine, an 18th-century building with collection after collection of artifacts. The Musée Marmottan Monet, with over 300 paintings by the post-impressionist, along with works by Berthe Morisot, Degas, Pissarro, Manet, Gauguin and Renoir. If going at peak times, book online. ICOMOS members get free priority access at many museums.
Meet the French
Check out Paris Greeter. Another way to get beyond Parisians’ perceived frostiness is to avail yourself of these volunteer “ambassadors” who will give you a free walking tour of their city. Highly recommended.
Seine River Cruises
Especially for first-time visitors, try a dinner cruise (thereby avoiding a tour guide shouting through a loudspeaker). Dohoney recommends Le Calife. Expensive but you get to see everything from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame. “Book early for this heartily recommended intro to Paris.”
Changing Money
The worst rates are at foreign currency exchange vendors. Often, the cheapest transactions are by using a debit card at an ATM.
Footwear
Bring comfortable shoes that can handle cobblestone streets.
Scams
Do not engage people who approach with “extra” metro or event tickets, or a petition to sign. This is often a pickpocket’s attempt to engage and distract. Dohoney advises: “Just say a firm, ‘Non merci,’ and walk away.” As for purses and packs, keep the top zipped. Dohoney and her daughter both use cross-body fanny packs.
Smoking
“The one downside to Paris.” It’s not allowed inside restaurants or bars now, but clouds of blue-gray smoke are common outside and along streets as well as outdoor cafes, so select a table with that in mind.