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 | Paris Walking Around Reviews | Tips 1 - 10 of 33 |  |
 | |  |  | Walking Around: Irish Pub Where Kerouac Lived! | Tip Rating:    |  |  | |  |
One night I decided to walk the tip of the Ile de la Cite. As I was walking along the right bank quai taking photos of the Conciergerie (gorgeous at night), a gentleman asked me in French if I might take a photo of him. It turned out he was an Irishman in Paris for his last night. We ended up talking about Paris, Shakespeare & Co., James Joyce, Sylvia Beach (who’d published Ulysses in Paris), Dublin (where he’d attended university) and the Irish folk-punk band, The Pogues, one of my favorites. I asked him if he might be up for a visit to Sylvia’s original Shakespeare & Co. on rue de l'Odeon. He agreed but we first we had to stop for a pint o' Guinness at an Irish bar on rue St-Andre-des-Arts, Corcoran's.
It’s always nice meeting new friends in Paris and Seamus (can you get more of an Irish name than Seamus?) was a true gentleman and a great conversationalist. He made me promise that when Mr. Connolly and I visited Ireland that we’d come to visit his family because his father is a genealogy enthusiast and would love to help us with our Connolly roots.
While we were walking out on our way to find the site of the original Shakespeare & Co. I mentioned that Jack Kerouac lived nearby but I didn't have my notes with me. Little did I realize it was in the same building!
Later, I was looking for Jack Kerouac’s home in Paris (well, I’m not called the Beatchick for nothing) when I happened upon Corcoran, the Irish pub Seamus & I had a pint o' Guinness, the entrance to which was just around the corner! Awesome!! But also more amazing is that this bar was once called La Gentilhommiere where Jack enjoyed several nights drinking here as mentioned in Satori in Paris.
At Corcoran's they play traditional Irish music and during happy hour drinks are 5€ (see website below for complete list).
Photos: February 2006
Ultra casual, jeans & such. This is basically a student bar in the Latin Quarter. Leave a Comment Theme: Live MusicAddress: 28, rue St-Andre-des-Arts 75006Phone: 01 40 46 97 46Directions: Exit from the St-Michel métro, cut west thru Place St-Michel to rue St-Andre-des-Arts. Walk 1 block; it's on the corner of rue Git-le-Coeur.Website: http://www.corcoranirishpub.com/
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| | | | Walking Around: Paris' "Twilight Zone" .. a strange experience | Tip Rating: | | | | |
I sometimes have a tendency to get myself into weird situations.
One night on my first trip to Paris, well past midnight after "more than a few" drinks I was wandering alone from a Montparnasse cafe back to my hotel, when I accidentally took a wrong turn.
I ended up on this very bizarre street in the Montparnasse theater district: Rue de la Gaite.
It is populated with theaters, bistros, and a few strange little clubs/cabarets that are adult-oriented.
Suddenly out of the dark & from nowhere a thin, well-dressed Parisian man appeared and stepped in stride with me, speaking softly in french. Then without a word he gently pulled me by the arm into one of the clubs. In one of those spooky moments of surrender, without resistance or protest I let him guide me inside to a table.
- I'm not even sure the club he pulled me into was on Gaite
... it could have been one of the quieter "swing" joints on nearby Edgar Quinet
Looking around I noticed that other than myself, the place was virtually empty. A glass of red wine appeared on my table a few seconds later.
Women of all nationalities, 1-at-a-time, (some actually somewhat attractive) emerged from behind a curtain on a stage, sat down at my table & asked me if I wanted to sleep with them. (price was not mentioned)
Welcome to a misogynist hell of "Pimps Up... Hoes Down" - dans le modèle de Paris.
Saying "No" did not offend any of them, they would just smile, get up & leave, only to be immediately replaced by someone else.
This strange little comedy continued for 10 minutes:
- Girl # 7: "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi monsieur?" ...
or some equivalent ... hey ... I was hammered and a little preoccupied - I don't remember ...
- me.. "Non, merci madame."
- Girl # 7 "Merci monsieur...Au revoir"
next girl (#8)... rinse&repeat....
Eventually I finished my wine (there was no bill brought to the table... odd for a hustle-joint like this), got my bearings for the door, rose, stepped out of the club to the dark and empty Rue de la Gaite, and casually strolled back to my hotel.
The whole experience was both strange and funny, almost like a dream or a scene out of a late-nite "b" movie.
Hide your wallet. Leave a Comment Theme: Adult SpotAddress: Rue de la Gaite Metro: Edgar Quinet or GaiteDirections: Walk south late at night from Metro stop Edgar Quinet on Rue de la Gaite
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