Hi, I’m Michael, I have worked as a journalist for more than twenty years, initially for the BBC in London and later for the European Sports Network (former ESPN’s European affiliate), then in Paris (for another sports channel) where I have lived since 1993.
The idea for the book came to me when I realized that people were actually more interested in the “trivia of life” than in detailed lectures on art, history, architecture – the things most tourists’ guides are crammed with. When touring friends and visitors – of all intellectual leanings – through our Parisian neighbourhood, they only brightened up when told that a scene from “French Kiss” had been shot right underneath their bedroom window down our road.
This book wants to provide a counterpoint to all the guidebooks that want you indoors in some musty old museum. When you get back home and your friends ask you about the good times you had in Europe, will you start by saying: “Well, the best moment of the trip was when I was standing in front of Pierre Bonnard’s masterpieces in the Musée d’Orsay …”?
I want you to go outdoors to smell, taste and experience the city of Paris in as many ways as possible – which is why the book also takes you to some parts of the town that rarely get a mention in other guides.
I’m also happy to say that the book has been nominated for Best Book – Travel Guide Category by ForeWord Reviews
