A couple of days ago, a friend of mine sent me a link of a TV series. It is called Emily in Paris. I am sure this series has been trending recently. This is because it is making everyone fall for the city of love, Paris, even more. Paris, the city where lovers make memorable love adventures. It is where you can go wild and dream big. It is the city of art where you will find the Eiffel Tower. Also, the Louvre where the Mona Lisa is portrayed. The best viewpoint in Paris to take in Montmartre hill and the Sacré-Cœur basilica. Paris is about the numerous boulangerie and baguette tradition. It is about the smell of pain au chocolat and the mesmerizing cafes. It is where you will have a gloomy weather for weeks until you forget the sun. 

I started watching the series and finished it in one day. Let me tell you, I was amazed by how beautiful this city is. While I almost forgot the reality of it. They are showing the bare minimum yet you will fall in love with it. They will make you wish you could move to Paris (If you have the money, you can).

Background Check

If you didn’t know or maybe you do, Paris has a total of 20 districts called ”Arrondisments de Paris”. Emily mentioned 21 districts when she was describing how she would get lost in Paris. It indicates how big this city is. 

Each district is very unique. I almost forgot that I was in Paris while watching the series. Unfortunately, it only shows the easy and luxurious life in this city. What really bothered me is how the French in the series spoke English. It also made me laugh because even when French people know how to speak English, they would still use French. The French pride is very persistent. 

Yes, if you are rich and you have a lot of money, you can comfortably live in Paris. You can afford living in a similar apartment like the one Emily lived in. The reality, you will end up living in a tiny studio. Or you will ”colocation” share an apartment with other people so you can afford the rent. Rent here is incredibly expensive.

If you are a student, you can get the chance to live in a university residence where rent is affordable. However, if you choose to have your own place, you will pay double. Even triple the price you would pay in a university residence. 

Perfect vs. Real

They showed Paris from the typical capitalist and socialist perspective. The bureaucracy of this country is very visible in this series. They didn’t show you the long line of people in front of the prefacture. Where people are trying to renew their residence permit from before sunrise. Especially during the winter, it would be freezing and rainy while standing in line waiting for your turn. You didn’t see the homeless people sleeping in metro stations. You will be caught by the lights and the mesmerizing architecture. 

They didn’t show you the rude people yelling for speaking another language other than French. They think that it is rude to speak other than French in France. They didn’t show you the crowded metro lines or when someone is being robbed in line 4. I witnessed many robberies in this line. Even beggars in line 12, especially, if you are taking a late night ride home on this line. You didn’t see the overcrowded metros or buses. They didn’t show you the French strikes, French people would strike for anything and everything. You would simply have a walk around and you can find yourself inside of a strike, literally. 

Luxury & Glam

You only saw lunches and dinners in fancy restaurants. Another thing I am amazed by is the beautiful French men in this series. I haven’t seen a lot of those honestly (I wish if I do!). They didn’t show you the Sunday Farmers market. It is where you will see the authentic lifestyle of people in Paris. They surely didn’t show you the diversity of people. You were lucky to see the only Chinese girl in the series. However, you have not seen the North African immigrants or the Indians. 

If you are touring Paris and you have the finances to live it fully, You can live the series version. However, as someone who has been living here for a little over two years now, the reality is cruel. Nevertheless, it is far from what it is portrayed in the series. It needs a lot of effort to sustain a decent life in this fast and crowded city. Living here requires a lot of patience, hard work, sacrifice, and dedication to make it work. I hope this article could change what people have in mind about Paris. It is important to understand that the reality is completely different and ”real”.