Here are the main mistakes to avoid if you're visiting Paris, according to this week's guest, writer and social media star Anna Kloots. Anna has lived in Paris for five years - and I've been here for 10 - so this list is based on 15 years of Paris experience.  For more from Anna, find her on Instagram here and Substack here. This season of The Earful Tower is brought to you by the award-winning travel company My Private Paris, which specializes in tours in Paris, day trips outside Paris,...

What's a baguette? A long loaf of bread, surely. WRONG! A baguette can be one of 15 different things. Here's how I found out - and a few baguette-related language facts to impress your French friends.  Featuring, ever-so-briefly, the voice of Véronique from France with Véro. And here's the full French dictionary listing for 'baguette'. This season of The Earful Tower is brought to you by the award-winning travel company My Private Paris, which specializes in tours in Paris, day trips...

Here are our six golden rules for visiting Provence, based on over a decade of visiting the region. In fact, we just got back to Paris after another visit to the sun-soaked region and now it's time to share what we've learned. In this episode, you'll hear Lina and I walking in a quiet and beautiful part of Paris, while discussing Provence. You can watch the video on our YouTube channel. After our chat, Marie Segura from My Private Paris talks about the upcoming reopening of the Notre...

Meet Céline Flores-Tavukcuoglu. She is a Texan in Paris who runs Céline Concierge, a private concierge service that specializes in Paris.  She shares her five golden rules for if you're thinking to move to Paris (or indeed, France). And even if you're not thinking to make the move, this conversation will shine a light on life in the French capital. Follow Celine on YouTube here and explore her website here.  After Celine, Marie Segura from My Private Paris talks about the upcoming closure...

It's time for a day trip to the Champagne region! This week, I'll show you a great way to visit the Champagne region with the help of Bertrand d’Aleman from award-winning travel company My Private Paris. We took the train to Reims, then hired a car to get to the Pommery house, followed by smaller Pierre Paillard house, which has been in the same family for eight generations.  My Private Paris is a local deluxe agency, crafting itineraries for tours in Paris and beyond (including, of...

Meet Romu Oudeyer, a top private chef in Paris. We talk about cooking for celebrities in Paris, France's relationship with food, and how to find good restaurants in Paris.  Follow him on Instagram here and explore his website here. To read the full menu from the home-cooked lunch we discussed, click here. This season of The Earful Tower is brought to you by the award-winning travel company My Private Paris, which specializes in tours in Paris, day trips outside Paris, and travel...

What’s the most “fitting” thing to find in each of the 20 Paris districts? Something – a bar, a cafe, a street, a park… something that’s representative of its neighbourhood? For example… the eighth arrondissement is something of a business district that’s affluent and beautiful. What site matches that energy? (Spoiler alert: a private art museum). We posed the challenge to Bertrand d’Aleman from award-winning travel company My Private Paris. Here’s what he suggested.  My Private Paris is a...

This week I finally got into the Hotel de Beauvais, the 400-year-old aristocratic mansion in the Marais. Here's how I did it, and how you can too! Address: 68 Rue François Miron, 75004 Paris More info on the Heritage Days: https://journeesdupatrimoine.culture.gouv.fr/en/ Become a member! For $10 a month you can join the other Patreon members and unlock almost endless extras including bonus podcast episodes, live video replays, special event invites, and our annually updated PDF guide to...

A mysterious email from Will asked for the ideal itinerary for a 12-hour layover in Paris.  Hosts Oliver and Lina went head-to-head suggesting their own versions of the perfect one-day plan.  But who is Will? Could he really be a Wall Street hound with expensive taste? Or a med student who prefers cheap lunches and riding bikes?  We have no idea - but we tried to help!  Find Oliver’s economical itinerary here. Find Lina’s luxury itinerary here.  This episode was released early to The...

This week on the podcast it's author Scott Carpenter, whose new book is called Paris Lost and Found.  To kick off this "Paris if..." season of the show, he shares his thoughts on how to "roll with it" and see Paris like a local.  You can find him on Instagram here (https://www.instagram.com/frenchlikemoi) and find his book in all good bookshops and online. More from Scott on his website here.  ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you...

Here are my final thoughts on the Paris Olympic Games. In this episode, it's just me, your host Oliver Gee, sharing a few pros and cons of the Olympics. ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost endless extras including bonus podcast episodes, live video replays, special event invites, and our annually updated PDF guide to Paris.  Membership takes only a minute to set up. Thank you for keeping this channel...

Meet Anne Carminati and James Wesolowski, the authors of 111 Museums in Paris You Shouldn't Miss. We chat about the museum scene in Paris, the pros and cons of large and small museums, and a few good ones to find. Their official website: https://www.111places.com/111-museums-in-paris ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost endless extras including bonus podcast episodes, live video replays, special event invites,...

Meet Alexandre Durand and Tom Carles - also known as Alex and Tom - but better known as AT Frenchies, a social media duo that has captivated millions with their take on France and the French language. Their official website: https://www.atfrenchies.com/ Here's the specific clip they were talking about at the end of the episode, via TikTok. ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost endless extras including bonus...

Here's a chat with Ariel Weil, the mayor of Paris Centre (arrondissements 1-4). He talks about the challenges of hosting the Olympics, especially security hassles that have come with the openening Ceremony on the Seine River. The Opening Ceremony, perhaps the most ambitious part of the whole games, has turned Ariel's districts into what he compares to a warzone.  Meanwhile, Ariel and some of his fellow mayors in Paris just took a historic dip in the Seine river, which is now clean enough to...

Meet Tanisha Townsend, a Chicago native who became a wine expert in Paris. She gives us a general info to wine and Paris wine bars, plus her take on wine tastings in the French capital.  Find more about Tanisha (aka Girl Meets Glass) via her website here and her Instagram page here. And here's the link to book a wine tasting with her. ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost endless extras including bonus podcast...

This week we're talking about the Latin Quarter. The guest is Earful Tower tour guide Hannah Coyle, discussing one of her favourite neighbourhoods.  The discovery tour of the Latin Quarter is our newest walking tour, you can book a private or semi-private walk, and we're rolling it out on Tuesday afternoons to start. Find more here.  ******* The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost endless extras including bonus podcast...

Did you know there are 8 Statues of Liberty in Paris. Maybe more. And this week, I'll find them all and show you.  This episode gives you the facts and the history. Here's the blog link to go with the eight (plus!) statues: https://theearfultower.com/2018/07/04/did-you-know-there-are-five-statue-of-liberty-replicas-in-paris/ And here's the YouTube link for the 4th of July video: https://www.youtube.com/live/KIF9xgReAx8?si=aVifY1e70-gBtQ-9 *********** The Earful Tower exists thanks to...

Vanessa Grall, aka Messy Nessy Chic, is selling the Seine. Or at least, little bottles of it, from her new boutique Messy Nessy's Cabinet, in the fifth arrondissement. She is this week's guest on The Earful Tower, talking about her boutique, her viral idea for selling the Seine, and her wildly popular channel Messy Nessy Chic. Find more about Vanessa on her website here. You can find her Boutique at 19 Rue de Bievre and you can read more about it here. You can find the shop at 19 Rue de...

Auctioneer Christophe Lucien is on The Earful Tower, talking about his incredible sales of Paris memorabilia.  His current sale (June 17 and 18, 2024) include everything from a Hector Guimard art nouveau bench to an actual bouquiniste stand by the Seine. The main drawcard, as pointed out by Christophe, are the chandeliers in the Grand Hôtel of the Palais d'Orsay. Find more about the two auctions for the 2024 Paris mon amour here and here.  This week's episode is a remastered version of an...

So you've seen all the main Paris sights, and maybe even a few of the offbeat ones. But let's go deeper. Here are 20 truly hidden gems, one from every arrondissement, according to podcast host Oliver Gee.  An important note: the secret for the 10th arrondissement has now closed for good! See pictures, and links, and more, here: https://theearfultower.com/2024/06/10/the-best-hidden-gem-in-every-paris-arrondissement/ *********** The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon...

Our new children's book, The Animal Games in Paris, left us with some unusual questions.  Does meter rhyme with cheetah? Apparently not, according to some.  And if not, should we keep it in the book? And on that note, should we spell it meter, or metre? Or both? And that's just a few of the text-based questions from Oliver, who wrote the book. As for the illustrations by Lina... should Notre Dame be seen as under construction, given that's what it looks like right now? Or should it seem...

Meet Morgan Walesh, an American in Paris who specializes in the hidden underbelly of the city. She talks of her love for the catacombs, the "history of the streets", and how she tried to talk her way into an infamous Paris apartment...  Find out more about Morgan and her work on "Paris History of our Streets" via her website here, Instagram here, and Facebook here. *********** The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month you can unlock almost...

Meet Parisian woman Virginie Dubost. In 2018, she became a quadriplegic after a surfing accident.  Now, she is an accessibility advocate and has made headlines in Paris for drawing attention to accessibility issues in the city.  She joined us in the lovely Square Santiago-du-Chili in the 7th arrondissement to talk about Paris, its low level of accessibility, and how it can be improved. Here's the viral video she featured in, which we talked about in the show (4 million hits on Instagram!) ...

Meet Daniel Christensen, an avid boulderer in Paris. He talks of how the trend of climbing - aka bouldering - is captivating people's attention in Paris, and how the worldwide sport actually started near Paris in Fontainebleau.  Even if you're not a climber, this makes for an interesting chat about Paris and how sports/hobbies/pastimes are changing. There's even a climbing hall INSIDE a church! Find out more about Daniel on his Instagram page here. *********** The Earful Tower exists...