“What, me relax? “ That was the “attitude” I took with me on my first trip to Paris, a city where leisure and artistic pursuits are considered noble and laudable in their own right. As a 38 year old die-hard political activist and a committed civil rights attorney, I was as snobbish about the idea of devoting time to a non-productive activity such as vacationing. In my classic American workaholic fashion, I thought, I figured I’d relax after achieving my career goals which included full equality for my race and gender.”

Paris provided me with a unique “cultural shock” which, once I adapted, became a delightful revelation. Americans “live to work” and the French “work to live.” Paris taught me the importance of bringing balance to my life, of making time for beauty, music, dance and play. I discovered an entirely different way of being alive and it instilled in me a new ethic—joie de vivre (the joy of living). Paris, its people, its museums, cafés, languorous night life and savoir faire, slowed me down and softened me up enough to finally see and feel how short, fleeting, unpredictable and precious life really is. Paris showed me …

When it comes to getting my hair done I, like most African Americans I know, need it. It's not like we are addicted to it (or maybe we are), but we want and need our hair to look "right". When I first moved to Paris eight years ago, that was one of my first missions: finding a good hair salon that did black hair, specifically African-American hair. I had just moved from New York City and I had been spoiled!

I was a customer at one of the best hair salons in the city, which is located in Harlem. This salon was fabulous because the entire staff was talented. I say talented because that's exactly what they were. Sadly, I don't think the salon exists anymore because I've tried to look it up several times. But at this salon, I had real customer service in which they even kept a file on me to make sure I was getting exactly what I needed each time. They could cut and style. They could color. They could treat damaged hair with great success. To top it off, they could braid, weave in ten different ways, cornrow- you name it.
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Travel Expert-at-Large Nelson George takes you on a tour of Paris.