The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-08-21 00:00:00

A WORD OF ADVICE ON VISITIIVO
PARIS.

A STRANGER arriving in Paris, if he purposes
staying more than a couple of days, and desires
to economise, will do well to take a lodging
rather than stay at an hotel. In Paris are a
great number of maisons 2neublees, or houses let
off in single rooms, or suites of apartments.
Several of them will be found in the Rue Neuve
S. Augustin, near the Rue de la Paix, as the
Maison de Goest, No. 46 ; Hotel d' Orient, No.
48 ; Hotel d' Amirante, Maison d'Alma. The
situation is central and convenient, as Pat says,
to the principal places of resort. A single room,
to serve as bed and sitting room, may be had
from about (at present), 3 francs a day, to 5
francs or more : an appartement, or suite of two
or more rooms, of course, will be charged higher.
A traveller should take soap with him : it is
seldom to be found in the hotels in France. On
arriving in Paris in the afternoon from Lille, I
took a 'bus to La Bourse, and walked thence to
the Maison de Goest, 46, Rue Neuve S. Augustin
(I had been there before), carrying my small
travelling-bag myself, and in five minutes I had
engaged a room, and had a supply of hot
water to assist in removing the dust I had
gathered on the road. I was certainly lodged
nearer heaven than I ever was before, viz. au
cinquieme, but there was the "mansarde " above
me, and I had every accommodation I wanted.
During my stay I dined usually at one restaurant,
" Courrieux, au Grand Gastronome," in the Pas-
sage Choiseul (where a very good dinner is given
for 1 franc 60 centimes, plus 2 sous to the
garcon), and seldom before seven or eight o'clock,
when my day's work or pleasure was over. I
breakfasted where I happened to be at ten o'clock
—sometimes cheaply, but oftener the reverse ;
and I found these two meals sufficient except
as regards thirst ; but cool beverages are plentiful
in Paris, and I was not too proud to step into a
wine-shop, and get two sous of wine, which
mixed with a demi-siphon of eau de Seltz, is a
most refreshing drink. I did not visit any of
the great restaurants, as the Restaurant de l'Eu-
rope, the Diner de Paris, as I came to Paris
for an intellectual feast, and not for bodily
indulgence, and besides, had no money to spare.
A traveller will save himself much trouble if he
can stow all his baggage in one parcel, and that
not larger than he can carry with ease : a few
shirts, abundance of socks, a pair of shoes
and change of clothes, are all he requires
ifor a week or ten days. He need not even
take his shaving tackle, for I noticed all
the English in Paris had left off shaving on land-
ing in France, and you could tell how long since
they had left home by the length of their beards.
If he purposes making a longer stay, he can easily
get his linen washed—even day by day. No sensible
person would attempt to smuggle anything over
either way : a pint of French brandy is allowed
on landing in England, and it would be difficult
to pass more without detection, and half-a-dozen
of French gloves will not, be taken unless con-
cealed. A person tolerably conversant with
French, is liable to a few errors, which make one
look small :—e. y. at a cafe, for instance, do not
call for du café, or de la groseille, but un cafe—
une grosezlle. Also after dining, do not ask for
mon billet, but mon addition. There is also
this distinction between a cafe and a restaurant
the first is a place for drinking, the second
for eating. As regards lodgings, all the
notices for furnished apartments, are on yellow
paper, those for unfurnished apartments on white
—un appartement is a suite of rooms—unechambre
is one room. " Voitures de Place," are the cabs
with big red numbers on the back—they are