Do We ALL have PARIS SYNDROME? 🤔🇫🇷

Do We ALL have PARIS SYNDROME? 🤔🇫🇷

Remember this shot from Ratatouille? It’s iconic,  not just because it’s gorgeously animated,   but also because of where it takes place  in the movie. Remy emerges from being lost   in the depths of the underground sewers,  starving, to realize that he is in Paris,  

France the city where dreams come true. The swell  of the music adds to the Romance of the scene,   and we feel so much hope for Remy. Ee really  think that he is going to somehow figure it   all out. And you know what? He does. “All  this time I’ve been underneath Paris?” And  

It’s not just Ratatouille. If you’ve ever seen  “Midnight in Paris”, “Before Sunset”, “Amelie”,   “An American in Paris”, “Moulin Rouge” and so so  many others, it is always the same story. Now I   can’t speak to the other Generations, but I know  that as a millennial, we have been fed this idea  

Of Paris as a character since we were kids. It’s  a place that’s stereotyped as being full of love,   and lust, and emotion. It’s where you go to  fall in love, and to paint, and to make art,   and to eat Croissants and Baguettes and live this  Bohemian lifestyle as you walk through the shadow  

Of the Eiffel Tower. And now it’s catching up.  This person says: “Paris is totally overrated and   is probably one of the worst places in France”.  This other person says: “I simply was not moved   by Paris the way other people said I would” And  this one: “Paris is the worst city in the entire  

World.” Jeez. Now these are all on Reddit, and  Reddit of course is a place where people go to   Just shout their unpopular opinions. But the thing  is that all of these have hundreds of upvotes and   comments agreeing with them. The sentiment is  real: the people are disappointed with Paris.  

Now let me set the record straight, I am not one  of those people. I love Paris. I visited twice,   once on my own, and once with friends, and in  both instances I was thrilled with the amount  

Of activities that there were for me to enjoy, The  food that I found to eat, and even the grumpiness   of the Parisian people is sort of funny when  you can take a step back from it and realize  

The sheer number of tourists that they have to  deal with on a daily basis. As a New Yorker I   can sort of relate. But for many people, the magic  of Paris is dead, gone, and buried. Why is that? The idea of Paris as a Haven for lovers  with beautiful Romanticism is hardly new.  

Ratatouille wasn’t the first to do it, and  Disney did not invent the idea. So why are   people suddenly pissed at Paris now and not  before? Well firstly, it’s the ease and the   cost of travel. With discount Airlines popping  up all the time, I’m looking at you French Bee,  

It’s easier than ever for an individual  to fly from the United States, or Canada,   or South America, or Asia, or wherever  to Paris to see it for themselves. People   are also traveling much more than they ever  have before. Globalization is real, and the  

Idea of visiting Europe is no longer this once in  a-lifetime dream for a lot of people. In the past,   so many people would never be able to actually  afford a trip to Paris themselves, and so they   transported themselves there through the cinema.  “And here comes the adventurer now!” Millennials  

May have changed the game as far as accessibility  to Paris is concerned, but it hasn’t changed the   way that we were brought up. And so many people  will touch down, stamp their passport, exit the   airport, and be greeted by a big city. A place  in which many people suffer from homelessness,  

A Metro System that might occasionally smell like  piss, petty crime and pickpockets, overtourism,   and heavy crowds, construction, rain, and  countless other examples of things that   don’t happen in the movie character version of  Paris. Paris is not a magical place after all,  

And we need to learn that ASAP so that we can  start appreciating it for what it actually is. So what is it, really? How should you be thinking  ahead of your visit to Paris? Well without a   doubt, it’s a city of incredible history.  A walk through of the catacombs is all you  

Need to be reminded that Millions upon Millions  upon millions of people have lived their entire   lives in this town. It’s home to some of the  greatest pieces of art the world has ever known,   between the Louvre and the Musee de Orsay, just  to name a couple museums, Paris houses countless  

Pieces of famous art such as the Mona Lisa, The  Thinker, apples and oranges, and so much more. It   has incredible food, but you have to know where  to look. Do your research and don’t settle for   eating at expensive places near major tourist  attractions. And on a clear night it really is  

Just as beautiful as the movies make it out to be.  Take a boat ride down the river Seine if you can,   and watch the reflection of the buildings in  the water, and the sparkle of the Eiffel Tower.  

And don’t worry if you’re with someone or if  you’re alone. I did it by myself back in 2021,   and it was one of the greatest travel experiences  of my life. You just have to set aside whatever  

You think it should be, in favor of whatever it  actually is. Why doesn’t this happen with other   big cities? My guess is just because the movie  character of other cities is grittier. New York   and Chicago are always shown featuring robberies  and gangsters in movies, London is shown as cold,  

And sad, and wet. Tokyo is a part of so many  different story lines, especially within anime,   that it doesn’t really have one cohesive set  of character traits. In Japan they actually   have a medical term for this experience: it’s  called “Paris Syndrome” and it’s effectively  

A severe form of culture shock. On the whole, I  do feel bad for people who visit Paris and leave   feeling disappointed. Not because I’m certain  that you will have a perfect visit if you go,   but instead because I have also grown up  with these movies, and I know how easy it  

Is to imagine that your experience will be the  same as it was for the people in these films.   That’s the thing about travel, you have to be  genuinely open to the cities and the countries   that you visit. It’s okay to know a thing or two,  and have an itinerary of activities, but from  

There I think it’s so important to travel with an  open heart, and allow the city and the country to   just impact you in whatever way it impacts you,  naturally, and without any preconceived notions   of what it should be. Plus New York City smells  a whole lot worse, no matter how you slice it.

Paris, France is probably the most FAMOUS city in the World. But… has DISNEY and other movies & media RUINED the city of love? I decided to do some research to find out what’s going on… Do we ALL have Paris Syndrome? What even IS Paris Syndrome?

Paris has a long held reputation for being THE CITY of Romance, Love, lust and a bohemian lifestyle. You travel to Paris for croissants, and baguettes, and accordion music, wine, and falling in love under the Eiffel Tower.

The problem is that MANY visitors, especially millenials, are facing “Paris Syndrome”… which is huge culture shock and, honestly, a large amount of disappointment after visiting.

Some people feel like the city is underwhelming, others feel that the people are rude, other say the food just wasn’t that good. On the whole… they walk away disappointed in many instances.

I love Paris, and I hope that if you’re on the fence about going, this video helps you decide that YES, it IS OK to visit Paris… but that you need to do so with an open mind. If you go with the mindset that you’re going to have a perfect experience like you would see in a Disney movie… then you WILL fly home disappointed… and maybe even make an angry post on Reddit.

Have you been to Paris? What is your opinion, do you love it? Hate it? Agree? Disagree? Let me hear everything down in the comments, and be sure to LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and click the BELL so you never miss a chance to GET LOST with me!

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00:00 INTRO
00:34 EXPECTATION VS. REALITY
02:08 ACCESSIBILITY
02:57 A HARD TRUTH
03:37 WHAT IT ACTUALLY IS
04:42 JUST GO.