Paris is one of those cities you love or hate, and let’s be honest, besides its iconic charm many people feel deeply disappointed when visiting for the first time.
Could be because movies show an elegant, romantic, bohemian Paris? Maybe you expect your stay there to be an Amelie movie or a Midnight in Paris one, but it’s a real city with the same ugly sides and unpleasant areas as any other. If you went there and felt disappointed and almost sad after seeing all your expectations unfulfilled know that you are not the only one. It happens every year to tourists and it has a name: the Paris Syndrome.
The term was coined after Japanese tourists started feeling some unusual symptoms when visiting the city. Which ones? Panic attacks, derealization, tachycardia and feeling unsafe and unwanted by everyone there, were some of them. Many tourists from other countries feel the same way when visiting. Like they have been told a lie about what Paris was like in the media, in films, in books… Here are 1, 2, 3 articles about the Paris Syndrome.
I am not saying Paris is a disappointment! Don’t get me wrong. I am just saying that no one can travel to an idealized place expecting it to be as perfect as the image they picture in their minds. Some fashion lovers think Paris is all high couture shops and beautiful elegant women in the streets. Some bookworms expect a city full of artists and bohemians living in the XIX Century. And that’s not real (not for any city in the world).
Paris has its charm, but it’s a real city with real people and a distorted image portrayed in the movies. One of my best friends is in love with Paris and travels there as often as she can, another even tries to spend all her holidays there every year. You can have a walk in Montmartre and feel like the time has stopped sitting in a cafe having a glorious cafe au lait and reading a book, or you can have a wonderful walk around Champs-Élysées. Paris can become one of your favourite destinations but don’t go there expecting to live a movie.
Same applies for anyone outside Europe having a distorted image about what Europe is, the old bohemian Europe where you just sit on terraces and drink wine. Paris Syndrome term is also used in general for people disappointed about many other European countries. And I must add that it doesn’t even stop in Europe.
Maybe your Paris is Los Angeles or El Cairo. Any place you wanted to visit for years and once there you felt cheated. Loud dirty streets (in comparison with your idealized image), people pushing its way past you, a nightmarish hotel… And suddenly you feel like it wasn’t a good idea to go there, and you start missing home, etc. Sure you have felt like that at least once if you travel often. So leave your preconceived ideas at home before travelling and just enjoy the trip!
If you are interested in the subject watch this Paris Syndrome short documentary.
