Paris Right Now....With Benedicte Reitzel-Nielsen

Before COVID reared its ugly head and blighted our world Paris was one of the top 3 most visited cities on earth according to Forbes. Its graceful architecture, divine food and ineffable culture magnetised tens of millions each year, not to mention the 2 million lucky enough to call Paris their home. So with such a depletion in people what has Paris been like during the pandemic? Naturally we wanted to ask someone on the ground, but also someone who has experienced life in other cities to truly appreciate this iconic city.

That someone is Benedicte Reitzel-Nielsen, founder of the Instagram collective @seemyparis, working full time for an independent French NGO protecting wild and honey bees and promoting sustainable agriculture that respects all pollinators. Here’s what she had to say…

How long have you lived in Paris for?

Originally from Denmark, I moved to Paris in 1996. I lived in Asia and in the US for a few years in between but put together I’ve been living 20 years in Paris now.

Why is Paris so special?

To me it’s a combination of several things. The architectural beauty of the city is one of the things I never get tired of, and during the periods of my life where I have lived elsewhere, I’ve noticed how much I missed this part. To be surrounded by beauty is a rare privilege, driving through the city at night time, seeing the sun rise over the Seine, crossing one of its many bridges, going for a walk in any neighbourhood, familiar or unknown ones, or just looking out of the window over the characteristic rooftops, is a daily joy. I also find that even though Paris is a busy city, there’s always this feeling of a slower pace taking place, people sitting at cafés, taking time to drink their coffee on a terrace in the sun, sharing a meal and a moment with friends or even alone, giving you the possibility at ay time of pressing pause. The people are an essential part of Paris too of course. I never ever get tired of watching Parisians.

What's been the worst thing in Paris since COVID?

Most of the joyful aspects and daily human interactions have been taken away. With the current curfew, and all restaurants, cafés, theatres, museums closed, our lives revolve around going to work if we go at all and don’t work from home, running to get groceries before the shops close and otherwise staying indoors in our homes. It’s hard to tell weekdays apart from weekends, and the events that used to carry us through the days - meeting up with friends in a restaurant - are gone or reduced to a minimum. In that sense I’m not sure Covid is so different in Paris than any other place in the world. What we all miss the most is probably seeing our friends and families and being able to live our lives normally. Parisians, like all other humans, are social creatures and practising social distancing is taking away a big part of what we are living for.

What's been the best thing in Paris since COVID?

In the very beginning of the first and strictest lockdown in March 2020, there was a strange joy of rediscovering a quiet Paris free from tourists, cars and noise. Eerie but also beautiful at the same time, a completely still Seine with no boat traffic, the sound of birdsongs, completely empty streets. I am lucky to live in the centre of Paris and be close to the gardens of Palais Royal the Tuileries, so I was able to enjoy these parts of the city that are normally bustling with life. Before Covid I was already regularly waking up early to go out to watch the sunrise and enjoy these early hours of Paris before the city wakes up. This first lockdown was like an extension of these quiet mornings all day long every day of the week. And so after a while, I found myself starting to miss people, cars honking, full café terraces, tourist crowds, life.

Thing you're most looking forward to once things get better?

I wish I could come up with something more original, but I’m really impatient for cafés and restaurants to open again, to fight for a spot in the sun, meet with friends over a glass, have dinners al fresco with hoards of loud people around me. I also can’t wait for the day when the “bise”' will return, when we can again greet each other by kissing each other on the cheeks.

What’s your top 3 places to visit?

The banks of the Seine river have always been one of my favourite spots in Paris. It’s the best place to watch sunrises and sunsets, it’s where I go running and where I’ve had some of my most memorable picnics with friends, mostly the stretch that runs between the bridges of Pont Neuf and Pont Alexandre III. Geographically, but not only to me, it’s the heart of Paris.
The neighbourhoods of Marais and Montmartre are well known by tourists, but my personal favourite is the Montorgueil neighbourhood in the second arrondissement. Both the main street, rue Montorgueil with all of its great grocery shops (among which you will find the oldest patisserie of Paris) and rich café life, as well as the beautiful surrounding narrow cobblestoned streets (rue Tiquetonne, rue Saint-Sauveur, rue Mandar…).
There are so many impressive museums in Paris that I keep going back to, such as the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Grand Palais, but these last few years, I've been more drawn to the lesser known, smaller museums. I am really looking forward to going back to Musée Bourdelle when it opens again, particularly as it is now undergoing a renovation. Emile-Antoine Bourdelle was a sculptor and a pupil of Auguste Rodin, and the museum (located in the 15th arrondissement near Montparnasse) is home to the sculptor's original studios & apartment. There is also a garden of sculptures and some beautiful backyards.