Paris insight: ‘Beauty and the Street’

Paris is a city of so many stories: historic, red-letter events and intimate personal occasions. They’re woven together in the fabric of the city of light. In this new series, you’re invited to indulge your curiosity with a spot of virtual people-watching and creative insight into the lives of Parisians.

Join us to discover the candid, quiet and sometimes comedic moments of everyday humanity in Paris.
See how the daily grind takes on an intriguingly beautiful quality against the backdrop of the beloved capital.

Thanks to our favourite Parisian Instagram accounts.

Paris insight – ‘Beauty and the Street’

Beyond scrubbed tourist zones, the real Paris
is ever more alluring for her dynamic dichotomies:
wealth/poverty, safety/danger, beauty/dilapidation,
history/modernism…all existing side-by-side.
Sometimes they’re present in a single moment or glance.

When a wide-eyed young woman emerged from the Metro
in a slightly dodgy part of Paris’ 9th,burdened by a giant
backpack and an obvious sense of trepidation
my eye was caught by her beauty,
but my heart was touched by her vulnerability.

Dragueurs seemed to circle in a pattern mimicking
the wind-swirled trash that similarly cluttered the
walkways as she desperately re-checked her phone,
oblivious to any specific threat
but mindful of being out of her element.

I put down my lens but maintained a
protective eye as she scanned the unfamiliar environs
for a familiar face and finally found her local friend,
instantly transforming the atmosphere from angst to joy.
Such is the tempestuous power of Paris.

Beauty and the Street – Meet Kevin Doolan from @midlifeinparis Instagram – merci mille fois!

Do you relate to this fusion of image & insight in Paris? In what way? Let us know in the comments!