{"id":4764,"date":"2025-01-08T21:47:24","date_gmt":"2025-01-08T21:47:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/entertainment\/books\/a-parisian-stay-at-pavillon-faubourg-saint-germain-the-literary-edit\/"},"modified":"2025-01-08T21:47:24","modified_gmt":"2025-01-08T21:47:24","slug":"a-parisian-stay-at-pavillon-faubourg-saint-germain-the-literary-edit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=4764","title":{"rendered":"A Parisian Stay at Pavillon Faubourg Saint-Germain \u2013 The Literary Edit"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\"Pavillon\"Pavillon<\/figure>\n

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The wrong airport, one missed flight connection and a case of baggage theft was how my trip to Paris trip almost started. Making my annual pilgrimage back to the UK from Australia<\/a> \u2013 for two weeks of cycling through friends\u2019 spare rooms with the odd hotel night snuck in between \u2013 I had opted for an entr\u00e9e course of a stop off in the \u2018City of Love\u2019 due to it being significantly cheaper than flying into London. Travelling through Hanoi airport was where the first of my almost incursions started as we were rerouted to nearby Cat Bi following an hour\u2019s circling above Vietnam\u2019s capital unable to land due to bad weather. After landing, refuelling and taking off again we touched down in the city known as \u2018the Paris of the East\u2019 unaware of whether we\u2019d make our connecting flight to the<\/em> Paris of France. Luckily they\u2019d held the plane for us and the second of my almost incursions was averted.<\/p>\n

Settling into the 13-plus hours of flying I was looking forward to the day of luxury and exploring that awaited me when I stepped off the plane in France in the early hours of a Wednesday morning. After clearing customs, now requiring additional paperwork \u2013 thanks Brexit \u2013 I entered the baggage claim to see my inconspicuous green suitcase standing to one side of the belt. Sidling up to the case, I could see a large tag on it. Immediately presuming this was something the airport had put on the bag I was unable to read the \u2018message\u2019 as it was in French. After a confused lady plucked up the courage to inform me that it wasn\u2019t my bag, across the hall I spotted my actual case nestled under some boxes on someone else\u2019s trolley. Marching over I managed to reclaim what was rightfully mine and point the offender to their bag still merrily riding the conveyor belt. After over a day of travelling behind me, I set off on the train to centre of France\u2019s well-loved capital.<\/p>\n

\"Pavillon\"Pavillon<\/figure>\n

Why I regale you with this longer then necessary tale is to set up my frame of mind when I arrived at the beautiful hotel stay I had in front of me. My relief at entering the utopic Pavillon Faubourg Saint-Germain & Spa, which the curator of this blog had so kindly set up for me to review, was palpable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Situated between Parisian icons like the Seine and Cafe de Flore, the hotel is one of boutique luxury that silently screams understated elegance through subtle touches that don\u2019t go unnoticed. Technically situated in the 7th Arrondissement, the location borders the chicer 6th Arrondissement and matches it more in vibe.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I was booked into one of the place\u2019s Junior Suites with touches of sage green and wildlife featuring wallpaper, topping it off with a wrap-around baloney that looked out onto the bustling streets below. Sinking into the large bathtub, I washed off the remains of the aeroplane before a jet-lag-fighting jaunt around the streets of Paris.<\/p>\n

\"Pavillon\"Pavillon<\/figure>\n

Snaking through the bookshop-lined alleys of St Germain I queued up for a French breakfast of a croissant and hot chocolate at the famous aforementioned Cafe de Flore, where I sipped hot cocoa watching the world go by. Without a cloud in the sky, I proceeded to tick off several Parisian highlights I\u2019d long been meaning to visit including the Louvre, Notre Dame and Le Jardin du Luxembourg. Whiling away the afternoon strolling on the banks of the Seine I took in the famous used booksellers and artists that pepper the pavement.<\/p>\n

What better way to end the day than a nightcap in the hotel\u2019s own Literary Salon where the library holds a collection of \u00c9ditions Gallimard volumes all with the exact same off-white and red cover design?\u00a0<\/p>\n

The personal touches and attentive service of the hotel meant that my travel dramas were long behind me. Book lover, or not, Pavillon is certainly one of the best and most intimate places you\u2019ll stay in Paris.<\/p>\n

\"Pavillon\"Pavillon<\/figure>\n

Pavillon Faubourg Saint-Germain & Spa Literary Links\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In a link that would excite almost any book lover, save our gracious Literary Edit founder Lucy, the hotel is home to a room where one James Joyce completed his magnum opus \u2018Ulysses\u2019. With a bar and suite named after the Irish writer this is the only spot to visit if you\u2019d a fan of his work. Signature cocktails are served in the bar, accompanied by a jazz-playing trio whilst one enjoys the delights of the book collection \u2013 which I presume includes Ulysses\u2026<\/p>\n

What to read at Pavillon Faubourg Saint-Germain & Spa<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I think the obvious one would be the sizable novel mentioned above, but if, like dear Lucy, it\u2019s not to your tastes then there are a number of books set or inspired by Paris. \u2018The Little Paris Bookshop\u2019 by Nina George is one that combines anyone\u2019s love of the city with books, whilst Victor Hugo\u2019s seminal classic \u2018The Hunchback of Notre Dame\u2019 is much more than a Disney film. My personal pick would be the poignant \u2018All The Light We Cannot See\u2019 from Antony Doer which centres around the impacts of World War II within the city and beyond experience through a dual narrative of a German soldier and blind Parisian girl. Finally \u2018The Elegance of the Hedgehog\u2019 by Muriel Barbery, is often considered to be the best book written about Paris.<\/p>\n

Near-by bookshops<\/strong><\/h2>\n

No trip to this city is complete without taking the time to visit Shakespeare and Company, though if like me you don\u2019t have the time or patience to queue up to enter then here are a few more worth taking a trip to. Rare bookstore \u2018Librairie Alain Brieux\u2019 is full \u2018Dark Academia\u2019 vibes and the place to splash on a one-off edition, whilst The Abbey Bookshop is a labyrinth of moving shelves and a floor-to-ceiling hodge podge of pre-read and new books. If art is more your thing then the small but might shop from Assouline Paris is the perfect place to pick up something for your coffee table.<\/p>\n

Words and photographs by David Wade<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n