Is Paris always a good idea?

I have a love-hate relationship with Paris.When I was a kid, my dream was to leave my hometown in Bretagne to go study in the French capital. As I reached 17, I picked an expensive private communications school near the Champs-Elysées (not exactly the cheap part of town...) and spent my 4 years of school among rich girls, where I clearly didn't belong.I worked 7 days a week. When I wasn't at school or completing an assignment, I was at the office of my "stage" (a synonym for "free labor of qualified workforce that happens to be studying") or working as a shop clerk, because my unpaid work didn't exactly help pay the bills.I moved at least one time a year, alternating covents, overcrowded shared apartments and 15 square meters studio complete with cockroaches and junkies in the courtyard. I spent an indecent amount of times in the metro, from the place where I lived, to the place where I worked, to the place where I was earning money, to the place I was studying and back again.At 22, I moved to Stockholm in Sweden, where I found a life closer to nature, higher habitation standards, paid work and more equal opportunities for women. I never looked back.As you can read, I don't have the fondest memories of life in Paris. Yet today, when the opportunity presents itself, I love to go spend a day or two in the French capital. Now that I don't live in the city and actually earn a living, I get to enjoy what it has to offer. The cafés, the views, the food, the atmosphere, the shopping...But above all, I love taking friends to Paris and give them a tour of the city I once hated. And so here we are: let me take you to a few of my favorite spots.... View over l'Île de la Cité, from the "Pont des Arts". A typical Parisian Café near Les Invalides Haussmanian building in the 15th arrondissement A Parisian Café, in the 15th arrondissement. Place de la Concorde Ryan enjoying a moment a the terrace of a café . Le Louvre, from Le Jardin des TuileriesLe Jardin des Tuileries. The "Pont des Arts" and the French Academy in the background. Le Louvre and the Jardin des Tuileries. Le Jardin des Tuileries.A military surplus, that Ryan and I happen to visit everytime we're in town. I know, it's random... ;)