Emily in France 🇫🇷 Paris Stinks Right Now – Here's Why

5 things for visitors know

Most folks I’m close to in the U.S. know by now that American media coverage of French strikes and demonstrations is usually overwrought.

“Is Paris on fire?” they ask, or used to – most of the time, when news networks claim the capital is ablaze, they're actually reporting on relatively well-organized manifestations or one-off tussles on the city’s outskirts.

But as conflict rises between President Macron and the people of Paris, with the former forcing his retirement reform through parliament without a vote, Paris is, indeed, in a bit more disarray than usual.

If you’d rather focus on rosier things, my regularly scheduled food and cheese updates follow. But if you'd like to know more about what’s happening on the ground in Paris right now, here are five things visitors should keep at the forefront of their minds.

1. This isn’t just about two years.

Americans, Brits, and even fellow Europeans have scoffed at Macron’s reform, which appears, at the outset, to be small potatoes. And I get it. The reform proposes to increase France's retirement age from 62 to 64, which certainly seems to be a small price to pay, given the government’s claims that the reforms would lead to gross savings of €17.7 billion a year by 2030.

But for most people living in France, the reform has broader implications than two years more work.

Because the reform is merely raising the minimum retirement age, many workers will actually have to wait much later for their promised retirement, depending on how long they have been working full-time. The way that pensions are calculated means that the reform will have outsized implications for women, many of whom have taken maternity leave at some point during their career, as well as for certain classes of workers including rail workers and electricity workers, who have thus far benefitted from special regimes due to potential dangers on the job.

2. The reform was forced through by Macron.

If people are so incensed about this particular reform, it's not (just) because of its content, but rather due to the very way in which it was “passed.” Rather than put the reform to a vote, Macron enacted article 49.3 of the Constitution, which effectively allows the executive to force legislation through the National Assembly. The article is long-standing and has been used about 100 times since Charles de Gaulle wrote it into the Constitution in 1958, but as the New York Times reports, it’s been perceived as less and less democratic in the past decade.

While opposition lawmakers do have recourse following the application of 49.3 – a no-confidence motion that topples the government (prime minister and cabinet, but not the president) – and while by yesterday, two such no-confidence motions had been filed (one by a center and left coalition, the other by the far right) the motion failed (by just nine votes), meaning the government remains in power and the reform holds.

3. There is a lot of trash in the streets.

One of the most visible implications of reform-related strikes in Paris is the growing presence of garbage. Sanitation workers, who currently have the right to retire at age 57, will now have to work an additional two years and have been on strike since March 5th.

Lower retirement age in this sector is linked in large part to health concerns connected to the job. One sanitation worker speaking to Ouest France claims members of his industry live an average of seven years less than those in other industries, though other sources question this and other similar claims (some to the tune of seventeen years lowered life expectancy). Regardless of the exact number, older evidence does indeed point to higher incidences of debilitating or life-threatening illness among workers in the sector.

Continued strikes by sanitation workers in Paris mean that over 10,000 tons of trash have thus far been amassed in the city’s streets, leading to other concerns about health implications, albeit not for workers but rather for residents. To wit, some have voiced concern over threats to air quality and the possible preponderance of rodent-borne illness. But according to the Agence régionale de santé, the regional health agency of Paris, the biggest health risk for Parisians at this juncture is falling, so visitors would do well to watch their steps when navigating trash piles.

4. Not all arrondissements are impacted.

When I’m at home in the 10th arrondissement, despite my proximity to République square, I almost wouldn't notice the sanitation strikes. But this weekend, when I visited friends on the 20th, or last night, when I had dinner in the 9th, the implications were perceptible – enormously so.

This is because garbage is not collected in the same way in all neighborhoods of Paris, as l’Express reports.

In the 2nd, 5th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 12th, 14th, 16th, 17th, and 20th, public servants work with Syctom to collect refuse; in the other arrondissements, including mine, four private companies are responsible for garbage collection. As a result, the streets in these arrondissements look almost normal (with the exception of the 15th, seeing as the garage of the private garbage collector Pizzorno has been blocked for several days).

5. I’m not afraid… but I’m cautious.

Foot travel has been my main form of locomotion in Paris since our last big strikes in 2019, and as I was setting off on my hour-long walk home from dinner last night in the 9th, I encountered quite a few scenes I couldn't quite believe. All along the major boulevards of the 9th arrondissement, trash had been spilled into the middle of the road, almost like garbage-bag-barricades. In some areas, small fires had been set, and police cars, CRS vans, and firefighters on mopeds zoomed around, sirens blaring. At one point, I saw a group of maybe 15 black-masked people running up the street with police in pursuit; my assumption is that they were at the heart of either the strewn garbage or the fires, but of course that’s just a guess.

While there have been reports of violent scuffles between protestors and police, currently, it does not appear that this violence poses a danger for tourists or non-implicated locals. That said, I’m remaining vigilant when walking alone and will be keeping abreast of announced manifestations thanks to Paris’ tourism office, which maintains up-to-date information about métro line/stop closures and strikes. (The next one is planned for Thursday).

Hope that's helpful information, and if anyone has anything to add, I hope you'll reach out!

Now… on to our regularly scheduled programming.

Cheese of the Week

Amidst the hullaballoo of last night, we also quietly welcomed the spring equinox, which means that goat cheeses are coming into season. One of my favorites is Mothais-sur-Feuille, which hails from the Loire Valley, aka the heart of French goat cheese production. It’s aged on a chestnut leaf, which helps to balance the pH of the cheese’s exterior. The resulting chèvre has a wrinkled, cream-colored rind and a stark white interior, with pleasantly tart, floral, grassy flavor with notes of cream and hazelnut. For me, a perfect one will have an almost marshmallowy interior.

Brie de Melun is just one of several types of Brie you’ll find in France, and as compared to best-seller Brie de Meaux or Brie de Nangis, which is the type you’ll more often find in the U.S., it’s way funkier.

To discover more of my favorite cheeses, be sure to follow me on Instagram @emily_in_france, subscribe to my YouTube channel, and tune into the Terroir Podcast, where Caroline Conner and I delve into France's cheese, wine, and more one region at a time.

What I'm Eating

Funky Ba is a tiny Thai spot on rue Cadet – so tiny, in fact, that the only tables are literally in the street. (Albeit slightly covered and with pretty, fluffy blankets to diminish the chill.) The storefront shields the itsy-bitsy (read: 1 square meter) kitchen, where the talented chef cooks up portions of ultra-reasonably-priced Thai fare. Papaya salad is just 4 euro; pad Thai costs 11. More on the blog.

Discover more of my foodie finds via Instagram @emily_in_france and on the blog.

Where I’m Going

1. To Sacha Finkelsztajn bakery in the Marais, to check out the Alsatian version of one of my favorite desserts: cheesecake.

2. To Basique for what I hope to be a fun, delicious small plate experience in the 11th.

3. To Dirty Lemon, where my book club is hosted! (We're discussing Blonde Roots.)

What I'm Writing

1. If you’ve ever been skeptical of food intolerances or wondered why food allergies are such a big deal, my interview with biochemist Dr. Gill Hart is sure to answer all of your questions and queries. For Organic Authority.

2. The Vietnamese coffee at Chuck's Takeaway is a labor of caffeinated love. Here’s why, for InsideHook.

3. I've got the recipe for Selby's $50 Black Label burger for InsideHook.

What I'm Saying

Molly Wilkinson is an American expat who’s living the dream teaching folks how to perfect the art of French desserts. It’s no surprise, then, that she’s joining me on Navigating the French to chat about everything from cooking school to bakeries to the patron saint of pastry on this episode delving into the word pâtisserie.

What I'm Reading

1. This beautiful (and, I promise, not too dark) short story about mourning – short enough to grace any day, even the most haggard, with a touch of fiction. In Pirate Press.

2. This guide to French words that have fallen out of use in France but are still used in other Francophone countries. (Henceforth, I will be eliding cher in favor of dispendieux.) In le Figaro.

3. This exploration of the trauma plot – and why, despite its ever-growing popularity, it might be time to bid it adieu – in the New Yorker.

A bientôt !