Meanwhile in Paris...

Papers explaining the store/restaurant is closed for annual leave in my neighbourhood...

As the beaches get packed, here is what Paris looks like in August. Outside of the most famous neighbourhoods frequented by tourists, everything closes. Like a moment of quiet before the storm, the city is empty and silent in the weeks just before the energy of the back to school season.

Although all the takaways and boulangeries are closed, here are a few perks to have sent all the Parisians to the sea:

• We can sit in the subway
• The streets are quiet
• We discover new places while looking for an open bakery
• We don't queue to go see a movie
• We don't get bumped into in the subway stations
• The atmosphere is more relaxed at work
• The streets are so empty we feel like the city belongs to us