The Earful Tower: Paris

Oliver’s podcast has been a favourite for the past year and a half. Even when I do not have a trip booked to Paris. It is my first recommendation when someone tells me they are going to Paris. I will be using his episodes as inspiration for my upcoming visits.

I have listened to most of the Earful Tower podcasts, and will be sure to hear them all because they delight me everso much and cover such a wide range of topics. Oliver’s melifluous voice, always on the edge of a chuckle, takes me dreaming of the secrets and pockets in Paris I must see on my next trip. Paris is my soul city, and I visit every two years, always looking to merge into the flow of life there. With the Earful Tower podcasts, I have taken an eager interest in the history of the city and in the micro-cultures of each arrondissement. Oliver’s perspective is now part of my perspective, so deeply has his informative and entertaining stories infused my view.

How did Oliver Gee steal my dream life? I guess he didn’t steal it, he created it while I was less inventively contending with an office job. Paris is my grey heaven, no more spectacular place on earth. The art and architecture, the history, the democratic wins and losses. In my fantasies, I’m retiring to a tiny apartment in the 6th and spending part of every afternoon visiting museums and galleries until I die, hopefully in front of the Medici fountain in the Luxembourg Gardens. I’m a planner. I love The Earful Tower podcast, I love the videos that Oliver and his team create. I can’t quite smell the pain au chocolate, but it’s the next best thing. I love the walking tours he takes with his charming partner Lena and their friends. I love that they take us to Paris’s celebrated elegant restaurants and to offbeat places to let us know whether they’re worth our vacation time and money. I love that he geeks out about the doors of Paris and the remnants of the Philippe August wall! I love that he hosts occasional in-person events for his Patreon supporters, one of which I hope to eventually attend so I can meet some of these people who share my interests. I love the people Oliver interviews, some of them imports from other places and others native Parisian just living their lives. The interview with the female author almost beheaded by an ancient stairwell elevator and the interview with the Parisian roofers are among my favourites. Keep ‘em coming! I also loved the mini series the team did about visiting the south coast, they provided some great tips for my future holiday plans. As spectacularly as Paris is, there’s more to France than Paris. I’m happy for you Oliver, and grateful that you share your adventures with us. You and “France with Vero,” another of my favourite Patreon creators, absolutely got me through the pandemic. Thank you and team for turning your pleasure into your profession. It’s inspiring and delightful and I’m looking forward to whatever you want to share next.

I look forward to listening each week. I always learn about things I haven’t done and places I haven’t seen in Paris. And the music is lovely.