You might not be aware but the French railway workers have been on a strike triggered by changes in their pensions, since the 5th of December. It is about to become the longest strike in over 30 years and it is affecting the running of the capital... And the country.
And so, without metro, with infrequent and packed buses and few taxis in high demand, during our stop over (on the way home for Christmas) we had to rely on our own feet ... Like us many others who literally took over the streets with their suitcases.
To us this was manageable but if you have any sort of disability or are travelling with children or elderly, I can imagine the French capital has become an even bigger challenge than usual.
Among the confusion, one thing we found to be interesting was the level of support strikers have within the community.
Despite the lengthy dispute, Parisians go about their lives as though this had become a normalised reality and rarely complain. -In fact, since we came back to London (having had to make alternative travel arrangements because of the strike) i have found out that there are many crowdfunding campaigns in place to enable the strike to go on and at least 70% of the population supports the action.
In contrast, a single day in London would typically have 90% of the population up in arms with all television channels broadcasting
Cultural differences that make you think.
