Paris recommendations

[MX7]

Did a quick search and couldn't find anything similar…

Off to Paris for a week in a couple of months. Have been before, but want a more comprehensive experience this time. If anyone has any recommendations of the following, or just cool stuff to do in general, it would be awesome if you could chip in!

• Videogame stores and arcades, particularly retro stuff (for want of a better word). Sad to see Arcade Street is no longer operating
  Record stores, particularly those specialising in rock, metal, noise or genres of this nature
  Comic book/manga stores, especially bizarro/odd stuff (my French is lousy, but can muddle through Shintaro Kago books, by way of example)
  Museums and galleries that aren't super obvious, like Le Louvre ou Le Centre Pompidou, though I'll probably head there anyway
  Bit of a stretch, but vegan restaurants?
  Music venues for metal/crust/sludge/hardcore
  Any interesting places, like rock bars, tattoo parlours, good parks to get drunk in, and other adult pursuits…

Thanks all!

[Durandal]

All the manga in France is in French, one of many reasons why France scores badly in the EPI, so don't get your hopes up like I did when I found a manga store in Brussel.

[MX7]

I've got a bunch of manga in French, particularly stuff no UK publishers will touch. Again my French is terrible but I can read a lot better than speak/write. Still embarrassingly bad, especially for the son of a French lecturer...

[CIT]

Damn, a couple of months! I'm jealous. Paris is one of the coolest cities to visit IMO, I fly over just to hang out 2-3 times a year.

Anyway...

Videogame stores and arcades, particularly retro stuff

On Bvd Voltaire between métro Place de la République and métro Oberkampf there are many game shops with a good selection of retro and Japanese imports. It's the closest thing like Akihabara outside of Japan.
Retrogame Shop on Rue Basfroi is also worth a visit.

Comic book/manga stores, especially bizarro/odd stuff (my French is lousy, but can muddle through Shintaro Kago books, by way of example)

A lot of Comic book stores are on Rue Dante and the intersection of Bvd Saint Germain and Rue Saint-Jacques.

Check out Un Regarde Moderne on Rue Gît-le-Cœur. Tiny bookshop stuffed to the brim with books of 19th century anatomical drawings, 60s drug culture, Japanese bondage art, punk zines, etc. etc. etc.
I've never actually bought anything there cuz it's almost impossible to move, let alone browse anything, but it's a sight to behold!

Museums and galleries that aren't super obvious, like Le Louvre ou Le Centre Pompidou, though I'll probably head there anyway

Halle Saint Pierre in Montmartre often has cool lowbrow art shows.
Concorde Gallery on Bvd Lefebvre shows lots of pinup/erotic art, also Musée de l'Erotisme in Pigalle has changing exhibitions. Au Bonheur du Jour on Rue Chabanais, small gallery for fin de siècle and early 20th century porn.

Musée des Arts Forains has lots of rusty old dilapidated fairground rides that could've been in a 90s music video. Musée de la Chasse (hunting museum) was recently redone in a very cool, tongue-in-cheek way.

Musée Fragonard, 19th century medical museum

Bit of a stretch, but vegan restaurants?

In France? Really!? Try some foie gras instead.

Any interesting places, like rock bars, tattoo parlours, good parks to get drunk in, and other adult pursuits…

La Féline, Rockabilly bar near métro Ménilmontant
La Musardine, erotic bookstore on Rue du Chemin Vert
Père-Lachaise, Montmartre and Montparnasse cemetaries are nice for a walk
The park around the Tour d'Eiffel is nice to drink at night and watch the lights show, but really any park is cool to chill

[GaijinPunch]

Adol

[MintyTheCat]

Give yourself plenty of time with Charles de Gaul airport is my recommendation.

[MX7]

CIT: This is absolutely amazing, thank you so much. Un Regarde Moderne sounds like heaven, but unfortunately it seems to have permanently closed Regardless, there's enough here to keep me going for a week/spend a ridiculous amount of money!

Minty: travelling by Eurostar so hopefully the journey should be as pain free as possible!

[MintyTheCat]

Minty: travelling by Eurostar so hopefully the journey should be as pain free as possible!

You will be fine and a lot less trouble. I miss living in Cambridge - it was handy for getting into London and Stansted - have fun.

[egg_sanwich]

If you are into Pinball, the Paris Pinball Museum is an amazing place to spend an afternoon. It's by appointment only and is one French fellow's personal collection. Some really obscure and fascinating old machines.

http://www.pinball-gallery.com/

[caincan]

Paris was certainly hype in 80's and at the highest in mid 90's, they many arcades, LTDN & co, mangas shops, import games shops, . Really they had impressive things to show off. i figure not really more for hyped techies hobbies. i lived there in 2008-2012 and got bored quickly, but since some projects have evolved again mostly because of passionated people !

went past month, Rue dante is a street for some special things. i liked 2 independant specialized shops (movies, good figures) : bankrupt recently. that hurted.

sure for the Republique station : Trader, Maxxigames, Game them all, are always good for a visit. & Luluberlu for old 80's toys. but it's more of scavenging oldies , parisians know people who have loads more & better choices.

an impressive private arcade is still, "Coinoplegacy". and there's a food shop with cute japanese arcades which will rise soon.. (near St lazare/boulevard des italiens). there was too "Tortue arcade" in Asnieres, but that makes months he doesnt open any more saturdays..

mo5 is still on the run, none museum, it would sound like a joke, that makes 15years they trying to get a place.., another one attemp from a big collector took only 1 year to succeed on this ! (but some political issues made down the project), let's hope a final hope because they have impressive vintage computers stuff.

there are too , 2 japanese book-off shops, one in Pyramides station , but were closed when i tried going there. (didnt planify all .. checked the status on the bus station internet touch wall.. yep Paris tries to update on tech in some areas, tourist ones...)

the most shocking aspect was in the sunday morning, saw too many times : bums asleep outside & chinese tourists taking their meals just distant by the glasses of their hostels, a weird world , France has just globalized...

[MintyTheCat]

the most shocking aspect was in the sunday morning, saw too many times : bums asleep outside & chinese tourists taking their meals just distant by the glasses of their hostels, a weird world , France has just globalized...

Sadly, this is often seen in capital cities: Berlin, London, Paris and not Zurich as I recall. Usually they ask people for cash on the U/SBahn in Berlin.
I have never ever seen as many cops as I saw in Zurich, nor have I seen so many Bentleys in one place.

Wearing a shirt and tie and usual work wear I walked into a book shop in the centre of Zurich and the lady at the counter said to me "there's nothing for you here" Wow, and I didn't look dodgy or anything I've never had that in any other country or city and I just laughed at her.

To be honest, I don't really see many european cities as being 'global' and least of all Paris. Europe just loves to stick to the old ways. London to me is a global city however and Berlin is certainly not a global city.