Paris before nine

Paris after nine is beautiful and busy. Paris before nine belongs to almost no one, which is exactly why I keep going back to the same three corners: a boulangerie that opens at seven, a bench by the river that nobody photographs, and a café where the waiter has stopped asking what I want.

It isn’t a checklist. It’s a rhythm — and the city gives it back to you the moment you stop rushing to see it all.