Paris, July 2026: How They Handle the Heat

July 13, 2026

I’m finally ready to tell you about my trip to Paris! I think the “big picture” insight that I took from this trip is that things change… Our planet is changing, and the way people live as they adapt is full of changes, small and large!

First up: you know how you’re always told that Parisians don’t drink cold drinks? And that it’s really hard to get ice in drinks? And that you don’t get coffee with milk after breakfast? And that they NEVER drink coffee any way except hot and strong?

Well brace yourself:

Iced lattes were on all of the cafe menus in my neighborhood. And they would even put sugar in them for you, so it replicated your usual American latte! I would be embarrassed to tell you how many of these I drank…

And the other staple food of my vacation? Gazpacho! I’m SO going to find a good recipe for this, such as it is. We have a splendid blender…

I must admit that I was only in Paris for one truly painfully hot day – the day I arrived. I made a big mistake with this; I should have taken my suitcase into a toilet at the airport and changed into a dress and sandals, and OUT of the jeans and sneakers which I wear to travel.

Barring that, I should have asked at the hotel for a place to change. I couldn’t get into my hotel room immediately upon arrive (which is very normal), but I’m absolutely certain that there was someplace in the hotel common area where I could have changed clothes.

But instead, I wandered out and roamed the streets for hours wearing jeans and sneakers, and ended the day feeling like a wrung out filthy dishrag. I believe that I carried the bad effects of that day with me for the entire week…

I really can’t be blamed though – Paris is fascinating under the most ordinary of circumstances, and a “canicule” is NOT ordinary circumstances.

First up, if you’re planned to visit Paris in the summer and you want to fit in, just pack this:

or maybe this:

You really didn’t think Parisiennes would give up wearing black, did you? But I did notice a significant number of people wearing fabrics which appeared to be a “natural” color i.e. unbleached and undyed. It looked great…

But what they wore was DRESSES! Lots of brightly color florals:

And a tremendous number of shirtdresses:

Of course people were wearing black – I WAS in Paris, after all. But they were keeping things both bare and breezy:

I’m making a bold prediction that dots are going to be popular everywhere, very soon. Especially white dots on a brown background!

And I thought that it was sort of interesting to see so many dresses in shades of rust, russet or a reddish brown!

I saw white shirts – enormous white shirts – worn over everything. Shorts, skirts, capris….

And the color of tee shirt that I saw most often (after black, of course)? Sage green, faded olive, all kinds of light and warm green:

The weird factor in all of this? A surprising frequency of socks and loafers! And the occasional cowboy boots or combat-ish boots. I don’t know HOW they could stand it…

I, on the other hand, wore sandals the entire time I was in the city! Yes, I packed THREE pairs of Abeo – it gave them a chance to dry out and cool down between wearings.

The airport days would have been much more difficult without flawlessly comfortable sneakers. I can honestly say that I never once thought about the comfort of my feet, the entire trip!

And to be honest, I don’t remember seeing anybody wearing high heels the entire time I was there. It just seemed to be too much of a chore, when just breathing required so much energy!

This was the most common footwear I saw.  I was especially amazed to see SO MANY PEOPLE wearing Birkenstock clogs. Sandals didn’t surprise me, but clogs?

My favorite “Chic Sighting” wasn’t a woman – it was a man in a linen shirt and a turban. Not just anybody could pull this off! He matched the contrast hem of the scarf to his shirt…

And the best color story of the week? A flawlessly coordinated Vespa and helmet!

 

I still have some additional photographs to share – I will get on that project right away!

love,
Janice

p.s. Five years ago, I thought of a few good reasons to shop during a sale. Still true, and handy to have in mind if you’re headed to the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale!