When I began seriously thinking about taking a trip to Paris, my first instinct was to purchase as many travel guides as I possibly could. I bought up all the variations sold at my library, was sent them by extended family members, and downloaded them online. Did I read any of them, though? Absolutely not (I do have an entire “Paris” section on my bookshelves, however, that felt a whole lot like a dream board during the pandemic). The only travel book that felt truly worth reading in its entirety happened to also tie in super well with the purpose of my Paris trip– Historic Preservation. Discovered among the catacombs that are my attic was this little book, the Guilmin Guide’s Paris Seen in Four Days from the 1940s. According to family lore, I’ve been told that this was gifted to my great-great grandmother when she was in Paris during World War II (though the rest of the details surrounding this booklet are still hazy to me). The Guilmin Guide is filled with sites, excursions, maps, and very detailed descriptions of what to do at each stop, divided into four action-packed days.
My goal for this trip, though certainly longer than the four days prescribed in the booklet, is to use the map and guide to give side-by-side comparisons of (just a few) stops in a tourist’s Paris in the 1940s and today.
