Years ago, there was a "Dashing Dan" race down on Wall Street. Back in the day, men wore suits and hats and carried a briefcase (think Don Draper) as they ran to catch the train to suburbia. The contestants had to wear a suit and tie, a fedora, that they had to hold onto their heads with one hand and carry a briefcase that had to be a certain weight in the other. I don't think they've done this in years.

Paris IS a wonderful place!

I have always wanted DD and DSIL to run the Marathon du Medoc…I’d be riding from stop to stop. As the article says, it is a marathon with regular stops for wine, cheese, and oysters, in costume. I don’t think one would be going for a personal best with this race.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/marathon-du-medoc

Paris is the most special place I know. What's in second place on my list isn't immediately obvious to me but the gap between them is huge.

I saw this on a news site. I liked Paris more than I thought I would. Never really wanted to go but on a trip years ago to German and France, we went because my daughter really wanted to see it. The only thing I didn't like was the urine smell on the sidewalks.

I am out of the ordinary, I really didn’t care for Paris. I think the weather had a lot to do with it. It was dreary the entire visit.

London is my spiritual home, but Paris is a close second. The last time we were there, it rained almost every day, but I didn't care. I love cities and just walking around looking at beauty, and Paris never disappoints. It's easy to get around on the Metro and walking is a pleasure. I could get along without the miserable, pushy crowds at the Louvre, who are so busy taking pictures of the art and the little plaques that they never experience the work. There's a lot to be said for the old days, when you ran out of film! We have since made it a point to go to the out-of-the-way museums and have found a couple of real treasures. If there was only a theater scene, it would tie London in my mind. We go to the opera in Paris, but there aren't performances every evening.

I’m always amazed at my response to rain while on vacation. I get an umbrella or a raincoat, suck it up, and move on. At home, a slight mist has me hunkering down…probably in my bed!

terilyn, my daughter is with you. She didn’t like Paris at all. I really like it. Well, except for the large rats that I saw in garbage piles on a walk one morning. But overall, I like it.

Another Paris fan here, second only to NYC in my affections. The architecture, the food, the light, the museums, and the chance to practice my increasingly rusty French - bliss, no matter the weather.

Isn't it amazing how high school French sticks in your head far longer than you would ever think!

I actually started learning French in 3rd grade, and at one point was not what I would call fluent, but I had a pretty decent command of the language and a better-than-average accent. Now my accent is still good, but my vocabulary has really fallen away. But it certainly suffices for trips to France, and it's remarkable how much comes back once you're in the country.