According to my movie producer pal, George, the world boils down to two basic categories: the best and the worst. Anything in between isn’t worth talking about. Mediocrity is a crime, he often quips. As you can well imagine, his dinner parties in Paris are always quite lively, dramatic and informative.

So as a nod to my opinionated crony, I’ve decided to round out 2011 with a list of my favorite Paris-related music, movies and books. By George, this one is for you, Cheapos.

Without further adieu, here’s my Ab Fab, crème de la crème raves. Envelope, please!

Best Music Video
“Someone Like You” by Adele

Adele pont-ificates on Pont Alexandre III. Click to watch the video.

Shot in black and white by director Jake Nava, Adele’s “Someone Like You” video is an epic weepie. Both Adele and the Pont Alexandre III have never looked more gorgeous. Try watching this moody-bluesy breakup song without crying, singing along, and then hitting repeat. I’ve tried but no can do. In the video, your eye will spy the Eiffel Tower, the Grand Palais, Les Invalides and the Place de la Concorde.

Tip: Admire Adele’s trench coat in black with its sassy asymmetrical zipper? I do, too. The military-inspired garb was created for Moschino’s 2010 runway collection. Bittersweet, they’re no longer available. So what to do? In Montmartre, the Sympa bargain bin shops are now pushing funky trench coats for just €5. Rebounding just got easier (and cheaper!).

Charlie Winston dans le Metro. Click to watch the video.

Bonus tracks: I also enjoyed charming Charlie Winston’s terribly infectious “Like a Hobo” video, shot in the Abbesses Métro station. Hello, Charlie, goodbye heart!

Best Song
“I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris” by Morrissey

Moving on to a more upbeat breakup song (at least musically!), “I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris” caught my ear earlier this year around St. Valentine’s Day. Penned by Morrissey and Boz Boorer, how did I miss this catchy tune when it was released back in 2009? Your bet is as good as mine. An ode to Oscar Wilde, it has not left my playlist, and probably never will. Yes, I’ve made myself plain. I’ve made myself very plain.

The Importance of Cleaning Earnest: Wilde’s grave is closed for repairs.

Tip: And speaking of dashing Wilde, his grave at Cimetière du Père-Lachaise is temporarily indisposed. Shrouded in blue plastic, the memorial sculpture is undergoing a scrubbing because through the years, incurable romantics have gone wild romancing the stone with lipstick prints, and their chemicals have started to take a toll. Work will take place until spring 2012.

Still, there’s plenty to see here inside the cemetery gates. Visit Chopin, Modigliani and Proust, along with crooners like Edith Piaf and Jim Morrison.

Best Movie
“Midnight in Paris”

Yes, Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris” film was a tad hokey pokey in places, but I fell gladly for it. But that’s how I roll down the cobblestones in Paris, in my new bobbed hairdo, inspired by Marion Cotillard’s flapper character in the flick. Fantasizing about time travel now makes my heart swell. Larger than life, Yves Heck as Cole Porter was simply divine. Why, why do I love Paris? (Because it sizzles anytime of the year.)

Take a spin on the Musee des Arts Forains bicycle carousel.

Bonus tracks: This year, I also enjoyed PBS’s “The Luminous Years” documentary and Nora Ephron’s “Julie and Julia” film from 2010. Both are worth a checkout.

Top Tip: You, too, can ride the amazing bicycle carousel featured in “Midnight in Paris.” Just reserve a tour of the Musée des Arts Forains (the museum of carnival art) by emailing: diane@pavillons-de-bercy.com. The entire museum is one of the most amazing, unsung sites in Paris.

This magical place is located near the Les Pavillons de Bercy at 53 avenue des Terroirs de France (12th arrondissement). Unlike most museums, they allow visitors to play with the items on display. No white gloves needed! If you plan to visit Paris in 2012, don’t miss it. Holy, moly—it’s bucket list-worthy.

Best Books

I have more than a slew of them up my sleeve. As one of the Paris Correspondents at EuroCheapo, I’m always on the hunt for research books about France. Here are my favorite reads from the year. Some are old and some are new. All were fabulous and of great, great use.

“A Moveable Feast: The Restored Edition,” by Ernest Hemingway, Sean Hemingway and Patrick Hemingway (2010)

“Paris Without End: The True Story of Hemingway’s First Wife,” by Gioia Diliberto (2011)

“Paris: The Secret History,” by Andrew Hussey (2008)

“Paris: Journey into the City of Light,” by David Downie and Diane Johnson (2011)

“The Greater Journey: American in Paris,” by David G. McCullough (2011)

“Memoirs of the Court of Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, Complete,” Historic Memoirs of Madam Campan (2010)

“What Marie Antoinette Wore to the Revolution,” by Caroline Weber (2007)

Your movie, book and music picks?

Cheapos, do you have any music, film or book recommendations? Do share! Leave your recommendations in the comments box below. Happy Holidays!

Also in our guide: Heading to Paris anytime soon? Our editors have hunted down the city’s best affordable hotels, all centrally located and clean. We visit, inspect, photograph and choose the best. Read our reviews in our Paris guide. Bon voyage!

The post Best Paris movies, books and music of 2011 appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

So with Rolleiflex firmly in hand, channel your inner-glamour puss and look this way!

(If you haven’t already seen our first list of “Iconic Spots in Paris for the Perfect Photo Ops,” make sure to check those out, too!)

1. Pont Alexandre III
Metro: Champs-Elysées- Clemenceau, 7th arrondissement

Raise your hand if you haven’t seen English singer-writer Adele’s sulky-smooth, newly released “Someone Like You” video, and if not, then get thee to a computer. Pack a hanky!

Directed by Jake Nava, the Alexander III Bridge makes a cameo appearance like no other pont to date. In the tear-jerker video, you’ll catch a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower, the Grand Palais (and the Petit) along with Les Invalides and Place de la Concorde. And yes, the La Grande Roue (Ferris Wheel) keeps on turning!

How to get the look: If you want the Eiffel Tower in the shot, photograph it on the Belle Époque beauty’s upstream right bank side of the bridge.

Note to fashionistas: Adele’s fetching black A-line coat with asymmetrical gold zipper is from Moschino’s fall 2010 runway line. I think she scored the very last one. Now who feels sorry for Adele? And the diva’s wild windswept hair? Not a problem, as the damp river air will merrily take care of that for you without a charge. I have been there!

2. Shhhh! Mural at the Centre Pompidou
Place Georges Pompidou
Metro: Rambuteau or Hotel de Ville, 4th arrondissement

I recently stumbled upon a massive mural one recent Sunday afternoon while making my way to the Beaubourg (aka, the Pompidou Center) to buy more reporter notebooks. Neatly tucked behind the Stravinsky fountain, “Shhhh” was created by graffiti artist Jef Aerosol back in June 2011.

Measuring in at an impressive 350 square meters, it was created with spray paint, stencils, and plenty-o-scaffolding, along with the mayor’s stamp of approval and commission. The massive mural’s message? “Stop, look and appreciate the city,” according to the artist. It certainly stopped me in my tracks. Flâneurs, while strolling out and about the city, keep your eyes peeled for street art. It’s everywhere.

3. Le Passe-Muraille
Place Marcel Aymé, at rue Norvins and rue Girardon
Metro: Abbesses, 18th arrondissement

In hilly Montmartre, you’ll find Le Passe-Muraille (“Walker-Through-Walls”). The captivating bronze sculpture is a tribute to novelist Marcel Aymé.

Based on his book by the same title, the main character wakes up one morning with the fantastical ability to walk through walls. At first it’s all fun and games, until his newly-acquired gifts lead him into headlong into harm.

The statue was created by actor and sculptor Jean Marais, who starred in Jean Cocteau’s classics “Beauty and the Beast” and “Orphée.” Cheapos, perhaps it’s time to bust a move?

4. Hôtel de Ville
Metro: Hôtel de Ville, 4th arrondissement

Calling all incurable romantics, this one is for you. Here is Paris’s City Hall is where Robert Doisneau staged his legendary photograph, “Le Baiser de l’Hôtel de Ville,” for LIFE magazine in 1950. After spotting Françoise Delbart and Jacques Carteaud smooching, he requested a little replay action for his camera, and the rest was kiss-tory in the making.

Granted, the cooing couple’s relationship only lasted for nine months, but one can still dream about me and my boo and my boo lip locking, all up in the back (near the fountains) because the pigeons keep flocking—pinching from Beyoncé.

5. I’m waiting for the (meat) man on rue Lepic
Boucherie des Gourmets, 18 Rue Lepic
Metro: Abbesses or Blanche, 18th arrondissement

Meet my new boyfriend. Okay, so he’s a little stiff, but he’s never let me down. Whenever I’m out of sorts or suffering a bad hairdo, he’s there for me. With his wolf calls, he’s never failed to make me smile (except when the shop is closed on Mondays!).

Cheapos, you can find eye-catching, funky signage like this all over Paris. Backdrops for photo-ops abound! Boulangeries, fromageries, and pâtisseries, along with cafes and even pharmacies hire artists to create signs, murals or window displays of their own. Most are creatively fun, a few inevitably fall into the category of exquisitely beautiful, but each and every one contributes a little something more to the city’s evolving vistas!

Take one from Hemingway, Cheapos: “There is never any ending to Paris and the memory of each person who has lived in it differs from that of any other.”

The post Paris: 5 more spots for the perfect photo ops appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.