Travel Podcasts, Discovered
The Earful Tower is a weekly podcast all about Paris, hosted by Australian expat Oliver Gee. With a huge variety of guests - from cooks and comedians to TV hosts and tour guides - this show will transport you to the City of Lights and make you feel like you've met the characters that make it shine.
100 most recent episodes displayed below
Visit website →Welcome to "The 20 Kingdoms", a new season of The Earful Tower podcast.
As you probably know, there are 20 districts in Paris, known in French as arrondissements. But my brother once referred to them as kingdoms and I liked it. It's true, each of th
Have you ever heard of Rungis? It's the world's largest wholesale food market, it provides all the Paris markets and restaurants with their fresh produce, and you can find it near the Orly Airport.
Or can you?
This place may as well be top secret.
I speak English with our two children (soon to be 2 and 5 years old). My wife speaks Swedish with them. The outside world is in French. (Note: We all speak all three languages too).
Here's a glimpse at how that works, with special guests Otis and A
Paris has a new mayor! That's right, after 12 years at the helm, Anne Hidalgo has stepped down. Parisians voted for a new mayor, and taking her place will be Emmanuel Grégoire.
But who is Emmanuel Grégoire? What does a Paris mayor actually do? And w
We bought a house in the charming Provence town of l'Isle sur la Sorgue!
That's right: the Pearl of Provence, the Venice of the South, the same place we recorded the Christmas episode last year. And while we'll still live in Paris and do business as
Almost like a sacred ritual in France, the apéro is much more than just a drink with friends.
Véronique Savoye from France With Véro explains more.
And be sure your membership is up to date to see Vero and I answer your questions about Paris in m
I took my wife on a bohemian date in Montmartre - we called this episode "Bohemia on wheels". Join us as we take you through Montmartre in a 2CV with three nostalgic and bohemian stops along the way. Earful members can get 15 percent off your own unf
Last week we introduced you to Sophie, the newest character in our world of children's books.
Today, we're checking in - with a huge thank you - halfway through the Kickstarter campaign.
As you may have seen, we hit the target in 15 minutes. Now,
Here she is: Sophie in Paris.
Meet Sophie, the newest character in our world of children's books.
She's a clever little girl who lives in a tiny attic by the Eiffel Tower. And when a problem appears on the tower itself, Sophie takes it upon hersel
I did it! I climbed the south tower of the Notre Dame cathedral and it was every bit as wonderful as I had dreamed.
I brought the microphone up there with me, join me for the full experience.
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A personal guide from us - smaller, quieter museums we genuinely love, chosen for their intimacy and character rather than hype. None of these are in the top 15 most-visited museums in Paris.
PS: The music from this episode is an original from Pres
IT'S BACK AGAIN!
Every year we make a bucket list of things we want to try for the first time in Paris. In this episode, you'll hear Oliver and Lina sharing their top five things they want to do this year in Paris.
Why not write your own list and
Let's take a look back at 2025. Here's a good episode for the fans who might be curious to know what was the most popular, and for new listeners to get a good idea of where to start.
Thanks to all for listening, watching, and reading in 2025.
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For the first time ever, I'm in France for Christmas. Specifically, I'm in the charming Provence town of l'Isle sur la Sorgue.
But what do the French eat on the big day? I have no idea.
I walked around this beautiful town, the Pearl of Provence, t
Have you seen Lupin? Or Emily in Paris? What about The Bureau? Or Call My Agent? Maybe you've seen all four of them, perhaps more.
It's undeniable, French TV (and even movies) are having their moment right now, and in the post-Olympic Paris glow, pe
This week it's The Earful Tower's musician Pres Maxson. We talk about his new novel, how he came to work on The Earful Tower, and French music in general.
This chat was streamed live for Earful Tower members, join the crowd and meet cool people in P
Paris by night. So many possibilities. Sure, it's easy to create magical memories with a stroll along the Seine or a cobblestoned Marais street.
But there are also more than 5,000 restaurants, over 2,000 bars, and hundreds of shows every night.
So
Let's talk theatre.
This week on the show is Irish actor/playwright Hannah Coyle (who is also one of the Earful Tower tour guides!)
Hannah talks about the theatre scene in Paris, especially the English-language scene,
She also talks about Alchem
Meet Penelope Fletcher, who runs two Paris bookshops, side by side near the Luxembourg Gardens.
The shops: The Red Wheelbarrow and The Red Balloon
The Red Balloon is just for children's books, and is almost certainly the most likely of all shops in
Meet Loïc Estimbre, a Parisian entrepreneur who is behind four different eateries on just one street in the 12th arrondissement.
That street: rue Emilio Castelar.
In this podcast episode, we talk food in Paris, the 12th district in general,
This week on the show it's Guy Griffin, the owner of Cafe Mericourt in the 11th arrondissement. He talks about the current explosion of speciality coffee shops across Paris and whether it is sustainable.
He also takes us behind the beans... er, s
This week on The Earful Tower podcast it's Jake and Holly Barker, two American tourists who were actually inside the Louvre's Apollo Gallery when it was broken into on Sunday.
I met them in the Marais to record their dramatic story.
"When we
This week on the show it's Cléophée Poli - aka Cléo - a Parisienne interior designer. She talks about typical Paris apartments and what she likes about them, how you can make your home more Parisian, and the small touches to improve the feeling of an
We're making our fifth children's book, and it's the most Parisian one yet. In fact, there are some major changes to this one, so we decided to open the curtain and show you how we do them.
Lina talks about her illustrating process and I talk ab
Meet Charles Pappas - Mr World Fair. Charles likes nothing more in the world than a Universal Exhibition, especially if it's one of the seven that were hosted in Paris. In fact, he's written the book on the topic.
I met him on a road-side terrace a
After an eventful visit to the Aligre markets in the 12th arrondissement, I came home to share my love of the French food markets with my wife Lina.
Here's an energetic, honest, and in-the-moment recount of what happened when I went shopping for di
Meet Jane Bertch, a Chicagoan who has called Paris home since 2005. She started her life here as a banker, but made the unusual pivot to running a cooking class (which is now the hugely popular La Cuisine Paris). And now, she has written a memoir abo
This summer, the city of Paris announced plans to open a museum to showcase the work of architect Hector Guimard. He is the man behind the iconic Paris Metro entrances, several Art Nouveau buildings in Paris, and some very beautiful furniture and dec
I jumped in the Seine river - an activity that's legal again for the first time in 100 years. Here's what happened.
Want to do it too? You have until August 31st, here's more info (in English).
Music: Sunset on the Seine, an original by Pres Maxso
So what is the best-known street in Paris? And if that seems obvious, then what's number two? And three?
After last week's pod with Parisians Abiola and Margaux sharing their take on popular Paris streets, we surveyed our audience for an official an
Before you listen too far, make a mental note of what you think are the three most popular streets in Paris.
Then listen to two typical Parisians as they take on this unusual question.
Of course, most people would agree on number one... but where
This week we scale the Eiffel Tower with its managing director Patrick Branco-Ruivo.
What are his tips for visiting? His favourite view? And what would he ask if he had Gustave Eiffel himself on the telephone?
Join us on this exciting opportunity
I'm not proud to say it, but we got scammed pretty hard. Here's the full story.
Mentioned at the end of the episode: Our walking tours of Paris: http://www.theearfultower.com/tours
Music by Pres Maxson.
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The Earful Tower exists thanks
This week on the podcast, it's The Earful's two interns Thomas Farnham and Genevieve Victoria Gorain. And it's time to hear how they went with their bucket lists after their two-month internship is over.
Here's the post with all ten ideas they ment
Meet Corinne Menegaux, the managing director of the Paris tourism board (Paris je t'aime).
We discuss Paris, the legacy of the Olympic Games, and what's coming next. We also talk about her Paris, her job, and how she'd spend her last day in this cit
This week it's Caroline de Maigret, supermodel and author of How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are.
Her appearance on this podcast in April 2019 changed the direction and dynamic of the show. While we're between seasons, I take a look back at this epi
Author Cara Black is back on the podcast!
She is a friend of the show, and has been appearing on it since 2019!
We chat about writing mysteries set in Paris (she has penned over 20 of them), we talk about her upcoming book (which you can pre-order
This week on the podcast, it's The Earful's two new interns Thomas Farnham and Genevieve Victoria Gorain. They share their bucket lists for Paris for their two-month stay in Paris.
I found it quite interesting to hear the perspectives of American u
This week on the podcast, I invite my three-year-old son Otis to talk about language. He has been doing a stellar job learning English, French, and Swedish at the same time, and I was curious to pick his brain about it.
You'll hear him tell me how I
Let's go deep on the Notre Dame cathedral.
Our guest: Boris Petrovic, who has just published a series of historical essays on Notre Dame.
His books are a series of seven, which you can buy one by one or in a heavyweight tome, all the information i
For this season finale, we're on a private boat on the Seine River with Marie and Bertrand from My Private Paris.
They explain how best to plan a visit to the big five, the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Musee d'Orsay, the Eiffel Tower, and the Seine.
My
We're nearing the end of this podcast season, so here is a look behind the curtain at five exciting things that have happened... and that are about to happen.
This whole season of The Earful Tower is brought to you by My Private Paris, which is an
This week we talk about fun workshops in Paris that we've done recently, specifically stone carving and hat making. The guest: Lina Nordin Gee.
The details: Stonemasonry classes are with last week's guest Grégory Philippe in his atelier in the Mara
This week we chat to stonemason Grégory Philippe in his atelier in the Marais. He reveals the world of limestone, the most important stone in the city.
If you want to find his studio and book one of his stone-carving sessions, you can find it in the
Let's take a closer look at the Père Lachaise cemetery of Paris, the most visited necropolis on earth.
All kinds of famous and interesting people are buried here including Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde… and about a million more. Some 3.5 mi
After ten years in Paris, my wife Lina and I couldn't be happier. We have two little Parisian children, we have a small business, and we pinch ourselves to call Paris home.
BUT... we are also square pegs in rounds holes. Being a Swede and an Austr
Today we take a list of ten very popular things to do in Paris. And then Marie Segura, the co-founder of the My Private Paris tour agency, breaks them down into underrated or overrated. (And you can read it all here)
Hope this helps you to plan your
Let's visit the Louvre with author Elaine Sciolino. Today, we chat about her upcoming book Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World's Greatest Museum. The book pulls back the curtain on a building many think they know, but which s
It's time for a day of stained glass windows and gothic churches, featuring a visit to three key churches and cathedrals.
We begin this day trip with Chartres, a little town to the south west of Paris. Trusty tour guide Bertrand d'Aleman, from award
This week The Earful Tower is going to the opera. To prepare, I talked to superstar Australian soprano Siobhan Stagg, who is in Paris to perform in Orlando at the Théâtre du Châtelet.
She helped me to demystify the opera.
Find Siobhan Stagg on Inst
We filmed a "viral" video with the US ambassador to France, Denise Bauer, in her official residence in Paris.
This episode is a behind-the-scenes from the video, plus a general chat about what has been going on here at The Earful Tower.
Mentioned
This week has been full of reflections as I celebrated my ten year anniversary of moving to Paris. Life has changed dramatically in those ten years and building the Earful Tower has been a major part of that.
Little did I know, all those years ago,
IT'S BACK AGAIN!
Every year we make a bucket list of things we want to try for the first time in Paris. In this episode, you'll hear Oliver and Lina sharing their top five things they want to do this year in Paris.
Why not write your own list and
Short answer: yes. Paris is worth visiting in the winter months.
In this episode, Oliver and Lina explain why, based on their combined 22 winters in Paris.
Mentioned in this episode:
• Ice Skating at the Grand Palais
• A chat with Chef Tony Xu
It's time for a day trip to Vaux-le-Vicomte!
This week, I'll show you how to visit the magnificent chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte with Bertrand d'Aleman from award-winning travel company My Private Paris.
We took a private van from Paris, then spent half
Paris is home to over 100 museums, from world-renowned art galleries to quirky, hidden gems. In this episode, we highlight 5 underrated museums you won't want to miss, each offering a unique glimpse into Parisian history and culture.
Discover the Bi
This Week on The Earful Tower: Notre Dame's Grand Reopening
In this special episode, we dive into Notre Dame's grand reopening after the fire that shook the world. I speak with Ariel Weil, the mayor of Paris' central arrondissements, about hi
This week on the podcast we are chatting about gin with Charlotte Buisson Dackow from La Distillerie de l'Arbre Sec.
This cool, new micro-distillery is located on a quiet street, with a macabre history, mere steps from the Louvre museum in the 1st a
It's time for a day trip to Versailles!
This week, I'll show you a great way to visit the town of Versailles with the help of Bertrand d'Aleman from award-winning travel company My Private Paris.
We took the train from Paris, then spent a day explo
This week, Lina and Oliver discuss how to entertain children in Paris.
Even if you're not visiting with kids, you'll find some good tips in this episode. As usual, everything is written in full, with links and more details, on the website here. Bel
Here are the main mistakes to avoid if you're visiting Paris, according to this week's guest, writer and social media star Anna Kloots.
Anna has lived in Paris for five years - and I've been here for 10 - so this list is based on 15 years of Paris e
What's a baguette? A long loaf of bread, surely. WRONG! A baguette can be one of 15 different things. Here's how I found out - and a few baguette-related language facts to impress your French friends.
Featuring, ever-so-briefly, the voice of Véroni
Here are our six golden rules for visiting Provence, based on over a decade of visiting the region.
In fact, we just got back to Paris after another visit to the sun-soaked region and now it's time to share what we've learned.
In this episode, you'
Meet Céline Flores-Tavukcuoglu. She is a Texan in Paris who runs Céline Concierge, a private concierge service that specializes in Paris.
She shares her five golden rules for if you're thinking to move to Paris (or indeed, France). And even if you'
It's time for a day trip to the Champagne region!
This week, I'll show you a great way to visit the Champagne region with the help of Bertrand d'Aleman from award-winning travel company My Private Paris.
We took the train to Reims, then hired a car
Meet Romu Oudeyer, a top private chef in Paris. We talk about cooking for celebrities in Paris, France's relationship with food, and how to find good restaurants in Paris.
Follow him on Instagram here and explore his website here. To read the full
What's the most "fitting" thing to find in each of the 20 Paris districts? Something – a bar, a cafe, a street, a park… something that's representative of its neighbourhood?
For example… the eighth arrondissement is something of a business district
This week I finally got into the Hotel de Beauvais, the 400-year-old aristocratic mansion in the Marais. Here's how I did it, and how you can too!
Address: 68 Rue François Miron, 75004 Paris
More info on the Heritage Days: https://journeesdupatrimo
A mysterious email from Will asked for the ideal itinerary for a 12-hour layover in Paris.
Hosts Oliver and Lina went head-to-head suggesting their own versions of the perfect one-day plan.
But who is Will? Could he really be a Wall Street hound
This week on the podcast it's author Scott Carpenter, whose new book is called Paris Lost and Found.
To kick off this "Paris if..." season of the show, he shares his thoughts on how to "roll with it" and see Paris like a local.
You can find him o
Here are my final thoughts on the Paris Olympic Games. In this episode, it's just me, your host Oliver Gee, sharing a few pros and cons of the Olympics.
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The Earful Tower exists thanks to support from its Patreon members. From $10 a month yo
Meet Anne Carminati and James Wesolowski, the authors of 111 Museums in Paris You Shouldn't Miss.
We chat about the museum scene in Paris, the pros and cons of large and small museums, and a few good ones to find.
Their official website: https://ww
Meet Alexandre Durand and Tom Carles - also known as Alex and Tom - but better known as AT Frenchies, a social media duo that has captivated millions with their take on France and the French language.
Their official website: https://www.atfrenchies.
Here's a chat with Ariel Weil, the mayor of Paris Centre (arrondissements 1-4). He talks about the challenges of hosting the Olympics, especially security hassles that have come with the openening Ceremony on the Seine River.
The Opening Ceremony, p
Meet Tanisha Townsend, a Chicago native who became a wine expert in Paris. She gives us a general info to wine and Paris wine bars, plus her take on wine tastings in the French capital.
Find more about Tanisha (aka Girl Meets Glass) via her website
This week we're talking about the Latin Quarter. The guest is Earful Tower tour guide Hannah Coyle, discussing one of her favourite neighbourhoods.
The discovery tour of the Latin Quarter is our newest walking tour, you can book a private or semi-p
Did you know there are 8 Statues of Liberty in Paris. Maybe more. And this week, I'll find them all and show you.
This episode gives you the facts and the history.
Here's the blog link to go with the eight (plus!) statues: https://theearfultower.c
Vanessa Grall, aka Messy Nessy Chic, is selling the Seine. Or at least, little bottles of it, from her new boutique Messy Nessy's Cabinet, in the fifth arrondissement.
She is this week's guest on The Earful Tower, talking about her boutique, her vir
Auctioneer Christophe Lucien is on The Earful Tower, talking about his incredible sales of Paris memorabilia.
His current sale (June 17 and 18, 2024) include everything from a Hector Guimard art nouveau bench to an actual bouquiniste stand by the S
So you've seen all the main Paris sights, and maybe even a few of the offbeat ones. But let's go deeper. Here are 20 truly hidden gems, one from every arrondissement, according to podcast host Oliver Gee.
An important note: the secret for the 10th
Our new children's book, The Animal Games in Paris, left us with some unusual questions.
Does meter rhyme with cheetah? Apparently not, according to some.
And if not, should we keep it in the book? And on that note, should we spell it meter, or m
Meet Morgan Walesh, an American in Paris who specializes in the hidden underbelly of the city.
She talks of her love for the catacombs, the "history of the streets", and how she tried to talk her way into an infamous Paris apartment...
Find out mo
Meet Parisian woman Virginie Dubost. In 2018, she became a quadriplegic after a surfing accident.
Now, she is an accessibility advocate and has made headlines in Paris for drawing attention to accessibility issues in the city.
She joined us in th
Meet Daniel Christensen, an avid boulderer in Paris.
He talks of how the trend of climbing - aka bouldering - is captivating people's attention in Paris, and how the worldwide sport actually started near Paris in Fontainebleau.
Even if you're not
Meet Simon Kuper, a British (and naturalized French) journalist in Paris.
He talks of how the changing face of Paris and its suburbs - and his new book Impossible City: Paris in the Twenty-First Century.
Find out more about Simon and his work on h
If you've been to a Paris cemetery, you might have seen curious collections of unusual objects on certain gravestones (especially celebrities like Jim Morrisson and Oscar Wilde).
You can find potatoes, chewing gum, Metro tickets, apples... and much
Meet Frank Adrian Barron, an American baker in Paris (better know as Cake Boy Paris).
He talks of how he made it as a baker in the city, sharing his sweet treats on social media, and his book Sweet Paris.
Find out more about Frank and his work via
Meet Scott Hillier, an Australian movie director in Paris, who runs the European Independant Film Festival (the ÉCU).
He talks of the iconic light in the city of Paris, his film festival, and his exploits around the world as a director and war photo
Meet Allie Goodbun, a Canadian dancer at the iconic Moulin Rouge in Paris.
She talks of how she got the job, her life in Montmartre, and her love for the City of Light.
Want to join the fun on Allie's social media? You can find her on TikTok here
This week it's food critic and cookbook author Patricia Wells. Originally from the US, she moved to Paris in 1980 where she worked as a restaurant critic for the International Herald Tribune and later the French weekly newspaper L'Express.
Along the
This week on the show we make mille-feuilles - the "thousand layer pastry" to celebrate 1,000 reviews of The Earful Tower podcast. Thanks to all who've left reviews over the years.
You might know a mille-feuille as a Napoleon, a custard slice, or a
This week on the show we welcome back Diederick de Jongh, the owner of Flora Magnifica, which sells the finest faux flowers in France.
He was last on the show in 2021, but since then he has changed locations of his shop to be further north in the Ma
Is Paris a safe city? The truth is, it's probably about as safe as any other big city.
In other words, you need to be smart when you're here.
And this week on the podcast, American content creator in Paris Amanda Rollins shares her tips and tricks
If the words "French Revolution" seem daunting to you, then you're not alone.
It would take a whole series of podcast episodes to truly understand it all - and luckily for us - podcaster Mike Duncan has done exactly that. His Revolutions Podcast is
Lina and I discuss how circumstance has led to us raising our nearly three-year-old son in French, Swedish, and English.
This episode was brought to you by Cook'n With Class, click here to book a class with them. I did the sauce-making class and LO
Buying property in Paris (and France, in general) isn't easy.
Aside from the dreaded French admin, there is a whole world of traps and tricks to consider. Omissions in the property listing, negotiating prices, and why you shouldn't share a notary w
There's a lot of talk right now about the iconic booksellers by the Seine, aka the bouquinistes.
In recent months, the Paris Town Hall officials threatened to remove the stalls to make way for the Olympic Games, but President Macron overturned the
Chef David Lebovitz is back on the show to talk about the Aligre Market (le marché d'Aligre) in the 12th arrondissement of Paris.
Follow David here for his newsletter on Substack.
Music in this episode is from Pres Maxson.
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Author Samuel Lopez-Barrantes is on the show talking about being a writer in Paris. Perhaps it's not as romantic and lovely as it might sound. Or perhaps it is!
Sam has just published his new book, The Requisitions, which you can find here.
Follow
This week, Australian Sam Davies is on the show talking about bars in Paris. He has grown an online following by asking bartenders in Paris (and around the world) to recommend other bars.
He talks about the Paris bar scene and how it is evolving, an