The city of [what] love?

The City of [What] Love?

Paris! Paris! Paris! Growing up I had dreams of travelling the world, visiting the places where history took place and being another person in the crowd of billions. Having travelled to all of the major cities and many other smaller cities in America, I thought seeing Paris would top them all. So I thought.
Seeing and learning about all of the tourist attractions in Paris was amazing. All of the stories I had heard were true, but one major detail was hidden from me and neglected from the wonderful stories I had heard about the city, which prevented me from loving this city. Paris, France was dirty. There were old clothes on the street, trash overflowing the cans, drug dealers in the parks, homeless people in the alleys, smells of the sewer in the stores, and animal feces covering the sidewalks. However, the feces did not surprise me too much because Strasbourg had the same problem. But, the other unsanitary items were shocking!
As previously mentioned, I have travelled to dozens of cities and I had seen that aspect of them before but I didnt expect them in Paris, the fashion capital. Not only was it the capital of France but it was a place where many historical scenes took places and where tourists from all over the world came to visit. I know I can sometimes live in a fairytale land but I honestly did not expect this major capital to have the same issues a small city such as Baltimore would have.
Maybe it is just me but I expected the city to be more loving and the people to be more caring to not let these things take control of the city. Of course people were full of emotions and rivers full of love keys but I thought people would have more love for the city, being the city of love. After travelling back to Strasbourg and thinking about this experience, in Paris, I can at least say that I have been to Paris, France and I'll always keep the images (positive and negative) with me.