London and Paris Trip

[borne_before]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

So, my wife did some *international conglomerate* sponsored research and gets an all expenses paid trip to London to present a poster at a conference. I get to come along WITHOUT kids. We will be doing 5 days in London and 3 in Paris. I'm wondering if there is anything psychology/behavioral science related that might be dope for me to check out while she is conferencing. Also, general recommendations are absolutely welcomed. Never been over the pond before and y'all seem cultured.

 

[Psychai]

I studied abroad in London for a summer as part of a psychology undergrad program so I have some thoughts!

There is a Freud museum a short train ride from London set up in the home Freud lived in at the end of his life (couch and all). I thought it was very well done: Freud Museum London - The Home of Sigmund Freud

I haven't been myself but I've heard good things about the Bethlem Museum of the Mind: Bethlem Museum of the Mind

Slight step away from psychology, but Darwin's house was also worth the visit: Home of Charles Darwin - Down House

Other general recommendations for London would be the Victoria and Albert museum (you could spend days there), and most any show in the Globe or Royal Albert Hall. And if you're an impressionist art fan I would highly recommend the Musee d'Orsay and Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris.

 

[borne_before]

I studied abroad in London for a summer as part of a psychology undergrad program so I have some thoughts!

There is a Freud museum a short train ride from London set up in the home Freud lived in at the end of his life (couch and all). I thought it was very well done: Freud Museum London - The Home of Sigmund Freud

I haven't been myself but I've heard good things about the Bethlem Museum of the Mind: Bethlem Museum of the Mind

Slight step away from psychology, but Darwin's house was also worth the visit: Home of Charles Darwin - Down House

Other general recommendations for London would be the Victoria and Albert museum (you could spend days there), and most any show in the Globe or Royal Albert Hall. And if you're an impressionist art fan I would highly recommend the Musee d'Orsay and Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris.

These are excellent ideas!

 

[Sanman]

Go to Brockleys Rock or Stones for some good fish n chips. Tamil Prince or similar for a pint and a curry. Hit a good fromagerie and boulangerie for some cheese and bread in Paris.Then go here and see where Binet invented those tests you give:

History & Exhibitions | Institut de Psychologie

psychologie.u-paris.fr

 

[wysdoc]

I studied abroad in London for a summer as part of a psychology undergrad program so I have some thoughts!

There is a Freud museum a short train ride from London set up in the home Freud lived in at the end of his life (couch and all). I thought it was very well done: Freud Museum London - The Home of Sigmund Freud

I haven't been myself but I've heard good things about the Bethlem Museum of the Mind: Bethlem Museum of the Mind

Slight step away from psychology, but Darwin's house was also worth the visit: Home of Charles Darwin - Down House

Other general recommendations for London would be the Victoria and Albert museum (you could spend days there), and most any show in the Globe or Royal Albert Hall. And if you're an impressionist art fan I would highly recommend the Musee d'Orsay and Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris.

I second the motion for Musee d'Orsay over going to the Louvre in Paris, if you like art museums. It is more manageable in a single visit, less crowded, and in a lovely space of a remodeled train station. The building itself is art.

 

[PsyDr]

London:
Freud museum- ok
Anna Freud Center- extremely disappointing.
Bethlehem Museum



Paris
Salpetriere Hospital tour-amazing, plus it features Charcot, so you can hit a ton of diagnoses at once
Psychiatry and neuroscience museum- no experience here
There’s probably some lacan museum
edit: If you liked that movie "Inception", the area where they introduce the entire concept of dream manipulation is within 500m of the Eiffel.

 

[cara susanna]

Not psych related, but the Paris Opera House! It's gorgeous.

 

[jdawg2017]

Not psych related but here’s some recs from a brief trip I took in summer 2019 (pre-COVID, so YMMV in terms of prices and whatnot).

For London, ride the Eye if you want some great views of the city. I don’t recall exactly what my wife and I purchased, but it was something like “semi-private champagne eye ride” or similar. It was maybe double the price of a regular ticket per person but we skipped a massive line and got alcohol, and rode the eye with maybe 10 other people in our pod… so it was worth it I think if you like views. I’d also recommend looking into shows in the West End if that’s your sort of thing. Again, in 2019 dollars we got two tickets to Hamilton for something like $100 total a few rows back from the stage. IDK if that was a fluke vs. something regular with their pricing. I also just recommend riding the tube around town and vibing. It’s a pretty relaxed city and easy to get around.

We spent only one day in Paris, so we didn’t see much but again it’s easy to get around on their metro system. We did go to louvre and loved seeing the massive art collection. Mona Lisa is way overrated IMO, but we could see it from about 50 yards away without waiting in an hour line and that was okay for us LOL.

 

[clausewitz2]

Strongly recommend Notre Dame while in Paris, it is now open again after having been closed for years after the 2019 fire. It is extremely easy to get to via the Metro (you don't even have to change lines coming in from CDG) and there is a reason it is world famous. Then you can walk over to Shakespeare and Company, which is an institution for a reason.

 

[borne_before]

We leave on Friday! My afternoon patient fell off, and I still don't have anyone for my Wednesday patient. So that means, knock on wood, easy week.

I'm feeling some parent guilt for leaving the 4- and 7-year-olds for that long, but this is sort of a once in a lifetime deal.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Musée d’Orsay Is my vote in Paris. Large collection of Van Gogh of whom I am a big fan. He frequently comes up in my discussions about serious mental illness and talent. I always point out that his contemporaries who are also at the museum, like Monet, Renoir, Degas, and his friend Gauguin didn’t spend time at the psychiatric hospital because mental illness and artistic ability are not connected like that. That being said, people with mental illness are people too and have talents and abilities and strengths to offer and the illness can get in the way. Also, he stabilized when out in the countryside and decompensated in the urban setting of Paris. It pints out that regardless of medications, environmental factors are an important component of managing chronic mental illness. Have a great time on the trip. 😊

 

[borne_before]

Musée d’Orsay Is my vote in Paris. Large collection of Van Gogh of whom I am a big fan. He frequently comes up in my discussions about serious mental illness and talent. I always point out that his contemporaries who are also at the museum, like Monet, Renoir, Degas, and his friend Gauguin didn’t spend time at the psychiatric hospital because mental illness and artistic ability are not connected like that. That being said, people with mental illness are people too and have talents and abilities and strengths to offer and the illness can get in the way. Also, he stabilized when out in the countryside and decompensated in the urban setting of Paris. It pints out that regardless of medications, environmental factors are an important component of managing chronic mental illness. Have a great time on the trip. 😊

We skipped the Louvre and took your vote for the Musée d’Orsay. It was amazing. Van Gogh’s texture and use of paint really do not come through in photographs. Seeing the works in person gave me a completely different appreciation for them. I also unexpectedly loved the furniture and decorative arts sections.

We also visited the Musée de l’Homme, or the “Museum of Mankind,” and it absolutely blew my mind. The narrative structure of the museum was fascinating. I have a bit of an obsession with our human ancestors, especially Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons, so I loved seeing the cultural constants across human history, along with the development of stone tools and other technologies. The highlights for me were seeing an actual Neanderthal skull and the Venus figurines.