Pursuits

The Paris Syndrome Drives Chinese Tourists Away

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An epidemic is gripping Chinese tourists visiting the French capital: the Paris syndrome.

Like their Japanese counterparts, first-time visitors from China -- fed on media reports and movies like “An American in Paris,” or “Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amelie Poulain” -- arrive expecting to see a quaint, affluent and friendly European city with smartly dressed men and women smelling of Chanel No. 5.