More Paris

If Paris were a present, it would be one of Granny Mare’s famous ‘pass the parcel’ ones, where each layer reveals a new gift. There is the thrill as you admire the revealed treasure followed by the anticipation of what is still to be revealed. If Paris were ‘pass the parcel’, I would still be carefully removing the cello tape on the first layer.

Since I last wrote we have seen so much yet so little of Paris. The desire to enjoy it slowly is quite quickly being overwhelmed with the fear of missing something. I am not sure I will ever be ready to leave.

So what exactly have we been up to?

Our first visitor

We had our first guest visit from London. Suz received a tearful, joyful welcome, ‘happy’ tears dried, we spent a marvellous long weekend laughing our way around Paris.

Dinner at Cave La Bourgogne (Midnight in Paris)

I have to say it did not disappoint – good honest food. I love the way in Paris the waiters don’t chase you away. They leave you to sit long after your food is finished, attentive only when called upon.

The Bus

I love taking the bus in Paris – it is like a free sight-seeing tour and when it is really cold outside the busses are nice and warm. It is such a thrill to drive past such beauty and to take it all in at once.

Musée Marmottan Monet (no photos allowed)

With the most extraordinary collection of Impressionist paintings and beautiful collection of Monet’s. There is a room specifically designed to show off Monet’s water-lilies. Impressionist art is so easy to like even for an art ignoramus as myself that I would recommend this museum to anyone.

A walk from ‘home’, along the River and down the Champs Elysees

What a thrill to be able to leave your apartment, enjoy a croissant and a coffee at a charming local Café (in our case Café Léa) and walk all the way to the Arc De Triomphe. The walk starts down the Mouffetard. Winding past the Panthéon, and onwards, past the Chapple of the Sorbonne. Then towards the River, crossing over to cut through the Louvre. A few more snaps of us, this time in front of the pyramid, before picking up another coffee and wondering down through the gardens (clutching said coffee for warmth) towards the The Big Wheel. We couldn’t help ourselves we had to get on. On our second rotation, it started to snow and so we enjoyed a rather snowy blizzardly view of Paris from the top huddled together for warmth. Coming back to ‘land’ we were faced with a ‘blizzard’ and nowhere to go, fortunately Tim had spotted the only Café close by and so we rushed off there hoping to find warmth, which we did. Warmth and the most gorgeous bowl of onion soup saw us through the worst of the weather and after it calmed and we were able to continue our journey down towards the Champs Elysees before triumphantly reaching the Arc De Triomphe.

Luxembourg Gardens and the Medici Fountain

Yet another stroll through Luxembourg Gardens, which even in winter with all the leaves off the trees is stunning. On our last visit we had missed the Medici Fountain!

Place des Vosges