Today started slowly with Erin and I doing some shopping near the apartment. We found an adorable toy shop and of course, had to buy toys for our little ones.
We walked to Point Zero and FORGOT TO MAKE OUR WISHES!
After, I took her to my favorite crepe place on the Left Bank – Creperie des Arts. I had the caramel and salt; she had chocolate.
Once we were full, we hopped on the RER C for the Eiffel Tower. I’ll say this, I never want to see that thing up close again. Too many pickpockets, con men, and sketchiness for my liking. Plus the plaza is under construction.
I did get these photos thought:
We then took a stroll along the river and headed home. We needed rest before the real part of the day started: Fete de la Musique. For those that don’t know, it’s a city-wide FREE music festival for the Summer solstice. There are street vendors selling beer and punch as well as food vendors and, of course, DJ’s, performers, and musicians. It’s incredible.
(Thanks to Erin for the video)
We ended up at Sacre Couer, drinking beer and watching the city of Paris stretched out before us. A perfect evening.
Whenever someone hears that I’ve been staying in Paris for a few months, they usually ask if I have any suggestions on things to do or see off the beaten path. Of course I do!
1. The Patisserie on Vieile du Temple, between Rue du Tresor and Rue des Roisiers. They have the best breakfast pastries, amazing macarons, and a hearty bread called “Pain du Marais” which, I’m told by my family, is delicious.
2. Creperie des Arts has the best salted caramel and butter crepes ever. Bug and I come here every time we’re in Paris. I’ve tried many other crepes but none compare, IMO. Just ignore the weird heads sticking out of the walls:
Are you looking at me?
3. The Terrrace Restaurant at Printemps if only for the 360-degree views of Paris.
4. Statue of Liberty treasure hunt. They are hidden all over Paris. See how many you can find.
5. Musée des Arts and Métiers. Lovely museum full of stuff. Like old computers, technology (like weaving looms), printing presses? This is your place. But what you really must see is the part of the museum that was once an old church. It’s breathtaking. And added points, two Statues of Liberty are located here.
6. A Tour of the Paris Opéra. Even if you’re not a Phantom of the Opera fan, the tour is cool. I especially loved the display of ballet costumes at the end.
7. If you’re here in the Summer, Hotel de Ville has fun, free concerts. Grab a bottle of wine or beer from a street vendor and enjoy!
8. The Jardin des Plantes and the adorable zoo that’s attached. This place is a wonderland.
9. The Paris Sewer Museum. Not what you’d normally think to do, but it’s fascinating.
10. If I had to choose one museum, it would be the Musée d’Orsay. It’s smaller than the Louvre and less overwhelming. Plus, it focuses on Impressionism.
11. Don’t want to stay in a hotel? My rental agency, A Part of Paris, has great homes for rent by the night, week, and month. I’ve been very happy with them.
12. Sunday Brunch at the Jardin Acclimatation’s Pavillion des Oisseaux. One of the best I’ve ever had.
13. Running through the Tuilleries in the early morning before it becomes too crowded. The way the sun hits the Louvre is beautiful – pinks, purples, golds.
14. Climb to the top of the Arch de Triomphe. Some people say the view is better than from the Eiffel tower.
15. The street musicians who play on the bridge linking Ile Saint-Louis with Ile de la Cité (where Notre Dame is). Just walk to the back of Notre Dame and follow the bridge on your left, not the “love lock” bridge on your right.
16. The street performers in front of Notre Dame at night. Crazy fire dancers, insane rollerbladers, clowns, musicians – it’s all here. Make sure to drop a euro in the hat at the end.
17: A tip – all street signs tell you what arrondissement you are in. Also, the last two digits of a zip code, for example 75003, also tells you the arrondissement (in this example, it’s the 3rd). This makes getting around much easier.
18. Another tip – Get the RATP app. It’s has maps of all the metro, RER, and Trams. Plus, you can put in your location and destination and it will give you the route.
And this is what I wore yesterday while pretending to be calm that my book comes out next week and I still have things that must be done. Things I should be doing right now instead of blogging…sigh….
Hanging out on Pont Louis-Phillipe
The Outfit:
Shirt: Navy and white, super thin, long-sleeve tee from Banana Republic
One of the things I love about prolonged stays in new locations is discovering off-the-path things. Today, exactly one week before I have to leave, I found what may be the best view of Paris I’ve ever seen. All in a place I’ve been to many, many times: Printemps.
Originally, we wanted to eat at under the dome, but the wait was over forty minutes. Luckily, the hostess told us about the Terrace Cafe. Because it’s located in the “Home” building of the Printemps complex, we’d never heard of it, but we trekked over to the other building and up to the ninth floor. Upon stepping off the escalator, Bug and I were disappointed. The Dome restaurant has sit down service and this was…a cafeteria?
Since we were all starving, we decided to give it a shot and took the boys out onto the terrace to find a seat.
WHOA.
The first thing I saw was this:
While it looks tiny in this picture, in person, it feels so close you can touch it.
Next was this:
The Opéra and Printemps famous dome.
There were also views of the Champs Élysées, Sacré Couer, the Panthéon, Musée d’Orsay, and a million other things. It was like being in the heart of Paris, with everything within reach. And the food was very good. Not as good as the Dome, but still tasty.
And for the outfit part of the day:
I love this city.
The Outfit:
Dress: GAP navy print dress with blouson sleeves (one of my favorite sleeve types).
7:30am – Wake up. The Fox has a follow-up doctors appointment to make sure his arm is healing properly.
8:15am – Bug and The Fox leave, the other two boys and I think about breakfast.
8:20am – I send the boys to the patisserie for torsade and pain au chocolate. None of which I can eat 😦
9am – Shower and get dressed.
9:30am – Work a little while the boys play.
10:45 – Bug and the Fox return with good news! His arm is healing perfectly and he can fly home next week!
12:00pm – Leave for lunch
12:30 -3:00 – Lunch and shopping. We had to buy a LARGE suitcase because we’ve completely replaced my wardrobe while here. There’s a chance we may have to buy another.
3:15 – BUSTED by the Paris Metro Police for fare jumping. Boone didn’t use his ticket to get into the Metro and upon exiting, there was a checkpoint. Even though we had unused, paid tickets, we were still fined 30 euro on the spot. HARSH.
3:45 – Home. Bug does a little work and then we hang out while the boys play.
5:00pm – Bug goes to the grocery store while I play with the boys and swear at my phone because my email isn’t working.
6:30pm – Dinner for the boys. Wine for mom and dad 😀
7:00pm – Bug and the boys play poker while I work a little more.
8:00pm – Boys to bed, dinner for the adults.
This may be my new favorite picture:
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