Whirlwind Paris!

I've found myself saying "Let them eat cake!" more than a few times this week.  I think it has to do with going to Paris for my first time and because I've been reading a lot about the French Revolution.  Yes, your read correctly.  I finally made it to Paris and this time actually got out of the car!  I did eat some chocolate cake in Paris but my favorite treat was the macarons!  More on that later...let me start from the beginning...

Rod, Maureen and Mike

The fun started off last Thursday when Mike met his cousin Rod and wife Maureen and they drove down to see Rod and Maureen's son, Heath Frisby (who by the way just won a gold medal at this year's Winter X games and made history by doing a front flip on his snowmobile!) in Tignes, France.  

After a quick visit with Heath, they drove back up through Germany to pick me up and on Saturday we got up early and drove to the Bercy neighborhood of Paris to our hotel.  We quickly dropped off our bags and walked to the metro to get started on our whirlwind visit.  

Paris Opera House at the end of the Ave. de L'Opéra

On our walk to the Louvre

A flower market near the Louvre

First stop was lunch.  We were across the street from the Louvre entrance and yes, I know it's expensive, crummy and where all the tourists eat.  But can you believe we found a cute little place to grab a really nice, quick and affordable lunch.  Here's the kicker...the waiter was really nice!  My previous encounters with most "things" French has not always left me feeling all warm and fuzzy.  I've been looked down the nose at, yelled at, and chased off.  This trip, almost every Parisian we met was friendly and helpful.  Some even approached us and offered to help when they saw we were looking a little lost.  My warm and fuzzies in all "things" French are now restored! 

Our little lunch place!

Next stop...the Louvre.  We gave ourselves a little over two hours here.  That's like sticking your pinkie fingernail in the tub and saying you've had a bath.  There are over 5 miles of hallways full of exhibits.  We did manage the "biggies" and a few other discoveries as well.  We decided if we get a chance to go back, we'll take an official tour.  It was just overwhelming in more ways than one.

The Louvre

From inside the glass pyramid

Mona Lisa smile.. (1504)

Venus de Milo ( 3rd to 2nd century B.C.)

A model of the original Louvre Fortress first built in 1190

That cylinder is actually an open elevator!

Then we took the metro to the Arc de Triomphe.  It was hard to get a good picture from the sidewalks, so Mike, Rod and Maureen ( and twenty other tourists) ran out to the center median of the very busy Avenue de Friedland an took some awesome photos.

We decided to walk the mile or so to the Trocadero.  I had read that it was the best place to get a view of the Eiffel Tower from a distance. 

One of the original metro entrances.

Streets of Paris

A cute flower shop..love the balconies.

 It was a nice stroll through the streets of Paris and as we turned the corner..pow!  There it was.  The Eiffel Tower! 

 I was surprised at how it felt to finally see this iconic symbol of France in person, with my very own eyes.  It was definitely a "'moment" for me.  Too bad the rain decided to finally make it's official appearance after just threatening all day.  

Ignoring the rain as best we could, we wandered down the steps to the Seine and crossed the river to the tower.  We had booked tickets for the ride to the top, but the day before we left, I got an email saying they had to shut down one of the elevators and were expecting four hour waits.  With our stay being so short, there was no way we could spend so much of our precious time waiting in that long of a line, so we were able to get our tickets refunded and had to just admire the Eiffel from ground level. 

 

 We enjoyed walking around the park, having some warm churros and then walked to the Rue Cler market area and found a nice little bistro for dinner.   It was still raining and if felt so nice to get out of the rain and into a warm, cozy restaurant.  

I had an unusual but really delicious caprese salad, which we all shared. For the main course, I had the Duck Confit with with roasted potatoes and then one of the best créme brulée I've ever had for dessert.  

Caprese salad with mozarella, prosciutto and a black olive tapenade for the bread.

My Duck Confit with potoatoes

 After dinner we walked up to the metro station on the rainy Paris streets.
 We then took our soggy, tired bodies back to the hotel in Bercy. 

 The next day we were up and at it early, hoping to get to Versailles as it opened.  After we go to where we needed to connect from the metro to the train, we waited on the platform for a few minutes and then heard an announcement in French that said something about Versailles.  After a little confusion, Mike and Maureen found a really helpful metro worker who was able to tell us the C line was down and we'd have to re-route.  He gave us step by step instructions and was so patient while I wrote it all down.  So our trip that should've only had one connection had about five connections, but it didn't take too much longer than normal and it was an adventure for sure! 

  We got to Versailles and the weather was overcast but not drizzly.  We got right in. No waits in any lines except the ladies bathroom line!

The Hall of Mirrors

 We toured through the palace and again wished we had a personal tour.  Traveling to these historical places always reminds me of how little I really know about the history of the countries we visit.  It makes me want to come home and learn, read, and study all about it.  The tour took about ninety minutes with an audio guide. 

Lauderée's

 On our way out of the palace, we stopped at the one confectionery shop I've been dying to get to...Lauderée Paris!   They are known for their little cookies called Macarons.  These are not the chewy, coconut cookies called macaroons, we know in the states.  They are little round sandwich type cookies with fun colors and fillings.  The cookies are really light and chewy.

Mike with a Lauderée Macaron.

 I can't really describe them.  They are expensive but hey..how often do you get to buy a famous macaron in France??  The store was so cute and I think I would've bought some just for the cute packages and bags they have!

As we came out of the palace, the rain started.  We had planned to rent bikes and ride all through the gardens and to the Trianon Palaces and Marie Antoinette's Hamlet but this put a crimp in the plans.  They had a little shuttle tram, so we decided to take that instead.  We were feeling so sad about not being able to ride the bikes, but we were glad after a few minutes because the rain came down harder and harder as we drove along. It also made it hard to take photos.  

We had a little lunch outside of the Petite Trianon.  Ham sandwiches and macarons..mmmm!
Then we wandered through the Petite Trianon which was a small palace that was a gift to Marie Antoinette and she loved to spend time here and in the little hamlet that was built for her just a short walk away. 


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We walked through the gardens to the Queen's Hamlet.  It was raining really hard but it was so worth walking through the puddles to see such quaint little place.  You couldn't go inside any of the buildings which was a little disappointing but still it was fun to picture what it was like in Marie Antoinette's time.  This was a real escape for her from all the pressures of the court.  She really only go to enjoy it for a short time before she had to flee Versailles at the beginning of the French Revolution.

The Queen's House

Marlborough Tower

It's raining!

The Mill

 We finished up our tour and headed back on the train and metro to the hotel.  Rod and Maureen were switching to a hotel downtown where they were meeting up with Heath for a couple of days before heading back to the states directly from Paris.  So we had to say goodbye them and to Paris and head for home.  

It was a fun two day trip to Paris that left me wanting to visit again.  There's so much to see and do!  It's an easy city to get around in and the people were much friendlier than I had expected them to be.  They say if you at least try to say a few phrases in their language, they are more willing to engage with you and I really believe that.  Just a little hello, good bye and thank you go a along way. 

Love and miss you all,

-corri