We are going to Paris! We (Maria, her mother Betty and I) were all up just after 5am and at the Liverpool airport by about 6.30am (thanks for the lift Julien). Flight was uneventful and quick. Once in Paris we made our way via train to our hotel in the Marais area and found it all fairly easily (what with Maria being in charge of the Time Out Paris book and being chief navigator).
We checked into the hotel at about midday but it was too early to get our room so we left all our baggage and headed out to explore firstly the Marais area by wandering the streets, whilst heading south towards Notre Dame. Early on we found a bakery so bought some quiche and tarts and ate them in a park. Continuing our walk, we noticed that a number of the shops were closed as it was midday. The architecture really is lovely with multi-level buildings with large shuttered windows, balconies and ornate iron-work. I was surprised to see how much graffiti was on the buildings we walked along. We were in awe of how close cars park next to each other and it was great to see so many people out using the public bicycles available. The weather alternated from being sunny with a cool breeze to being overcast.
We crossed the Seine River arrived at Notre Dame which is located on the Ile de La Cite (an island), and I vaguely remembered some of the detail from my trip in 1992. There was a really long queue to go inside so we instead crossed over to another of the Seine Islands called Ile St Louis, listening to musicians and watching buskers ‘performances on the way. There were a number of lovely shops here, with really unique products. I restrained myself – just! For afternoon tea we went into a cafe as Betty really wanted a cup of tea and I was thinking a French crepe would go down well. The cafe we chose was perfect, filled with lovely decor and serving gorgeous crepes. I had one with bananas and a fabulous bitter chocolate syrup – it was divine!!!!
We headed back into the Marais area, wandering around shops and looking in galleries until about 5pm when we visited Notre Dame. The queue in wasn’t as bad as it was previously, and moved fairly quickly. It really is a lovely building, and I love the sculptures on the front entrance over the gigantic doors. The place was filled with tourists – not certain how people can concentrate on their prayers and confessions.
Next stop was for a drink – Betty having soft drink and Maria and I a couple of champagnes. They went down a treat and we were in a great place to people watch. There is a fascinating mix of people, many of whom are beautifully dressed. There are a number of characters as well and it is amazing hearing the incredible mix of languages being spoken.
It was getting close to dinner time so we went and checked out the places Time Out recommended. The first place we went to was booked out for the night, so we made our way to another place called La Hanger. We were really lucky to get there when we did – inside was booked out and many people arrived after us. Lucky there were outdoor heaters as by this stage it was getting really cool. We all had different entrees and mains and were happy for each other to try. I took a bit of a punt on what I ate and was really pleased with the end result – green beans with olive oil and grated parmesan cheese, then chicken with honeyed fennel. Maria and I shared a bottle of white wine, and we all shared a crème brulee for desert. The meal really was lovely, great pick. We walked back to the hotel and finally got the opportunity to take our bags to our room. It was after 11pm by this stage, so we really did make the most of the day and were all exhausted!!
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