Monday, July 18, 2011

Don't Visit Paris on a Monday

Nearly everything was closed! Versailles, Musee d'Orsay, Musee de "Hospitals," the Sorbonne... all a bust.

While traipsing from one end of town to another (some metro stations closed as of today for repairs, so we did a lot of unexpected walking) we racked up nearly 10 miles. Right now we're back in our hotel room resting our poor little feet. But we're not done for the night. Not yet!

What we did see:

Breakfast buffet in our hotel.


Our first view of the Seine River.



The Eiffel Tower. We climbed 674 steps to the second level. Phew! Unfortunately, the top was closed because it was too windy, so we didn't get to go any higher.



(Notice I planned ahead for the windy weather up top and had my hair properly secured!)



"Rue de Loo" - the street that Julia Child and her husband lived on. We stumbled upon it by accident, but boy was I excited because I've been reading her autobiography: My Life in France.


Notre Dame.





Some very "Frenchy" things that we saw in our travels:





They "build" a beach each year. You can see them shoveling sand out of the barge and onto the sidewalk. My question: isn't it a bit late in the season to just now be building the beach?!


Dinner was marvelous! We wandered just a block or two down from our hotel and found a yummy little restaurant that boasted traditional French cuisine. The atmosphere inside was just what we were hoping for: cosy, quiet, and quaint! The waiters were very kind and did their best to explain things to us in English. I mean, what is "duck magret" anyway?! After the waiter attempted to describe it, I was intrigued enough to try it. What I ate: Escargot. Duck magret with fig sauce and homemade mashed potatoes. A rose wine from Aix-en-Provence. A homemade vanilla creme brulee. What B ate: Escargot. Sirloin steak with Bearnaise sauce and french fries. The same rose wine (we shared a bottle). Chocolate mousse. At some point during our meal, we realized that of the four tables in the back room (including ours) three were occupied by Australians. How random! We enjoyed chatting with them and savoring our meal. Needless to say, we went home happy.


(20,200 steps total)

3 comments:

  1. You are going to need new shoes :)
    Building a beach? Maybe they are on to something.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very nice! It's never too late for a beach ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Bummer about things being closed. Though all that walking can help burn off all the yummy pastries I hope you are eating! Your hotel looks so nice! How long are you in Paris?

    ReplyDelete

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