We begin at LAX, an airport I've spent a lot of time at in the past and which I generally try to avoid due mostly to its perceived age and busyness. Since I used reward miles to book the flights at the best possible rate, my itinerary involved an unavoidable flight departing from California's busiest airport. I did appreciate seeing the iconic Theme Building (shown above, with NZ & HA planes visible also) and pleasantly discovered that some minor renovations brought in some new shops and restaurants. It still lacks, however, any significant art or historical or interactive exhibits and activities for bored passengers so I took to walking aimlessly among the terminals while waiting for Mari to arrive.
After a 10+ hour flight (during which the extra legroom in Economy Plus did help) our B777 touched down at London Heathrow. Just like good sporting officials, good flights tend to be the ones you don't notice or mind too much. On the bright side, the new entertainment system (with seemingly endless audio/visual/game channels) finally brings UA into the modern era. On the other side, I'd like to note that the nondescript chicken meal prepared by LAX food services tasted sub-par.
Once we cleared Passport Control at LHR, which took next to no time in comparison to previous trips where I waited nearly an hour each time, we hit the Tube to get us into central London. Mind the Gap!
And after a lengthy ride on the Tube through a gloomy (surprise, surprise) London, we made it to London St Pancras station. I love the grand feel of the European rail stations and this trip gave us a great opportunity to see a fair few of them.
The station had a number of dining options and shops so we took a bit of time to browse before picking up a snack for the journey from London to Paris (a soup and sandwich combo from Le Pain Quotidien). The late afternoon departure meant that we couldn't see much out the window (and, of course, you can't see much in the Chunnel anyways) and we arrived at Paris Gare du Nord in the mid-evening after a brisk, uneventful ride. After a brief mixup with the key pickup location, we made it safe and sound to our apartment to complete an exhausting day of travel.
A good night's rest (interrupted by only one jet lag induced awakening at around 5am) gave us the energy for a packed first day that started at Marché Bastille (the farmers market close to my old stomping grounds in the 11th and 12th Arrondissements). With so much beautiful produce, we just couldn't help but buy some.
The key landmark of my neighborhood, the July Column at Place de la Bastille
The gelato chain I became so attached to during all my previous trips to Paris, Amorino opened a shop up right around the corner from our classrooms. Imagine if this had existed here when I had been attending classes. It easily could have meant gelato for lunch everyday...
Mari posing with a couple of lion head water spouts along the Rue du Fauborg San Antoine.
We kept walking and made it down to Avenue Daumesnil, near where I lived during my summer in Paris. This lovely pic of the quintessential Parisian architecture, blue sky and bit of the avenue lining trees really captures the beauty of this amazing city.
We then made it back to the apartment to store our spoils from the market. Everything looked so amazing, especially those tomatoes.
After eating lunch at the apartment, we took the Metro out to the 8th Arrondissement to check out a bit of art. We started at the Palais de Tokyo, which featured an exhibition on Roger Vivierʻs high fashion shoes before then checking out the adjacent Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville Paris (shown above). The MaM had a cool (and tactually interactive) exhibit called Decorum, on carpets and tapestries, and a nice permanent collection (including André Lhote's L'escale on the right).
Mari and Robert Delaunay's Rythm.
Looking across the Seine to the Eiffel Tower. So glorious. We'll get to see that a bit more later...
At the end of our long first day, we return to the apartment (hungry and tired) to enjoy the delightful treats we bought at the market in the morning. Seared scallops, fresh spinach & tomatoes with a vinaigrette, fresh grapes, fresh wheat bread with fresh figs & camembert and some pumpkin soup for a bit of warmth.
Wanting something sweet to complement the meal we just had, we popped over to Montmartre (just a few blocks away from our apartment). We found the nearest crepe shop and got a nutella & banana crepe. The first of many yummy crepes we'd have here in the French capitol.
Day 2 started out with a hot cup of tea at the Gare du Nord McDonalds while we waited for Lauren & Brendan to arrive.
With the group all together now, we set off to see the sights! We started at the Louvre and here Lauren & Mari pose with the Inverted Pyramid (any Da Vinci Code fans out there?).
We wandered around the Louvre and tried our best to make a beeline for the Mona Lisa. Dodging crowds of tourists and trying to follow the tiny little signs made for a tricky activity, but we got closer and closer. To get in the spirit of things, Mari & Lauren do their best Mona Lisa smile.
After a fair bit of weaving and persistence, we made it to the famed painting. I didn't care to get much closer than this, but decided it would make for a decent photo of me, the bowler cap bag from Black Tie Casual Design and La Joconde herself.
Me & Lauren with a view of one of the many elaborate ceilings within the Louvre.
After walking around for over an hour (and just after seeing the Venus de Milo), Brendan, Lauren & I decided to sit down for a short break.
Following the much needed rest, we headed over to one of my favorite areas in the entire museum, the Cour Marly (Marly Courtyard), featuring the magnificent Horses of Marly marble sculptures.
Peek-a-boo!
Obviously we couldn't hope to see all that the Louvre had to offer in such a short period of time, but we caught most of what we wanted to see and decided to move on. Just one last picture...with the Louvre Pyramid.
Onward, by foot, to Pont des Arts.
Known for having the Love Locks, we couldn't help but stop for a picture and for a quick declaration of love.
Once across the Seine, we headed over to the Latin Quarter to grab an early dinner. While Mari & Lauren opted for savory crepes, Brendan went for a pizza and I chose a "Pita Grec" from the venerable Maison de Gyro. A truly classic meal that I've made sure to have at least once each time I visit. So filling and so delicious!
Finally! My beloved Amorino gelato! Despite some cool, evening weather, this delightful concoction sure hit the spot. In addition to my usual Amaretto flavor, I tried pistachio. Yummy in my tummy.
So many flavors to choose from!
For the final act of a long day (and undeterred by some rain), we trudged up the Tour Eiffel (via elevator...don't know why they closed the stairs) to see the lovely City of Light at night. Here you can see Champ de Mars and the Montparnasse tower.
And just before heading home to the apartment via Metro, we snapped this group shot with the Tower.
Since my last trip to Paris, the city had instituted a bike sharing program called Velib. We decided to give it a try as our mode of transit for the next day and we began by trying to figure out how to work the automated kiosk at Gare du Nord.
Once we sorted it out and everyone got a bike, we snaked our way through the streets of Paris en route to Île de la Cité. My above ground navigation got put to the test and though we did eventually arrive at our destination, it took a few wrong turns to get there. Great way to be able to see the city as you travel through it, though it also meant added exposure to the morning chill.
Once we parked the bikes at the Cité bike stand, we walked on over to the Palais de Justice (Palace of Justice), which serves as a courthouse.
Located within the palace grounds, the royal, Gothic chapel of Sainte Chapelle houses some spectacular stained glass. Apparently I had forgotten how impressive!
No, really. The pictures don't do it any justice.
Brendan and Lauren in front of the magnificent Notre Dame de Paris (yeah, the famous one...see the gargoyles?). The sun began to creep out a bit from behind the clouds and helped to make being outside just a bit more pleasant.
All that biking, walking and general sightseeing sure can build up an appetite so we headed over to the Boulevard Saint Germain to find some food for an impromptu picnic. We lucked upon this block that had a charcuterie (prepared meats purveyor pictured above), fromagerie (cheese shop) and boulangerie (baker) all next door to each other. After picking up all the food, we strolled over to Île Saint-Louis and sat down on a bench for our picnic along the Seine (looking at the backside of Notre Dame). Special thanks to Uncle Barry for suggesting the picnic spot.
While in the neighborhood, we stopped by the famous Shakespeare and Company Bookstore, which served as a focal point for bohemian culture and the Beat Generation.
While there, I took a moment to fill up my water bottle courtesy of the Wallace water fountain outside of the bookshop. I don't think I ever gave these fountains (which you can find throughout the city) much thought before, but they've been dispensing potable water for the Parisian public to enjoy for over a century. Remarkable!
We rode our bikes around a bit more (including stops in the Saint Germain des Prés area for macarons and the Luxembourg Gardens for a nature break) before walking up to the Panthéon. We just missed their opening hours, but still had enough time to try a jumping picture. The first one didn't go too well.
We did better the second time around (whilst garnering plenty of curious looks from bystanders).
With the daylight quickly fading, we hopped on the Metro to get us to the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile.
We got to the top of the Arc right at dusk. It made for some very cool views, including the above one of Avenue de la Grande Armée (and all its traffic) and the La Defense district (including a silhouette of the Grande Arche).
I didn't get to see the chrome T-rex out on the Seine, but as we walked along the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and window-shopped all the luxury goods stores, we did spot this one in the LV store.
And though the store had already closed, I caught a glimpse of the Yaris Hybrid-R concept car through the window. Combining a 300hp internal combustion engine along with twin 60hp electric motors makes for a potent vehicle. All wrapped up in a Yaris body that, mostly, masks the serious performance capability within.
Not content to end the day on that note, we caught the Metro back to Montmartre and visited the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur. It sure looks quite majestic lit up at night.
We had one more full day left in Paris and a strong determination to make the most of it. Mari & I wanted to visit a number of museums, while Brendan & Lauren decided to take a day trip to Château de Versailles. So we split up and Mari & I started our day with a nearly hour long wait to enter the Musée de l'Orangerie. The building originally housed the orange trees within the Jardin de Tuileries before becoming the museum which houses Claude Monet's famous Water Lilies (within custom galleries no less). After missing out on visiting this museum due to renovations or what not, I finally had a chance to go! While I can't share any pictures of the Water Lilies (exceptional) or the temporary Diego Rivera / Frida Kahlo exhibition (extensive) due to a no pictures allowed policy, I did snap this photo of Marie Laurencin's Portrait de Mademoiselle Chanel contained within the museum's permanent collection. The colors and style just struck a chord with me. By the way, Museum #1.
After the l'Orangerie, we enjoyed our packed lunch (rotisserie chicken and camembert cheese), supplemented with a quiche and salad from the Carousel du Louvre food court. Then we hopped on the Metro and headed to the Centre Georges Pompidou (yes, the Modern Art one with all the pipes on the building exterior). As we neared the Pompidou, we caught a glimpse of some street art including the above and below.
I don't always enjoy modern art, but the ones I do tend to like will make you think a bit about them or just look kind of wild (in that cool way). The above installation falls into the latter category.
Come to think of it, this BMW race car decorated by Roy Lichtenstein also falls into that latter category. I'm sure my affinity for automotive things helps out too. Also, Museum #2.
Since she gets a little cranky when she doesn't have a chance to play in the water regularly, I found a pool near the Pompidou that Mari could do some lap swimming in (the Piscine Saint Merri in case you'd also like to go for a swim next time you find yourself near the Pompidou). So, she joyfully hopped in for a workout while I did my best impression of a swimmer (at a much slower pace obviously). Unfortunately I forgot my swim goggles, so I had to swim blindly and that resulted in one foul free stroke that hit a poor lady on the head and resulted in some profuse apologizing.
Post-swim, we hopped on the Metro/RER and headed to the Musée d'Orsay. We just snuck in with less than an hour left before closing and I'm thankful we did because I adore this museum both architecturally and also for its content (largely Impressionist and post-Impressionist art). No photography of the artwork allowed within the d'Orsay, so you'll have to take my word that it looked quite amazing. I did get a chance to take this pic of the museum interior which clearly showcases the look and space of the interior (a former Beaux-arts style rail station). And now we've been to Museum #3.
And last, but not least (Museum #4 for those counting), we made our way over to the Musée Rodin to see some of the famous sculptor's work. Housed in a building with a lovely garden, the above image gives you just a glimpse of this small but enjoyable museum. The perceptive of you will also see "The Thinker", one of Rodin's best known works, on the right side of the image. Because of on-going renovations, we didn't get to see the museum in its entirety. It still proved to be a fun, albeit brief, visit.
With the sun quickly setting at this time, we had to hurry on over to the Eiffel Tower vicinity to meet Lauren & Brendan for dinner.
And make it we did to Les Cocottes (hat tip to Susanna for the recommendation).
The food proved to be fantastic (I'd say the best meal of the trip). You can see my cocotte (baking dish in which food can be both cooked and served) filled with pork loin, chantarelle mushrooms and potatoes confit. Rich and delicious. Paired nicely with a Bordeaux (I think...we got whatever the lady recommended). If you need to find a place to eat in Paris, I'd highly recommend Les Cocottes (furthermore, Anthony Bourdain also gave it a thumbs up on an episode of No Reservations, which I saw after returning from the trip).
We had a brilliant dessert at Les Cocottes but as we walked to the nearby Metro Station, we saw an Amorino on Rue Cler. Needless to say, we dropped in for a small serving of gelato. I opted for the Speculoos (Belgian cookies) and Hazelnut flavors. Yum and yum.
On our last night in the City of Light, we thought we'd do a little bit of walking around on our way back to the apartment. One stop included a visit to the Louvre's Pyramid to get a view at night.
And why not take a group shot too!
And with that, our eventful stay in Paris comes to a close for the most part. We packed up our stuff from the apartment, got a short night's sleep and woke up bright and early (~4:30am) to make sure we caught the first RER train out to Paris Orly for our flight to Italy. For those adventures and more, you'll have to wait till the next blog entry. Until then, Happy Xmas!
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