Our Parisian Staycation

Thanks to some family and friends, we enjoyed a lovely one-night stay in an adorable boutique hotel here in Paris! What a lovely Christmas gift, to play tourists here in our "home away from home." This is probably my favorite hotel in the whole city, and proved to be as adorable on the inside as it is welcoming from the outside. I have pointed this hotel out to visitors every time that we are in the "Marais" area where it is located. From the first time I saw it, I couldn't help but imagine what it must be like to stay there...and now we have!

Exotic Locality

On this perfectly beautiful day, October 27, 2009, Andrew and I decided to go on one of our exploring adventures in Paris. You may or may not know that my husband is a very good cook, and I don't just mean in the food he makes, but in the whole process: he takes risks, learns from his mistakes, and is always willing to try something new, be it a method of cooking or a food itself. While Andrew has enjoyed cooking for quite sometime, it's difficult to stay motivated while cooking in our tiny 2-burner-electric-stove-and-mini-fridge kitchen. But Andrew has found some new motivation when we saw the film Julie and Julia, which we highly recommend as it could encourage anyone to really work up an appetite for cooking and tasting delicious home-cooked meals! So I have been the beneficiary of my husband's latest cooking exploits: pan-fried trout with a lemony butter-garlic sauce, leek and potato reduction with Saucisse de Toulouse, and tonight red-wine-braised duck manchons with sauteed brussels sprouts! Mmm! So on today's outing we decided to visit an area we'd been to just once, and very briefly, in the past, to re-visit some cooking stores and discover what else it had to offer.

The area that I refer to is in the 1st and 2nd arrondissements (districts) of Paris, and once contained the famous "Les Halles" market and distribution center. This was no ordinary market, but actually revolutionized food distribution and buying in Paris and worldwide. "Les halles" were huge covered "kiosks" made of glass and iron, designed in the 1850's as a means of centralizing the market in Paris, allowing for shoppers to find everything in one place. It was more of an industrial undertaking, affecting restauranteurs, butchers, shop owners, etc, and through them individual family shoppers. This marketplace was HUGE (and a frequented favorite of Julia Child herself!) until it unfortunately had to be torn down in 1971 because it was so overcrowded and in a state of terrible disrepair. The modern Les Halles area now contains a giant underground shopping mall, but even the shopping mall is built in such a way that it commemorates and reminds of the once so revolutionary marketplace that was born here.

The area remains very "foodie" oriented to this day. Put it this way, "Les Halles" wasn't nicknamed "the stomach of Paris" for nothin'! A name like that sticks! So "Les Halles" in today's Paris contains all kinds of interesting shops and quirky stuffs. We went in some amazing cooking stores, where you could find unique tools, and even more unique ingredients. We're talking Parisian chef-supply central!!

This one's for you, Lorraine!!

There are age-old cafes, some of them look like they're actually about to fall over. There are beautiful fruits and vegetables in overflowing displays, the freshest fish and cheeses just waiting to be discovered around every turn. We walked past the absolutely BEST smelling pastry shop in the entire world...Andrew actually said he wanted to bottle that scent so he could sell it as perfume! Another of the shops seemed beautiful enough to eat, and that's before considering the delectable pastries inside.

See what I mean? You could eat up this shop, it's just so sweet!!

Seeming slightly out-of-place in this otherwise very traditional area were a handful of boutique-type sushi bars. And strangely enough with all this food around, this was probably the cleanest neighborhood we've ever been in in Paris (which is saying a lot, since Paris is a pretty clean for a city). It was like a way less crowded and way more authentic Latin Quarter, which, if you know that area of Paris at all, is a really heavenly combination!

The lovely ambiance of today's excursion.

As much as I'm sure this sounds so romantic and adventurous to you, dear reader, to us it has been inspiring in a whole different way: we've come to recognize that this type of "exotic locality" can be found really anywhere, in unique and wonderful ways! It has inspired us to become acquainted with our town, our state, our country, when we come home! We can't wait to see what's in store for us, what's been there all along. As much as we love Paris, and value our experiences and knowledge acquired here, we are thrilled to know how much discovering we have to do when we go home. Funny how going away makes you realize that! We're determined too to keep eating great food, both out and about and when we're at home. We don't want to eat at chain restaurants so much because they're not the "real," the local cuisine. We want to find those hold-in-the-wall places that have taken on the spirit of the town, that have been around since before anyone can remember. We want the "real deal." Lucky for us that everywhere has a "real deal," and it's well worth the effort to discover what exactly that is!

City of Lights, City of Nights

One often hears about Paris being the “City of Lights.” Being here, I’ve discovered how very true that is! Paris, with its massive monuments and reflecting river, is always beautiful in the daytime. But it is these very qualities which make it so beautiful, so breathtaking, at night. The spirit and pulse of the nighttime city is only more obvious because of the Parisians and their living habits. After all, we’re talking about a culture where the dinner hour regularly commences after 8pm, and most cafés are open until 2am!

Part of what gave me this new cultural insight is the fact that I’ve recently had some early mornings in Paris. Morning on the streets of Paris is one of those times that reveals just how different this city is from other cities, at least the ones I’ve been to. In a big American city, New York, LA, Boston, for example, the whole city seems to be waking up before the sun does. It’s the people who bring the city and its contents to life. In Paris, the opposite is true: it seems to be the sun which warms and wakens the sleepy people. The typical workday here begins at 9am, and most shops don’t open until 10 or 11.

I especially love Paris on a Sunday morning, when you seem to have the whole city to yourself! Nobody is out at this time, no shops are open, no cars on the road. Just you and the city (if you are up, it’s because you weren’t partying until 3am last night)! This past Monday, I got to see morning Paris in “action” on a work/week day…it was interesting, to be sure. I had to be at work for a 7:30am shift, requiring me to take the 6:30am train. Walking to the station a little before 6:30, the only other people I saw in the dark were street sweepers and delivery men. On the train, even in this vast city of commute and commerce, there were people, but no activity. The train was relatively silent, and occupied almost entirely by nodding heads. I literally watched people walk onto the train, sit down, and be asleep before the train had left the platform! Paris really isn’t a “morning person,” though it is lovely and charming in the morning.

While it may be enjoyable in the morning, Paris becomes truly magical only at night! As I said, if one looks at the city you can see how it is so enchanting in the evenings! Andrew and I had the opportunity to really explore this place at night during Shannon’s visit from Russia. Andrew was able to get us into a nighttime bike tour of Paris because he currently works as a mechanic for the tour company. We had a marvelous time, and enjoyed the thrill of the wind in our faces as we took in Paris at its most glorious time of day!

Pictures can tell a story wonderfully, so I’ll just leave you with some. Our bike tour ended with a one hour boat ride on the Seine, offering the perfect opportunity to see the city all lit up! I thought it strange that Andrew and I hadn’t really experienced nighttime Paris much since we’ve been here, until I realized that it’s only just now started getting dark at a “normal” hour (9:30pm). All summer long it’s stayed light until 10:30-11!! I quite like the nighttime look of the city, however, and can’t wait to see more!

Some images from our boat tour on the Seine. Seeing all these beautiful sights from the river really offers the perfect perspective, as the river seems to add an additional depth and illumination!

Still takes my breath away every time!

An artistic shot of the Notre Dame for you. The up-lighting makes it seem even more majestic!

Detail from part of the Louvre Palace. We road through here during the evening bike tour, and liked the ambiance so much we revisited the site this past week!

When we came through the Louvre courtyard during our bike tour, we were met by two powerful sensations: one was the incredible glowing, golden color that the Louvre takes on at night! The other was the somber yet beautiful music of a lone cello player, drifting into the night.

We had a great time with Shannon! Goodbye sister, til we meet again!

Cuisine Couture

Last week, Andrew and I went on one of our exploratory adventures to (drum roll, please....) the Fashion District of Paris! Suffice it to say, we had an interesting time there. You must understand that this area of Paris does not suggest merely pret a porter fashions, but rather is its own culture. Certainly the clothing and general look is a huge part of this subculture of Paris, but that's only the beginning. The fever of fashion has taken over everything in this area, from people, shops, and wares to architecture, presentation, and (you guessed it!) FOOD!!

This street (great name, huh?) is one of the most fashionable in the city, and is home to shops such as Gucci and Hermes.

Today's discourse will be on the food of the fashion district. And before we go any further will you just allow me to gape and drool for a moment as I recall the food...

Thank you.

Andrew and I walked into the beautiful Galleries Lafayette, as I wanted to show him around this famous Paris department store. I had been to visit in high school, and weather or not you're into fashion, you sort of just have to see this place in order to believe it...

Only in Paris can a DEPARTMENT STORE look like this!! Unbelievable, isn't it?

This place is like some monumental shrine where patrons come to pay homage (and LOTS of money!) to the art of shopping.

You may recognize a couple of these designers from the "immaculate" ground-floor cosmetology department.

So we came to the Galleries Lafayette because I just wanted to show Andrew this craziness. We walked in via the underground metro entrance, and I wasn't really sure of the way. We followed the signs that were leading to the "main store," which I supposed to be the aforementioned shopping shrine. But no, we suddenly found ourselves in the market of all markets!! We literally walked around dumb-founded and dazed for at least a half-hour while we just marvelled at the marvels around us.

A small portion of the amazing cheeses at the large and diverse cheese counter!

Look at the intricate details...don't you just want to eat these cheeses?? Except that they're almost too pretty to eat.

If you've been following the blog previously, you will have read my post about Auchan, the mega-super-uber-market of Paris. We hated it. The market in Galleries Lafayette was nothing like that though, but rather was classy, incredible, and beautifully organized. The market specializes in gourmet foods from around the world, and there were many and various sections within the market that carried these foods. For example...

Everything edible that you see in this photo is foie gras...everything. SO French!

We didn't get any foie gras, but we did love looking through the chocolate section which was unbelievably huge!! And the chocolates all looked delicious and contained every imaginable flavor. There was an enormous rack for honey, and as Andrew said, you could probably make up a flavor/type of honey completely ridiculous, but it would exist here in France! There were all sorts of jams and speads as well, and coffees and teas from all corners of the earth. And speaking of diverse flavors, try the incredible spice-mania...all kinds of spices packed in perfect pyramids! This area smelled so divine, and there were also flowering loose teas...


CHOCOLATE!!!! Check out these goodies...

These delectable delicacies are were only about the size of a finger, but were priced at about 6 Euros EACH! But you would not believe how perfectly uniform they were. I think if I bought one I would just put it in a glass case and sell it on e-bay later...

Yes, these are gold-flecked chocolate truffles. I know...WOW.

The market also had a deli and sandwich section, where you could order food ready-made. This was one of my favorite things in the whole store:

Individual (and adorable!) baby-sized bottles of olive oil so you can get that perfect dressing just the way you want it on your salad.

So after our treck to the fashion district, we stepped back into reality (i.e. our own life). What a day! There is such a different and (for us) rather mind-boggling understanding of food here. The photos that you see are from just one shop out of the many many shops in Paris that sell this sort of food. We've seen honey shops, a mustard and vinegar shop, chocolatiers, an organic cookie shop...pretty much anything you can think of. We're interested to learn more about it, but really we want to learn to cook and utilize delectable ingredients in true French style, just maybe without the price tag.

Say Cheese!

I don't have a whole lot to write about, as we've both been sick during the past two weeks. Also, it's been raining quite a bit, so we have tried to avoid going out into the cold. We are both on the mend though, now, and are getting back into a routine of exploring the city...

Paris is full of little gems, and last week, Andrew and I went to visit one. We did not happen upon this place, but rather it was recommended to us by a friend of mine from work. This place, Gemi's, is a wine and cheese bar, very Parisian and very chic! We loved the atmosphere, and both the cheese and wine proved delicious. Just wanted to share photos to give you an idea of the place and its funky-fun atmosphere. It would've been near-perfect, except for the slow service and continuous replay of Taylor Swift's album. Nevertheless, Gemi's:

So cozy!

So yummy! The waiter picked out cheeses from goat, cow, and lamb's milk. We liked the bleu (cow) cheese the best, but all three were very good. Lamb's milk cheese was a first for both of us, at first a little too tart and stinky. But by the end, we both really liked it. The substance in the small ramekin is fig marmalade. SOOO delicious! Who'd have thought to put fig with cheese? Genius!

The very suave atmosphere of Gemi's. The entrance to the bar is upstairs, but the seating there is more plain. My friend Elodie said we must sit downstairs, in the "cave," because that's where the true Parisians sit!

You can see that it really is rather "cave-like." We really liked this place, and can't wait to go back for some more tasty cheese!!

Well, that's all for now. We'll see what this week brings, and will hopefully have more pictures for you after my days off tomorrow and Tuesday! Miss you all!!

Paris, the City

Well, it is now June 1st, and it seems impossible that we've been here for nearly 4 weeks already. My, but how time flies! I feel that we've learned so much in even the very short time we've enjoyed here, and yet that there are so many many things we have yet to discover. Not that that's a bad thing. On the contrary, if there's one thing I've learned while here, it is that Paris is a city of discovery.

Andrew and I do our best to discover and explore at least one or two areas of the city per week, as our schedule permits. After all, as my schedule "regulates" more and more, the days off I enjoy each week become more and more "irregular." So, if I can pull together the energy, and Andrew the patience, to walk around the city together, we will. This works best when I have the whole day off, as we can take our time and really learn a new place! The people, the vibes, the smells, the landscape, the views, the metros (of course). In a particular area of Paris, called Montmartre, one must also form an understanding with the streets, which seem an endlessly winding mass of tangles that lead, well, nowhere in particular.

We went to visit Montmartre this past Thursday, and just being there led me to discover a few of my favorite things about Paris. Before I go into that, for those of you who don't know Montmartre, the French film Amelie is all about a girl who lives in this "village" of Paris. I love this very artistic and beautifully shot film (and its wonderful music), though it definitely has its naughty French moments. :-/ ahem... However, there is a beautiful scene in the movie that depicts the area of the Basilique du Sacre Coeur, Montmartre's famous landmark white-washed church at the very top of the "mont" (hill). You can watch the scene here to get a better idea.

A quaint Tea Salon in Montmartre...I can't wait to take both my mom and mother-in-law here!

Montmartre has long been the haven of both French and foreign artists of all types, and because of this has gained a very bad reputation. However, it also has a sacred history, which includes the Sacre Coeur ("Sacred Heart"). The Sacre Coeur was built as a peace offering for the attrocities and bloodshed of war, significant in Paris, a city that has historically been torn by war. Personally, we both found the basilica more impressive and beautiful on the outside than on the inside. Still, we were very glad to have visited.

The impressive Basilique du Sacre Coeur. The rare white stone from which it is built is found in a French quarry. The stone contains lots of calcium, which insures that the structure cleans itself each time it rains, which happens all the time in Paris!

So, back to Paris. Being up here at the top of the city led me to realize some things that I love about it. While each city is truly unique, I think I can firmly state, along with anyone else who has ever lived here in Paris, that there is no city like it anywhere. It has such a sense of intimacy, although it houses millions. The people and the sights are so intertwined with the history behind this place that they seem to breathe as one. The views from the top of Montmartre are breathtaking, even on the overcast day when we visited...

As is so often the case, the photo just doesn't do the view any justice. We could recognize many, many landmarks across the panorama. You can see the beautifully laced clouds hanging over the horizon, though...

Note that you can really see the city, unlike New York, Boston, or even San Francisco, where the view is blocked by large, bulky skyscrapers. Here in Paris, the majority of the buildings are 6-7 stories high, with some very notable landmarks and larger buildings spread around. In fact, you can recognize many of them, even from so great a distance. One can even see the spires of the Notre Dame and other impressive cathedrals rising over the organized streets and by-ways. Of course, there's also the Opera Bastille, the Tour Montparnasse, the Louvre museum, the Sainte Chappelle...

Andrew contemplating Montmartre

Speaking of the view and the weather, being at Montmartre made me realize that Paris boasts some of the most beautiful sky in the world. Well, all the same sky in the world, one might say. However, the presentation of the sky here is always awe-inspiring. The other day I was walking from the train to work and wishing I had brought the camera...the sky was such a perfect shade of blue with such perfect sprawling white clouds that it seemed I was in a movie set. All the days have been like that, even the "ugly" ones. The sky is composed in a unique way that we have never before experienced. But we love it! Especially at night and in the mornings...last night at 10, the sun had just barely gone down, and there were blue and pink whisps of cotton candy spattered across the hemisphere. "Lovely" is really the only fitting word to describe such a sight!

I love the pulse of the city. This includes all the elements named earlier, sights, sounds, smells, etc. And even more interesting, the fact that each area has a different pulse or function, almost like the systems of the body. It's really quite fascinating. In some ways, I might say that Montmartre gives Paris its "soul," having on the one hand a rich spiritual history, and on the other an artistic expression that hails beauty. Not to mention that being up at the top, looking over the green lawns beneath the basilica, and then into the sprawling city, you can't help appreciating the beauty and hidden holiness of this place.

First Ice Cream and an Evening Stroll Along the Seine

Last night, after a somewhat arduous day of cleaning, doing laundry (1.5 hours for ONE LOAD!) and catching up on sleep, we decided to take the night easy and go for a walk in the Latin Quarter in search of some ice cream. Elodie, our French friend here in Paris, recommended a little place called Grom. So off to find Grom we went. When we got off the bus (which we've been trying to take more than the Metro lately, like any good Parisian!) and arrived in the Latin Quarter, we saw that we were in for a beautiful evening. The sun sets very late here, even since we've been here the hours of daylight have grown longer. It was a very warm evening, no need for a jacket, and beautiful colors and whispy clouds filled the sky. We walked all around until we finally found Grom, which was very delicious (though personally, we didn't think worth the 5,50 Euro we spent on it! That's quite a lot for a very small bowl of ice cream!)



We decided to keep walking through the Latin Quarter to enjoy our ice cream, and eventually made our way back to the Seine river to take in the surreal evening...

This is the view from the Pont Neuf, a very beautiful and famous bridge that crosses the Seine. You can see what I mean by "surreal," the sky and scenery could've been part of a movie set. Underneath the bridge and along the Seine is where a famous dance scene in the movie "An American in Paris" (Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron) takes place.

You can see what a lovely area it is from this photo that Andrew took. There are hundreds of people, mostly students, sitting along the sides of the river and enjoying the evening. Many people bring picnics, complete with a bottle of wine, or they skip the food altogether and just sit around drinking (in public, which is perfectly acceptable here!) We'd like to come have a picnic, but not on a Saturday night when there are lots of noisy people around.

We walked around quite a bit, and took some photos. Andrew really loves our camera, and he did a little "photo shoot" with me, which was fun!

We'd been walking around for about two hours, and when we got far enough down the Pont Neuf, which is a fairly long bridge, we finally saw the Eiffel Tower! I looked at my watch, and saw that it was almost 10pm, at which time the Tower would not just be lit, but would literally sparkle and flash for 10 minutes (as it does every hour on the hour!) It was truly beautiful!

I wish we could've taken a video of it to show you! Pictures just really don't do it any justice. These photos were taken from very far away, as you probably noticed because you can only see the top of the Tour.

This one's rather out of focus, but I love the way that the lights look!

All in all, it was a lovely evening and special way to end our week! We're so blessed to have each other to share these things with, and that we can share them with all of you!

p.s. - If you're wondering about pictures of me with my (*ahem*) best friends Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, they're coming! I actually don't have any yet, as we weren't allowed to have any taken during our training. It may be a while before I get to, um, spend time with them again, but as the French LOVE to say, "Patientez" ("have patience!")

Happyness!

Well, this post will deal with a few things, all to update you on recent developments...

Firstly, we've found our church! It is the French parish of "La Sainte Trinite," meeting in the Crypt of the much larger Russian Cathedral of Alexandre Nevsky. Church in a crypt? Yes, but it isn't "spooky" by any means, more of just an absolutely gorgeous underground chapel. We went on Sunday with high hopes and shaky nerves, hoping that our experience this Sunday would be better than last. We were not disappointed!! The service was very nice, and by the end, the church was full! Full of a nice, healthy, diverse community, even some adorable children. At the end of the service, the Priest greeted everyone with "Christ is Risen" in various languages, and was met with full, hearty responses! We were happy that we could participate in this. Suddenly though, one of the choir members yelled across the parish "Christ is Risen" in an African dialect, and the Africans (standing right next to us) shouted back "Truly He is Risen"!! Apparently, the Priest had forgotten this particular greeting! When we went to venerate the cross, the Priest remembered me from when I went up for Communion. He asked (in English) our names, where we were from, what was our jurisdiction, why we were here...and he said "You are very welcome here!" We were so happy to hear that. We proceeded to look at all the beautiful fresco icons of the walls, when an older man came up to talk to me about one of them. He was very friendly, spoke very good English, and invited us to coffee hour! By this point, we were "giddy" at having found someone who was friendly, English-speaking, and inviting! What a blessing! With new confidence, we walked over to the coffee hour...

The kind man, who later introduced himself as Phillippe Alexandre, came and found us and made sure that we had coffee. He wanted to know all about what we were doing here, why we had come, would we be coming back to the church again? He told the people standing around that we were nice Americans, here for nine months! "Nine months?" That seemed like a long "visit," so many more people began talking to us about it. Phillippe Alexandre's 14 year-old son, Antoine, was also very friendly, although he kept asking if we know Michael Jackson, and later pretended to think that Andrew was Michael Jackson...very odd, but funny!

The Priest is Fr. Alexi, and his wife is named Anne. Anne speaks very good English, and is also very kind. Father told us that there is a young adult group here that meets every month--joy for us! He asked where I work, and when I said "Disneyland," he jokingly continued "What, are you Minnie there? Daisy?" When I said, "No, Cendrillon!" [Cinderella] he was caught totally off guard! Everyone was supportive of Andrew's efforts to learn French..."Well, you speak English today, but tomorrow, you say words in French!" We went home so very happy, and finally felt "at home"!

Secondly, I am officially Cinderella and Princess Aurora! Hip hip hooray!! The gowns I get to wear are so very beautiful! I think I have the best job ever: I get to be a beautiful princess, every little girl's dream, and play dress up all day! :-) We start going into the park on Thursday, which can't seem to come quickly enough. In the meantime, we're learning all about being our characters, their habits, mannerisms, signatures, expressions. This week we'll also be taught how to do our "Princess makeup" and learn our positions for the parade--I CAN'T WAIT!! I really hope I get to be a princess at least fairly often.

Thirdly, we had a marvelous time celebrating my birthday. I didn't feel like it was my birthday, except that I found out that I got to be a princess and wear a beautiful dress, but other than that it was a pretty ordinary day (though being a princess is old news for me...ha). I was a little sad coming home, I thought "This is probably the only time I will ever have a birthday in Paris, but it doesn't feel like my birthday at all!" To help me feel better, Andrew took me out for a lovely dinner on the Ile St. Louis, just us two. It much improved my mood, and it was lovely to just enjoy his company!

Andrew took this very artistic shot of me on the Ile St. Louis. This area is so cool!
The spire in the background actually belongs to a boy's school!

We went to this really cute (and slightly touristy) restaurant with Medieval decor. Inside, you thought the place was going to just collapse at any moment...not sure if it was just meant to feel this way, or if it actually, um, was this way. We had a delicious 3-course + kir and wine supper! The best course by far was the salad course, which was a warm salade de chevre (goat cheese salad). This was no "ordinary" goat cheese. It was SO fabulous!! We sort of half-thought of asking the waiter if we could just have another round of it for dinner...and dessert! That's how good it was!

Us in front of the cute lil' restaurant with the AMAZING salad!! Mmmm!

So that was my happy birthday! Happier because it seems to be my birthday week: Sun. church, Mon. I got to be a princess, Tues. got home and our broken (we thought!) computer was working (thanks to my husband's dedicated crusade to find a new Mac powercord!) Who knows what tomorrow will bring in my birthday week!?

My handsome husband...awww!