PARIS

Trisha’s Top Ten Paris Moments


1. The Bastille Metro Stop

After a Madrid metro ride, plane ride, train ride and Paris metro ride, my first step onto a Paris street was a good 2 hours after we landed. There’s just something glorious about standing on the street side in Paris. I guess for me Paris is a place I never thought I’d get to travel to… so walking up those metro steps at dusk and taking my first pause to look around was just spectacular. I took in the scene with a 360 view, starting at the sparkling monument of Bastille. I loved the location of our tiny hotel. In the 11th Arrondissement, it was surrounded by a younger “hip” culture, Parisian corner cafes, international eateries and a lively ambiance. Our actual room was quite budget and barebones (to say the least!), but hey, with Paris at our doorstep, does it really matter?

2. “Si! Si! ….Oui! Oui!” Our First Dinner

This was a perfect beginning to our French restaurant experiences. Although we ate very well in Paris (and truly favored it much to Spain), we did have to spend a good hour each night walking the streets to find the “perfect” spot for our French meal. With our budget and desire for a cozy atmosphere that typifies the local culture, this can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. However- we managed to find that perfect place for the most part every night (but not without becoming weary and famished more than once), and it was every bit worth the conquest.

So at this first meal, we got the last table available in this cozy mom & pop type bistro, where we were crammed into the small one-room space with closely arranged tables. In other words, we were glad our tablemates were not speaking English because we would have heard their entire conversation. The menu was given to us, but I really don’t know why they bothered… because after giving it a good introspective glance, the only words recognizable to us were escargot (which we were not quite ready to try on this trip), and haricot verts (French green beans which I enjoy quite a bit). To order, we had to choose an entrée (appetizer) and a plat du jour (main). I truly didn’t know what to order because I recognized none of the meats. Finally, Travis thought he had translated a beef dish and I thought I had found some pork (because it was spelled “porc”) so we decided to flag our waitress (although more of a “rough-around-the edges” French grandma-like person) and give it a try. She spoke no English, so this wasn’t an easy process. However, through our silly attempts at French and a lot of pointing, we managed to order the right things. I even got her help to order fish, which is what I actually wanted. I was so excited when she pointed to the fish on the menu that I said, “Si! Si!” (in Spanish because that’s what I’m used to now), but Travis was saying under his breath, “No it’s Oui! Oui!” (oh- yeah.. we’re in France now). It ended up being pretty comedic but the food was great.

Oh, one more thing- I loved the fact that the “pop” of this restaurant was in charged of keeping the bread baskets full. When one table was cleared, he dumped their bread right into the next table’s basket to keep theirs abundantly full as well. No qualms about germs here!

3. Seeing the Eiffel tower at night

There’s nothing like your first time standing under the grand Eiffel tower, but there’s truly no moment even close to walking in the park with your husband in the glow of the lighted tower just in front of you. Beautiful. Enough said.

4. Going to the Patisseries & Boulangeries

I know Travis is commenting on this as well, but I think his perspective is different than mine. He’ll all about going to the bakeries to choose his “daily bread” and the tasty sustenance it provides for him. I’m all about making a visit to look through the glass display cases and ooh and aah at the beautiful goodies that abound. Then I try to convince Travis to share something scrumptious with me. (It’s never too big of a challenge.) The smell of the bread is enough to lure you in, even if you have to wait in a line of 10 people or more. That’s actually a good sign according to our guidebooks- if there are no lines, keep walking… a better boulangerie will be just around the corner. The best way to find one is to look at the people walking on the streets. If they have baguettes in hand (and they always do!), you are close. On Sunday morning we noticed a lot of kids on the streets carrying baguettes- they must have gone out on an errand for mom. Best yet, the baguette in a person’s hand is never an untouched loaf. It always has a bite or two taken out of it! I love it… and I agree, it’s just irresistible. We do the same thing with our bread every time we pick it up at our corner store. Especially when it’s right out of the oven… oh, nothing can beat it.

5. The Open Air Markets

Bright colors were plentiful at the markets of France. Everything from huge juicy pears, to lush green and purple grapes, to the biggest carrots I’ve ever seen and beautiful ripe pomegranates, the fruit markets were my favorite to goggle at. Then, there were the corner flower markets. In the morning, big carts would come out and the workers would unload many varieties and display the flowers in the most eye-catching way. It just called for photographs. Of course, I also have to comment on the meat markets. Now, I’ve seen some pretty interesting cuts of meat with Travis in our past outings to the unique ethnic markets of Los Angeles, but never before have I seen whole rabbits, pheasants, hens and more with the feathers, fur, feet and all, next to the other cuts of meat in the display case. I loved watching the Parisians make their orders and then seeing the butcher wrap up the animals. He had some torch device that must have either decontaminated it or torched off the unwanted parts- we weren’t too sure on that one. Very interesting though.

6. Picnic in the Luxemburg Gardens

Gardens and parks in Paris come not only with the typical park benches, but also with moveable, green, metal lounging chairs. It’s such a communal thing- you can move your chair right where you want it, and next to whom you want to sit by. I loved our picnic in the Luxemburg Gardens. It was a perfect fall day, with the wind blowing and the colored leaves falling on us. We arranged our chairs among the others, and observed the Parisians who obviously frequented this park often. Some were reading novels, others were taking in the sunshine by the fountain, the children were sailing little wooden boats in the fountain by pushing them with wooden sticks, and the teenagers had their chairs arranged in circles to face each other and to catch up on the daily gossip. We sat by the rose garden and ate a nourishing lunch garnished with tapenades and fresh local products from the markets we gathered on the way to the park.

7. A true Parisian lunch amongst the local antique buyers & sellers

On Sunday morning, we headed to the north end of the city to visit the areas off the beaten path, but famous for their flea markets. Once we passed by the produce market and the touristy “swap meet/newish goods” type market, we found the hidden gem…. Blocks and blocks of antique markets, with antique dealers specializing in every type of Parisian piece of history. Antique books, furniture, hardware, prints, coins, stamps, kitchen goods, linens, clothing, tapestries and more were piled to the roofs of the little display rooms. We wondered the alleys and took in the local “antique culture” of Paris. My favorite moment was around lunchtime. We observed over and over again the antique dealers gathering together with other dealers for lunch. It must be a Sunday tradition among them. What was truly Parisian was not just the food they were eating, but the way they set their tables. This wasn’t like a takeout meal they were enjoying with a friend. Instead, they’d set out a table, spread out a linen tablecloth, and lay out the items they must have all brought “potluck style” from home. Crusty baguettes were displayed, classic mounds of cheese and grapes on plates, warmly baked fruit tarts and quiches, salads, sliced up antipasto, and of course… a bottle of wine to top it off.

Although I was very tempted to pull up a chair at one of their tables and join in their feast, we were lucky enough to run across my favorite bistro of the trip where we were enchanted by a truly French provincial lunch. The crusty bread was warm to the touch and I loved testing out the selection of dijon mustard on my piece. All the Paris restaurants serve a little jar of dijon mustard on the table next to the salt and pepper- a unique accompaniment! My soup arrived in a personal-size iron terrine with my own ladle included. It was wonderful to keep it warm as I just spooned it up as I ate. Travis’s smoked salmon also came in a little pot with a lid on it- seasoned with fresh-cut herbs and accompanied with mustard seed roasted potatoes. A lovely treat.

8. The Organ Concert in Notre Dame Cathedral

The Cathedral itself was a sight to behold, but we were even more pleased to plan our visit around the Sunday afternoon free organ concert. A favorite instrument of both of ours, we enjoyed resting our weary city-walking legs for an hour and hearing the pipes resound through each crevice of the cathedral corners.

9. Watching the crepe makers

It’s true- there are crepe makers on every well-visited corner of Paris. They stand in their little booths pouring up made-to-order delicious selections of sweet and savory. Travis tried a new kind each night for dessert~ my favorite was the nutella and crushed almonds. A close second was the nutella and coconut, and I must also say that the classic lemon and powered sugar was also amazing.

10. Seeing Travis wear a sweater and speak French with ease

Finally, a true surprise to me on this trip was seeing Travis cold enough to don a sweater and come off as a suave, sophisticated French man. Although we had lovely weather with sunny skies everyday, the temperatures were pretty low and the wind whipped at our faces as we walked through the city streets. Better yet was to see Trav in this preppy get-up using his memorized French phrases to order our meals and bakery items. He pulled it off well! Although I made fun of the French note cards he made out to study prior to the trip, I was pretty impressed to see him remember when to use the right phrases and take a stab and communicating the French way. Being that I couldn’t even remember to use the word Bonjour, I couldn’t have made my way around the city without him speaking for the two of us. Thank you Travy!


Travis’s Paris Top Ten


1. City Splendor- Paris is one of the most exquisite cities I have ever seen. The Seine River flowing under magnificent stone bridges. Historic buildings with marvelous architecture on practically every corner. Well kept parks with manicured lawns, beautiful gardens, and flowing fountains dotting the city. All these thrown together with fabulous landmarks like the Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, and Louvre made it easy for me to see why tourist flock to Paris. There was definitely something magical to the place that we immediately felt when surfacing from the underground metro for the first time. It was a feeling that did not fade during our four days, regardless of which section of the city we were visiting.

2. Bread - I love bread and every bakery in Paris appears to make it to perfection. I had read about this before our arrival, but it was fun to have this expectation be fulfilled. Some of my favorites were the baguettes, raisin swirl pastries, and fruit streusel. I’m not sure if crepes fall into this category, but they were delectable as well. I particularly enjoyed a crepe smothered in Nutella and topped with almond shavings.

3. Illuminated Eiffel Tower- Seeing the Eiffel Tower during the day for a first time was striking. At night with a radiate blue glow and a dazzling sparkling light show on the hour, the Eiffel Tower is a landmark unlike I have ever seen. I loved thinking about how they must have constructed steel sturdy enough to stand, and the ways they intricately designed the structure. My only regret about the Eiffel Tower was the Bastille area in which we stayed did not have a direct view it.

4. Good Parisian Stereotypes - The good stereotypes about French Parisians seem to be true from my four-day standpoint. They do walk around with baguettes in their hands on the city streets. They do spend long tranquil periods of time sitting in sidewalk cafes drinking wine, chatting, and having a smoke. They do dress impeccably well and have a style that all ethnic groups seem to embrace in one form or another.

5. Food Quality/Portions – After living in Spain for the last month ½, Trisha and I were pleasantly surprised to see the French eating three meals a day at regular eating hours. This is of course something we never see in Madrid. We were further delighted to find that regardless of which restaurant we chose to patron, the food quality was excellent and the portions were plentiful. As we only chose restaurants and eateries within our budget, it made us want to someday come back to Paris with on a bigger budget, or with buying family members, and try an elegant establishment.

6. The Gardens of Luxemburg- One of my favorite parts of any city is its parks. The Gardens of Luxemburg was one of the best I have ever stepped foot in. I wouldn’t rate it high for sports accessibility, but as for beauty and peacefulness, it was fantastic. A memorable part was the abundance of green metal chairs dotting the park for any park users to lounge in during the day. Another was the central fountain where kids can take a wooden sailboat from the sailboat kiosk and sail a boat by pushing it with a bamboo stick. Finally, the colorful fall leaves, which reminded me of the East Coast, made for a picturesque landscape that will not likely fade from my memory.

7. Notre Dame Organ Concert- The Notre Dame was a spectacular cathedral to visit due to its proximity to the Seine River and the wonderful stained-glass windows blanketing its walls. Better yet was the free organ concert we attended on Sunday afternoon. The cathedral hosts weekly organ concerts played by guest organists from across Europe. A Venetian organist played at our concert and made the cathedral come alive with his four organ pieces.

8. Walking the Entire City- This really wasn’t in my top ten on our final day, as we were both extremely tired. However during our other three days, we walked a good portion of the city and I believe got a fair taste of Paris. I was impressed by the accessibility of each neighborhood by foot, and found the navigating to be fairly easy. We did use the Metro a few times, but only when we couldn’t endure another step. I’m not sure if we covered every Arrondissement, but I think we came close. We even made it outside city limits by foot at one point.

9. Diversity- Paris diversity is even more pronounced than Madrid. Although this has been a contentious issue in France at time due to poor race relations, I think Trisha and I saw the positive elements. We enjoyed walking through streets that at one point could be covered with the young and trendy of all ethnicities, and then eventually cross paths with people dressed in traditional African garb, speaking either French or an African dialect. Further on we would run into citizens from predominately Middle Eastern backgrounds speaking Farsi or Arabic. We were especially delighted to walk through the outside markets set up by many of these ethnic groups on Sunday.

10. Imagining the Tour de France, Napoleon, and major Historical Events- Paris is packed with events and history. A current and historical event is the Tour de France, which ends at the Champs-Elysees section of the city. Although it looked different in real-life compared to television, I did enjoy seeing where the Tour de France riders make their circular journey through the brick-laid street on the final portion of their journey. As for French history, I am definitely not an expert. But I do know enough about Napoleon’s rule, the French Revolution, and WWII to make sections of Paris even more memorable thinking about its history. In particular, I loved seeing the “N” still located on a few bridges, ordered there when constructed by Napoleon himself. In addition, a tour leader pointed out bullet holes left over from Nazi occupiers during WWII, which still pockmark a wall of the central police station.

And a few things that I didn’t like

1. Paris Drivers – Say your prayers before crossing the street when the pedestrian light is on because most drivers in Paris don’t seem to care that it’s your turn. We quickly learned to cross any intersection either by following other Parisians or by darting across when there was a gap in traffic.

2. French Language – And I thought Spanish was hard. At least we can communicate a little in Spain and read most signs well enough. In France, all I was able to learn were a few basic words. Even then I’m not sure if I would ever be able to master their pronunciations.

3. Paris Prices - Here are just a few cost comparisons between Madrid and Paris. Remember these two cities are only separated by a two-hour flight. Metro to airport – Madrid 2 euros, Paris 8 euros (about the same distance too) Bag of licorice candy – Madrid 1.75 euros, Paris 4.00 euros. Glass of wine – Madrid 1.50 euros, Paris 4 euros (at budget places) Glass of water – Madrid free, Paris 6 euros because a mean, greedy waitress didn’t get that we wanted tap water and instead gave us a bottle, which we thought was tap water because it tasted like tap water, but then charged us 6 euros for it. She was so mean she would take the water off our bill, although we tried our best to take it off. By the way, 6 euros is like 8 U.S. dollars. It was the most expensive water I have ever had and it wasn’t even very good. I did not like that waitress.

4. No Passport Stamps –There is no record on our passports that we ever visited France thanks to the European Union. Since its establishment, all European Union country borders are open and do not require customs clearance. This is a sad reality for those like us who want that little stamp to prove you actually visited a country.