Vive la France – Paris

You would think that as much as I love drinking wine that France would have been tops on my list of places to visit. I couldn’t believe we had never been there. Our friend Laura and especially her dad love all things French, so we decided to embark on a journey to the land of wine, bread, and cheese. Let’s go!

Planning a trip is almost as much fun as going on a trip, in my opinion. First we had to decide where we wanted to go, and try to meet the varied interests of those going on the trip. DLP, Laura’s husband, isn’t into wine, but he is into WWII (so am I), and beer (okay, so am I), so we decided to visit Strasbourg after Paris. We also wanted to make sure we had a good place to stay in the Burgundy region, so after much discussion and research, we landed on Beaune (great choice!). And finally, we ended the trip in the gastronomical capital of France, Lyon.

We used TripMasters again to plan this trip. This is the fifth trip I’ve planned using TripMasters, and I can’t say enough positive things about it. It makes the planning process so easy, and you can book airfare, lodging, and train travel all on one platform.

And before I go any further I want to add something about footwear, which is probably the most important thing you will be bringing and wearing while on any trip. After several trips (and suffering with blisters and other maladies of the foot) I have landed on my favorite shoe, V Prime from Vivaia. The shoes are waterproof and have a wide footbed. I can walk in these shoes all day with no problem at all! Laura brought the Square Toe Mary Jane shoes in red, and also raved about how comfortable they were. They are made sustainably and easy to clean as well.

Back to France! We decided to go in the fall, and that was a really good choice. I had forgotten about the Olympics being held in Paris over the summer and into the fall, and going to French wine country just after the harvest was really smart to avoid the crowds.

So off we go! We had a direct flight to Paris from Chicago O’Hare, and once landing had no problem getting a taxi to take us to our hotels. There were eight people in our travel group, and we stayed in two different hotels in the Latin Quarter. I thought this was a great area to stay in – there are several bars and restaurants nearby, it’s very quiet at night, and the traffic was not bad. This area is loaded with students since there are several universities located within the Latin Quarter.

Mr. T and I, Laura and DLP, and Laura’s dad Tom stayed at the Hotel Les Dames du Pantheon, which is next to the Pantheon. I thought the location was great! Since we arrived at the hotel around 10:30 am we were not able to check in to our rooms, so we contacted the others in our group and made plans to meet for lunch in a cute place close to both of our hotels.

When we walked outside, Laura motioned for me to look down the street – and lo and behold, it was Gabriel’s restaurant! Those of you who are fans of the Netflix show Emily in Paris will know what I’m talking about 😉. We walked down the street and not only saw Gabriel’s restaurant, but Emily’s apartment building and the fountain where many scenes are filmed. Quite exciting!

Patti, Sarah, and Susan stayed at the Hotel Quartier Latin, which was not far from where we were staying. They really liked the hotel as well.

We decided to meet up at one of Tom’s favorite places in Paris, Les Pipos. Now I understand why it’s one of his favorite places – the servers are friendly, the place is very cute and small, and the food and wine is delightful. I wasn’t feeling up to food yet, so DLP, Patti, and I went across the street to a little cafe for a cafe crema. Delicious! The coffee in Europe just tastes so much better than the coffee here 🤷🏻‍♀️. After our coffees we went back to Les Pipos to join our fellow travelers.

I think we were all pretty jet lagged that first day, so we went for a walk around the area until it was time for us to check into our hotel. I know you’re supposed to try to stay awake until bedtime on your first day in Europe, but a little nap didn’t hurt me at all. I was very pleased with our room – the only thing really lacking was lighting. We could have used an extra lamp. But it was very comfortable and the hotel had a small bar we could get a drink at before calling it a night. We didn’t eat breakfast at the hotel, but went out to get croissants or quiches in the morning at Boulangerie Moderne Rabineau next to Gabriel’s restaurant.

After a nap and a shower I felt like a human again and was ready for our next adventure. We had tickets to see a concert at Sainte Chapelle that evening, and I was finally feeling like I could eat something. So we stopped at Papilla Soufflot to share a pizza. Tom joined us and got dessert. We really like the food and the server was very nice and let me practice what little French I knew with him. 😊

Sainte Chapelle was only about a 15 minute walk from the restaurant, and is located on the Île de la Cité in the River Seine. It is a royal chapel designed in the Gothic style, and like many churches in Europe is very, very old, being consecrated in 1248. The chapel originally housed the crown of thorns worn by Jesus and a small part of the crucifixion cross. The Louvre Museum now houses the crown of thorns, and the Bishop of Paris has the crucifixion cross fragment.

The first thing you will notice is the remarkable stained glass windows in the chapel. I’ve never seen anything like it, and we were there in the evening! I would love to go back during a sunny day.

The concert was really good, and the musicians were fantastic! The event lasted around 90 minutes, which was perfect.

We decided to walk across the Seine River to grab a bit to eat before heading to our respective hotels. Brasserie La Fontaine Saint-Michel was open and was perfect for our group. Some food, some wine, a walk back to the hotel, and I was ready for a good night’s sleep.

The next day we had scheduled a food tour for late morning. This is one of my favorite things to do when we first get to a new city. Not only do we get to eat some great food, we also get a walking tour of the area, and some great insight on where to eat for the duration of our stay in that city.

We chose Devour Tours and Davide was our tour guide. Our tour was in the Marais District of Paris, which was just across the Seine River from the Latin Quarter. We started off at Poilâne to taste delicious baguettes, croissants, and pains chocolate. They showed us how they make the croissants from scratch – which is a multi-day process. I think I will just buy them!

Our second stop was at Jean-Paul Hevin Chocolate Bar. Here they make award-winning chocolates and macarons. So delicious!

Next we went to the famous Market of the Red Children (Marché des Enfants Rouges) – the oldest food market in Paris. It was named for the children dressed in red at the orphanage next door. I could have spent all day here! Here we tasted a delicious Moroccan dish that I cannot remember the name of – it was kind of like a very flavorful quesadilla with eggplant and other vegetables and spices.

Our next stop was at Cafe des Musees, where we had a seated lunch of Boeuf Bourguignon. Super delicious and filling – and we weren’t done yet!

We walked to the Jewish Quarter and had a falafel from Chez Hanna. This area was very busy and had a youthful vibe to it – lots of street art could be found if you looked up a little on buildings or street corners.

This is also the area that the Nazis forced Jewish people from their homes during WWII- now the homes and the people who lived in them are being recognized with plaques being placed on the buildings.

Our next stop was at the Yann Couvreur Patisserie for another delicious bite!

Our last stop was at L’Ardeche à Paris, a delicatessen dedicated to the products from the Ardèche region of France. We tasted delicious meats, cheeses, and wine.

And of course the French are very serious about their cheese – Davide told us he would never buy cheese from a supermarket – what if his friends saw him do that?? Of course you would want to buy it from a cheesemonger who knew about the cheese, the producer, how the animals were treated, what area they were from, etc.

Needless to say after this none of us were hungry. I actually suggested we stop by a church (gasp!) just so I could sit down for a few minutes and rest my legs before we went to the Musée Carnavelet – Histoire de Paris. This is an interesting museum that traces the history of Paris. It is free, and if you are in the area it is worth going to.

I needed to rest my weary feet and legs after all of that, so Tim and I started walking back to the Latin Quarter and ended up at Tom’s (and now my) favorite place, Les Pipos. It was a gorgeous afternoon to sit outside and have some wine. In my suggested itinerary for that day I had hoped to do a cruise on the River Seine, but honestly I was too tired and quite content drinking wine at Les Pipos to try to figure that out. Eventually the rest of the group showed up and it was just like drinking wine at our favorite wine bar in Springfield.

We ended up having dinner across the street at La Méthode – so good! We ordered traditional French food – beef tartare, foie gras, and escargots. Our tummies full of great food and wine, we all headed back to our respective hotels for the night.

The next day our group was splitting up – DLP, Laura, and Tom were taking an all-day trip to Normandy and the rest of us were going to the Palace of Versailles.

Getting to Versailles from our hotel was really easy. We walked about 15 minutes to the Saint-Michele Notre-Dame train station and took the “C” train directly to Versailles. The palace is about a 15 minute walk from the train station.

I should also mention that we purchased the Paris Museum Pass for the duration of our stay in the city, and the Palace of Versailles is included. This can be a good deal, especially if you plan on visiting several museums and art galleries.

The massiveness of the palace is incredible. Let them eat cake, indeed! We spent a couple of hours inside the palace looking at the grandeur of the aristocracy – I can completely understand why the French people revolted.

Mr. T and Susan toured the garden as well, and their pictures are spectacular, even for a dreary day. Patti, Sarah, and I walked to a creperie in town called Les Crepes a Tonton and had lunch. Susan and Mr. T joined us later.

After lunch we took the train back to Paris. Sarah, Mr. T, and I got off at the stop for the Eiffel Tower, while Susan and Patti went back to the Latin Quarter.

We had reservations at the Louvre Museum that evening at 6:00 p.m., and Susan was going to meet us there. And she did! Our phones weren’t really working that well in France, and Susan still uses a paper map to get around, but she found us!

The Louvre is just amazing. I also highly recommend going later in the day. It was crowded, but not that crowded. Of course everybody wants to see the Mona Lisa, and that was probably my least favorite part of the visit. All I could pretty much see was the back of people’s heads since I’m so short!. But we did see some other fantastic art, and I am so glad we went.

We ate dinner that night right around the corner from our hotel, close to Emily’s apartment, at a small place called Cafe de la Nouvelle Mairie. This quaint restaurant’s menu changes daily, and is written with chalk on a blackboard – the server brings it to your table and explains that night’s offerings. We opted to share several small plates, and even though we didn’t know what some of the dishes were, it was a fun and relaxing way to end the evening.

DLP, Laura, and Tom also had a great day on their trip to Normandy.

The next day is what I would call “Museum Day”. We split up again, with DLP and Mr. T going to the Paris Catacombs, Susan heading to the Musée de Cluny, and the rest of us going to the Musée de l’Orangerie.

Before heading our separate ways we wandered into the Pantheon since we were staying next to it. The Pantheon was originally intended to be a church, built by Louis XV, but the French Revolution got in the way. After the revolution, it was decided to use the Pantheon as a mausoleum for distinguished French citizens. We didn’t have a lot of time to spend in there, but it is definitely worth seeing if you are in the Latin Quarter.

Mr. T and DLP really liked the Paris Catacombs, which are ossuaries that hold the remains of over 6 million people.

Susan really loved her visit to the Musée de Cluny, which is known for its collection of medieval art.

We decided to take an Uber to the Musee de l’Orangerie. It is located in the Jardin des Tuileries, so even after the Uber driver dropped us off we had a nice walk in the garden. The museum is known for its collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings, that includes Monet, Cezanne, Matisse, Picasso, and others. It is much smaller than the Louvre, and not as crowded. I loved it!

Our next stop was the Musee d’Orsay, and where we met DLP, Mr. T, and Susan for lunch at the Cafe Campana inside the museum. Lunch was good and quick, and we explored the museum for the next couple of hours.

The museum itself is a converted rail station, and the atrium is stunning. The museum houses the largest collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, that includes Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh, and many others. It is a very large museum, and even when it is crowded it doesn’t feel overwhelming.

I should mention that if any of these museums are on your “must do” list, you should make a reservation ahead of time to ensure you can get in. We made reservations for the Louvre and Musée de l’Orangerie, and I’m glad we did.

After the museum we took the Paris Metro to Shakespeare and Company, an English-language bookshop located on the River Seine, across from Notre Dame. This is not the original Shakespeare and Company, nor even the same location, which was founded by Sylvia Beach in 1919 and was a gathering place for great expat writers such as Joyce, Hemingway, Pound, Fitzgerald. The current book store opened in 1951, and pays homage to the original Shakespeare and Company by keeping the spirit of the original bookstore alive. It has become a haven once again for expat authors – Ginsberg, Nin, Baldwin to name a few – and young artists and authors have been invited to stay in the store at night in exchange for helping out at the shop a few hours a day. If you go, you will probably have to stand in line, but it goes really fast, and it is worth it! I would like to live by the founder George Whitman’s philosophy – “Be not inhospitable to strangers lest they be angels in disguise.”

I purchased the book “The French Ingredient” by Jane Bertch from here – it is a memoir about an American trying to make her way in Paris by opening a cooking school. It’s fantastic and I highly recommend it, especially if you’ve been (or dream of going) to Paris.

There is a nice coffee shop next door and some picnic tables if you want to take a break and look over your purchases. 😁

We took a nice walk back to our hotel, perusing bakeries and cheese shops.

The next day we were headed out of Paris by train to Strasbourg. Stay tuned!