On Day 3, I started the day with macarons. I couldn’t find a croissant that I wanted, so I figured I might as well get some sugar into my body :). I stopped at the window of a chocolate shop, and I was sold, so I walked in to decide on flavors. Many of the flavors had the addition of chocolate, and since I was in a chocolatier it felt like a ‘when in Rome’ sort of moment. So, I got Chocolate Cafe, Chocolate Fig and Chocolate Pamplemosse (Grapefruit)…yes, the day’s tally was already at 3! From this group the Chocolate Cafe took the cake. There were real coffee grounds in the cookie and the filling was delicious. It doesn’t surpass my previous top choices, but it definitely remains in the top few.

I walked up and down Rue St. Honore as I ate my macarons, making a stop into the boutique, Colette.  I absolutely loved their window and this dandelion art that they had going on inside as well. The boutique is a mix of novelty books and gadgets with some cool clothing, jewelry and perfumes. I’ve been looking at their website for years and seen different items of theirs on blogs, but I have to be honest the store actually disappointed me. There were very few things there that seemed exclusive, or like you couldn’t find it in the States. Having said that though, I did get myself a small trinket.

While on St. Honore I also paid a visit to an old favorite of mine – Annick Goutal, a parfumerie. I couldn’t not go in, for old time’s sake. And it got me wondering, after so many years away from my old Gardenia Passion signature scent, could it be time to revisit it?

After a little shopping, I was ready to start the museum portion of the day. First stop was L’Orangerie to sit and admire the amazing Monet panels. Now, at the risk of sounding cheesy, there are only a few place I’ve been in my life where immediately I’ve felt almost a hypnotic sense of calm. The beach, Hawaii, etc., sure, but otherwise the only other place has been the Piazza del Campo in Siena, Italy. I could sit there all day, even as it buzzes with activity, and feel like I’m watching waves crash in front of me. Well, I now add the 2 rooms of Monet’s Nympheas to this list. In fact, in hindsight, I wish I ended my day with this instead of started (but more on that later). These 2 rooms are special!  Any tension my body was feeling, after nearly 30 days of nonstop walking and carrying my purse, anything that was on my mind, just melted away in the presence of these water-filled landscapes. The oval-shaped rooms with long panels taking up each curved wall are designed perfectly for these works. It’s hard not to feel like you are floating on the water while surrounded by the 4 panels.

 

As I left the museum, I got my first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower. Not a bad view! The day previous, when I was crossing the Seine, there was so much fog that you never would’ve known that the Tower was there! Glad it cleared up a little for this view.

From L’Orangerie, I crossed the street, and the Place Concorde, to get to Champs Elysees. I actually had a meeting on the other side of the Arc de Triomphe so I figured it was a good excuse to take the obligatory walk. Lucky for me, the Champs has a major Christmas Market right now – taking up both sides of the street with food vendors, Vin Chaud, Christmas decorations, and then completely unrelated things for sale. I grabbed a sandwich, a very expensive slice of traditional holiday nougat, and strolled.

To juxtapose that peace and calm I was still carrying with me, my visit to the Louvre was the exact opposite. I almost didn’t go at all, knowing that it would be a little nuts, but felt like I should since I was here and all. Even with a plan in place of what I wanted to see, it really didn’t matter. There wasn’t one aspect of my visit here that was easy, or frankly, enjoyable. There were too many people, too much art covering the walls or the halls, and the map does not correspond to the actual floor plan. An immediate sense of anxiety and frustration took hold – I felt like I was in Forever XXI (and yes, that is my 2nd FXXI reference on this blog). I did enjoy the Islamic Art exhibit, and found it almost comical watching people vie for a view of the Mona Lisa – I actually had a lot of fun observing as people tried to get a photo without anyone’s head blocking their view.

 

I left feeling exhausted and in need of a glass of wine. It was raining, so I took the metro for the first time all trip and headed back up towards home and the restaurant I was hoping I could get into, Frenchie. The restaurant opens at 7pm, and before then people stand in line waiting for the doors to open. The line consisted of predominately Americans – apparently 7pm is the American seating and the 2nd seating is all French.

The cool thing about this restaurant is that there are just a handful of high-top tables and unless you are a large group they are communal. So, I was seated next to an American couple and chatted with them off and on throughout the night. Our table had a great view of the tiny open kitchen, so we could see as they prepared everything. The menu skews Italian, so I started with a Burrata dish with marinated mushrooms and a balsamic drizzle, followed by Tagliatelle pasta with crispy slices of chestnut, gooseberries and a wild boar ragu. The pasta, especially, was interesting. The chestnut slices and gooseberries added something a little different. And for dessert, I couldn’t pass up the Chocolate Pot De Creme with Caramel and Passion Fruit. I never knew how into Passion Fruit sweets I was until I got to this country!!

I rolled myself home so that I could wake up and do it all over again. Only, after hitting the ground running the past couple of days I wanted to take Day 4 a bit more easy – shop, walk around, but without the stress of ticking things off of my to do list. The Picasso museum is in the Marais, where my apartment is, so it made sense to go today, but otherwise my only agenda was falafel for lunch and hitting up a number of stores in the neighborhood.

For the first time I had to wait in line at a museum – unfortunately my museum pass didn’t help me at this one. After going to the Picasso museum in Barcelona, where the focus was primarily on his early life, it was interesting to now be at the museum in Paris where there the focus was mostly on later periods. I’m glad that I did the two museums in the order that I did! I especially enjoyed seeing this painting below of women on the beach, because I noticed that the painting is set in Biarritz, where I was just last week. You might recognize the lighthouse in the background…?

Afterwards I walked to Place des Vosges – the oldest planned square in the city. Originally the Place Royale, although no royals ever lived here. Victor Hugo, however did…note:2nd Victor Hugo reference in the blog.

And finally, it was lunchtime. I headed to the place every single person that gave me Paris recommendations recommended…L’as du Fallafel in the Marais. I didn’t plan it this way, but it was fitting that tonight was the first night of Hanukkah because Rue des Rosiers is part of a Jewish area, so there were a couple rabbis out on the street asking people if they were Jewish, handing out free Hanukiahs to those who replied that they were, and even wrapping a couple people in Tefillin. It felt like home with the Chabad-mobile driving around and asking people if they are Jewish on Hanukkah.  ANYWAY, back to the task at hand.

I placed my order, got my ticket, stepped up to the window and watched as my sandwich was made. Falafel balls, Cabbage, Tomato, Eggplant, Tahini, Hot Sauce – I don’t even know exactly what else went into this pita but it definitely made for one of the better Falafel sandwiches I’ve ever had! I stood on the street and ate this monstrosity, as the line grew longer and longer and sadly the competitor across the street tried every sales tactic he could but no one was buying his sign that they were the best falafel in the city. For 6 euro, this sandwich made me really happy. Happy Hanukkah!!

The rest of the afternoon was spent shopping around the Marais. Again, friends, thank you to all of the recommendations. Merci and French Trotters definitely topped the list. Thank you, Amanda, for the iced tea tip at Merci – it was like tea sangria-style almost…delicious!

Before heading home for a little siesta I decided to pull the trigger on a nutella crepe. The days have been flying by and I haven’t had one crepe yet, so I figured I had to do it now to ensure that it happened. I walked to this little stand that I had seen a massive line for just a couple days ago, and luckily there was no line quite yet. I ordered the nutella and almond, and walked home, pretty happy with my choice!

My siesta was much needed! I gave my body and my stomach a little rest before heading east to Le Perchoir, another recommended spot. I went early for a glass of wine because their rooftop bar has amazing views of the city. At 8 I walked down one flight of the winding staircase and into this very hip space. It was just starting to fill up, and it was the first dinner I’ve had in Paris where the crowd seemed 100% French.

 

Dinner at Perchoir is a “surprise menu” as my waitress attempted to explain to me in English. They ask if you have any food allergies or if there is anything you won’t eat and then just start bringing out the meal. On this trip, nothing is off the table, so I told her I would eat anything. I also opted to go for the Black Truffle supplement…for under $20USD it just seemed like I had to do it.

First up was a Pumpkin Fritter with a spicy Asian dipping sauce. Yum!

Next a trio of appetizers – Tuna with crispy onion; squid noodles with an egg, squid tentacle and some sort of braised chicken; lobster dumpling in a lobster and fennel broth. The squid was really different and really good! And the lobster and fennel was a great combination.

Then the first of the two black truffle courses came – risotto with black truffles, served al dente. Very good obviously, but actually I enjoyed my first two courses more.

Duck was up next – a few slices and a leg, as well as some roasted root veggies (not pictured).

The truffle cheese course came next.

And then dessert, which I struggled to get through because I was full. This was a caramel and pear cake, a mango cream, grapes with a tarragon syrup, and hibiscus ice cream (she said Ice Cream but I think it was sorbet…at least I keep telling myself that). The Hibiscus, Mango and grapes were great and very refreshing. The cake wasn’t my favorite type of dessert, but there was nothing wrong with it. I had a few bites and had to leave the rest.

Really fun dinner. Some unexpected flavors, and a lot of local flavor amongst the crowd which was really cool to see.

That about sums up my last 2 days. Tomorrow is my final day in Paris as well as on this adventure, and I seriously can’t believe it. I’m hoping to pop back in to the L’Orangerie just for one final glance on my last day – maybe I can somehow carry the calm with me into my long travel day ahead. I have a bunch to try to pack into the day so hopefully I can get through it all.