Tax is not cool

Tax-free shopping rules. Although, we may have spent all the food money - oops!

Sunset cruise on the Seine

What better way to cap a night then a cruise on the Seine? It was supposed to be a nighttime cruise, but as the sun isn't setting until almost 10 pm we were treated to a beautiful sunset. We boarded the Bateaux Mouches at 9:40 pm just a few blocks east of the Tour Eiffel. The cruise took us east past Palais Royal, Place du la Concorde, and Notre Dame. We turned around just past Ile St. Louis and retraced our path west. Just a couple blocks passed the Tour Eiffel we made our way back to the dock. Rather than explain exactly what we saw I'll let the photos do the talking.

Chèvre, I heart you

Dinner at Chartier is one of the reasons we come to Paris. It's THE classic French restaurant - solid food, rude waiters, cheap wine and shared tables. We usually visit Chartier the last night in Paris, but since very little was open on a Sunday night we broke with tradition. The place had a few empty tables when we arrived and had a line 40 deep when we left.

Dinner started with a traditional green salad, escargots and a country terrine. All absolutely tasty. We each had the steak au poivre - perfectly cooked, but a bit tough (what can you expect for €11 though). The fries were piping hot and the sauce was very flavorful.

For dessert we opted for a cheese course, of course. I credit the Chèvre at Chartier, which we first had in March of 2009, with my love of cheese. So we had to order it, along with a mild blue. The blue came with a dollop of butter - yes, butter for the cheese. Mmmmm. To accompany dessert I got a glass of Port and Ryan got a glass of Calvados.

Another great meal at Chartier.

Oh yeah, and as we left we almost forgot my umbrella, which would have made me quite mad as I've lost umbrellas in Munich and Zurich already.

The original flea market

We spent the morning in the Marche aux Puces St-Ouen de Clignancourt, Paris's most famous flea market. It's here that the term 'flea market' was born, as people would climb the city walls and the shoppers looked like a swarm of fleas. With over 2000 stalls you can find anything from antique fireplace mantels to wine decanters to military jackets - stall after stall after stall. We were in search of some port glasses with character. One place tried to sell us an entire set of drinkware for €450 - not happening today. We found a cute older lady's stall and she offered us six etched glasses for €24. Glasses in hand we spent an hour more exploring the vast market before heading to the Marais for lunch.

What a view to wake up to!

All the tiredness and soreness (damn cobblestones) melted away when we drew back the curtains to reveal this wonderful view. Paris city living at its finest.

Eating and Drinking Around Paris

We're back in Paris. The day was spent shopping, eating and drinking. To anyone that knows us well the latter isn't a surprise. A crepe in a small restaurant in Versailles before riding the train to Paris. A chicken curry sandwich from Chocoline - a cute shop near Skidmore's old Paris location. A bowl of greens and terrine at a cafe near our hotel. At Le Gai Moulin it was a Chèvre salad and lamb shank for me, pate and pork medallions for Ryan, and a jug of wine of wine for both. And of course the after dinner jug of wine in the Marais.

I forgot to take photos today with my phone - oops! Tomorrow I'll have many more now that our hotel has free WiFi.

Oh, to be a kid in Paris

On our after dinner stroll last night we were delighted to find a carnival in the Jardin des Tuileries! There were rides, games and food stands galore. We opted not to ride anything given our large meal, but we'll go back! Stay tuned...

The French are not human

I'm convinced the French are not human. No, not because they can be a bit rude or frank. It's because they don't sweat. At all.

As can be imagined, July in Paris is hot and the Metro is even hotter. Ryan and I are sweating our butts off while French guys are wearing super trendy jackets, scarves and suits as if it were January. What gives?

Maybe all the foie gras and Camembert clogs up the pores? Or perhaps their socialized medical system allows them all to get free anti-sweating laser or Botox treatments? We'll need to get to the bottom of this.

Bonjour Paris!

I love Paris.

The airport smelled like freshly baked croissants. There is no better welcome. Customs was a breeze. Train ride to the hotel was painless.

Being we arrived to Paris at 6 am, our hotel room was not ready so we stowed our bags and set out in search of breakfast. We tried finding something on the Champs-Élysées with no luck - we always try to eat there and end up arguing over the prices before going elsewhere.

That elsewhere was a place we visited on our last trip near Les Halles called Le Rive Droite. We sat outside it true Parisian fashion. A cafe au lait and an omelette later we were recharged.

Now let's see if the hotel is ready for us...