France Adventure Day 10: A Day in Paris

I loved my last day in France spent in Paris.

I kept hearing about Frenchie as the "it" restaurant in Paris.  We hadn't made reservations so we ate breakfast at the To Go option next door and it was probably really delicious but I can't abide ketchup on my egg sandwich.  I was disappointed.

But then the Marais...

The exterior of the Musée Carnavalet which is a museum dedicated to the history of Paris.  I remember walking by this museum multiple times in previous trips to Paris and I thought nothing of it. Many friends recommended it to me for this trip and now it is one of my favorites.

We shopped, walked around and ate lunch at Rose Bakery.

The courtyard of the Musée Carnavalet.

There was so much to see and so much to admire.  For example, this is a reconstruction of the bedroom, with the original furniture, of where Marcel Proust wrote his book.

I loved the art deco style.

A royal cradle.

 

The Place des Vosges and in the far corner is Victor Hugo's house.

Victor Hugo's bedroom.  The house is rather disappointing as it's a recreation of rooms that existed in Hugo's houses throughout his life.

Dinner was at L'as du Fallafel.  This place is legendary as being the best fallafel house in Paris.

Beautiful Swiss ice cream.  We ate our cones walking toward the Hôtel de Ville and beyond to the Seine at the perfect time to see the sunset.

France Adventure Day 9: Delicious Crêpes

We left Aix-en-Provence, returned the car at the airport in Marseille, ran into a miracle at the train station and stayed the night after eating a dinner of fruit and potato chips.  It was one of those nights.

We were so excited to return to Paris not because we were done with Provence but because we love Paris.  We specifically bought tickets on the express train but it broke so we barely moved for a very long time.  I was so relieved to finally get off the not fun train and check into our hotel.

I was not feeling that great (stupid allergies) but our time in Paris was limited so no rest for the sick.  We ran to Berthillon on the Île Saint-Louis so I could introduce the best ice cream to Meliss. 

We walked by Nortre Dame and headed to City Pharma on Saint Germain to buy lots of things we were told to buy here and here.  I couldn't believe the crowds but we slowly found the items.  I've been using them since I returned and there is a reason why they are recommended. 

We walked through Le Bon Marche but the perfumes were killing me (allergies).  It was not my best day.

I had read about all of these great restaurants that I really wanted to visit but the allergies made that just seem a waste of money.  But crêpes sounded like a good idea (a combination of bread, cheese and meat is rarely a bad idea).  I had read about West Country Girl and it didn't take reservations which was a big plus.  I was so happy to eat and the food was really good.

My favorite was the caramel apple pie crêpe which I still want to eat. It was one of those days that didn't start out that great but it always ends well in Paris.

France Adventure Day 8: Photos of Aix-en-Provence

We walked and I took photos.  It rained for 15 minutes and we were in a cafe.  I loved the sky that day.

France Adventure Day 7/8: Provence

My favorite memories from Provence are the gorgeous views from our drives around the countryside.  The area lives up to its reputation of beauty.

I researched all of the different cities in the area but forgot why I wanted to stop at Les Baux-de-Provence.  We came to a line of parked cars and realized we probably arrived but there was no village in view.

We climbed up a lot of steps until we came to the entrance of the city.  It's like Carcassonne in that I wasn't able to capture the fortress in one photo.  We walked through the village until we came to the castle entrance.  Apparently the village once had a population of over 4000 but not it's less than 100.

The first thing we saw on the castle grounds were these huge catapults and the lavender.

The view from above was of these lovely farms.

We stayed that night in Avignon.  I thought I would love this city but I felt Arles was more charming and lived up to my image of Provence.  We toured through the Palais des Papes the first thing on Tuesday morning but it was a palace that had been stripped of all of its treasures.  

My favorite was the drive to Aix-en-Provence.  The tree lined avenues were a dream.  We drove past fields of sunflowers and I regret we didn't have our cameras ready to take photos of it.

Meliss and I found this fruit stand which I'm pretty sure I couldn't find again.  We bought raspberries, apricots and nectarines.  On the walk back to the car, Meliss took a bite of a raspberry and said it was the best she had ever eaten.  We turned around, walked back and bought more. 

They were some of the sweetest raspberries that I've ever eaten.