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The weather was most uncooperative today. We had breaks of sun that made everyone optimistic, then torrential downpours, then hail, then showers and then overcast. Walking around with damp clothes and shoes made everyone uncomfortable, although everyone maintained a good attitude.
We started the day late, OK so I was up at 6:30, but we didn’t leave until 10:15. We reached the Catacombs about 10:45 and had to wait in-line for over an hour. By the time we got into the Catacombs we found the environment that was billed as damp and cool to be warm and dry. It is a 2.3 meters walk underground passing piles of bones, each pile from a different church cemetery. They are arranged artistically with great care. Quite frankly, it was not the highlight of the trip. After the first couple of piles of bones, one femur or even one skull for that matter looks like any other femur or any other skull. However, it was nice to get out of the rain.
By the time we got out we made it to a local café for lunch. Much to my surprise, the salad was excellent. Jess and Madeline took a
brief detour to a baby clothes store and we sat out a hailstorm before taking off for our foodie walking tour.
The tour was really fun and so far it would make it to #2 after the Daniel Buren exhibit. We stayed in one neighborhood and visited a boulangerie, a charchouterie for sausicon and pate, and a wonderful cheese store. At the cheese store they set up a tiny table for us on the sidewalk for tasting until it started to rain and then they relocated us inside. There was one fresh, soft cheese that was unlike any cheese I’ve ever had. The name doesn’t matter since it is only available 2 -3 weeks a year in France so it is unlikely, I’ll ever cross its path again. We bought some extra cheese, pate and a small tart (anything more than eggs and cream is technically a tart and not a quiche). After that we went to a store that specializes in Armagnac. Jack and Matt enjoyed the tasting there, but since Cognac & Armagnac both taste like medicine to me, I was happy to give up on the cognac and take a pass on the Armagnac. While it
is traditional for people to buy Armagnac from the year they were born, 1948 Armagnac, even in the 20 ml size bottle was way beyond my budget. Instead, I bought a bottle from 1975. The year we were married was a much more reasonable price point. We finished at a very high-end patisserie. You can tell you are in a high end patisserie the same way you can tell you are in a high end clothing store – there is very little merchandise for sale per square foot. The pastries were extremely modern in their design. http://www.lapatisseriedesreves.com/
We bought lovely pastries for breakfast. At the chocolatier we visited we had chocolate mousse served in a paper cone that was rich and creamy; it was almost as good as Madeline Kamman’s praline chocolate mouse. Other customers were buying it by the quart, but it was so rich that eating more than a couple of spoons was unimaginable.
Our guide was an American woman, who had married a Frenchman and moved to Paris 18 years ago. When I told her about the biscotti I had made for Jess’s wedding she told me she uses her grandmother’s mandel bread recipe and
was able to identify the Rabbi that is taking us on our Marais tour, so I got the feeling she is Jewish. Too many coincidences, for anything else to be probable. She was friendly and knowledgeable and made a couple of restaurant and chocolatier recommendations
By 6 when we finished everyone (ok most people) were so cold and tired that we decided to forget about a fancy dinner out and simple eat a few prepared dishes from the tour or purchased on the way home and call it a day.
It’s already 8 so I’m wrapping up this entry to cook some zucchini to serve with the take out goodies.
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