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It's been a while since I really posted, but my goal is to post Paris, Ischia, Capri, and Sorrento. I'm sitting on the bus on my way to Naples airport, so maybe a lofty goal 😊 To begin, Paris.
I arrived on a red eye, which is a great option if you've slept. Unfortunately my flight left at 1pm Seattle time and arrived at 11pm Seattle time (8am Paris time), so no more than a quick nap for me. It worked out though because arriving in daylight was awakening. I met Paula in the customs line, and was presently surprised that at charles de gaulle airport delta priority gets a special customs line! Good thing because that line was loooooong (though 45min later Liz zoomed right through. Luck of the draw I guess.)
Paula and I met up there, though trying to coordinate was reminiscent of the 80's when no one had cell phones.
A short cab ride, and we were at our fabulous hotel. Paris is split up into neighborhoods called arrondissements. We are in Le Marais- the 4th arrondissement. It's a kind of hipster/upscale area with plenty of cafes and bars. Also very close to the
Notre Dame Gargoyles
We didn't climb to the top, but the view from below was still cool.metro, which was clutch. Their metro is really easy to use!
We started out with a bucket list item. Notre Dame was a nice 30 min walk from our hotel, so that was first. We accidentally skipped the huge line and walked right in. We also skipped the stairs to the top (another long line) and the audio guide so I can't tell you much about it except is a big old church with a famous stained glass window (the rose window).
From there we wandered some more, which turned out to comprise the majority of the trip, in a good way. We found a cute little vegetarian place which had some amazing froyo that Liz could actually eat 😊 A modified croque madame (no ham) but tasty meal! We started walking back but instead hopped on a river boat cruise of the Seine, which was the only time I actually learned something on the trip other than from wiki haha. I do highly recommend getting a local SIM card if traveling. Not only could we call Uber whenever we needed, and have GPS for walking through the city, but wiki has all the answers for anything we
Notre Dame
The entrance arch. Lots of cool architecture in Paris if that's your thing! could ask. Google translator came in handy a few times as well. 40 Euros for 2weeks with 10gb data, 2hrs talk, 1000 texts - all international and can be used anywhere in Europe!
After that we took an uber home (soooo easy in Paris!) and called it a fairly early night.
On Tues, Liz and I started early with a run through the streets of Paris, which I think made us stand out as Americans, though I hear the Parisians are becoming more health minded, and we saw a few gyms around.
Our big expedition Tues was to Versailles, which is 45 min outside of Paris. But first, breakfast. The typical Paris breakfast is espresso and a cigarette (only half joking) but we made our way to a nearby highly rated brunch spot. Only to find out that the chef wasn't there. Why? I guess because it's Paris and it was early. Ha. So an amazing croissant and baguette with jam, some juice, and espresso for breakfast. Before heading back to the hotel we swung by the highest rated bread store (boulanger) in all of Paris and were highly disappointed. The bread was very "bien cuit", which
The north rose window
Very famous stained glass window in Notre Dame. It is one of the few left that still includes most of the original glass from the 12th and 13th centuries (most were destroyed by war, time, or because people wanted to modernize and leave behind the old gothic traditions). I decided means burnt (technically well-cooked and supposed to be more crunchy). Meh. The croissant and pistachio chocolate escargot were quite tasty though (not snail, just snail shaped - Paula and I were horrified --and intrigued?--by the thought of a breakfast of chocolate pistachio snails).
We walked back to the hotel for more espresso (free nespressos all over the hotel - just like the commercial!) then off to the metro and RER to Versailles (the equivalent of NYC subway to the LIRR). About an hour later we were standing in a giant line at Versailles.
I later learned that if you pay more money for tickets through websites like headout.com and the like, you can skip most of the horrible lines. We did buy tix in advance, but just the regular ones from the official website, so we skipped one line but joined the hordes for the other line (about 1-2 hours, but the weather was gorgeous!) They're on heightened security, which I guess is the new state of the world, so they had armed military personnel patrolling.
Once we got inside, we got a free audio guide, but mine was malfunctioning (I think all if ours
were, but between the crowds, lines, and bum audio guide I was having a meltdown). A rapid walk with a ton of strangers through the mansion that used to hold the seat of the French monarchy (until the French revolution, and you probably know how that ended for the French royalty). Very pretty, lots of old furniture and paintings, and a massive number of people, almost none of whom spoke English. Also all the signs and information were in French. Those 4 years of French in high school were finally paying off!
We meandered with the crowds through the palace and out into the gardens, which is equally as interesting. No flowers, tons of high green hedges (if the queen of hearts popped out I wouldn't have been surprised) and an inordinate number of fountains. We were excited that we were there on the day of the music and fountain show, but it was a lot less exciting than anticipated, and mostly involved the fountains just being turned on. The highlight was when some French kids on a school trip had a backpack roll down the hill into the fountain, then the teacher trying to drag it out (he
Yum yum yum
Yes there are lots of food pictures, but it was a great food tour! This was at the little hipster vegetarian restaurant called Paradis Marguerite. was going to hold the kid and send him out to get it -omg that would've been awesome).
After the long day of lines and dredging through the palace, we stopped at McDonald's on the way back to the train station. I wish I had McDonald's in every country I've been to. I've had some but not all, and they usually have a little local flair. This one had macarons (the meringue kind Paris is famous for, not the coconut cookie things). We got a kid's meal with an odd tasting burger (couldn't put my finger on it but not quite right - maybe the ketchup?) and some awesome potato wedges (not sure if it was to make it more gourmet or in an effort to get away from French fries).
There were bomb sniffing dogs on our train back to Paris (high alert!) and we were back early enough to grab drinks at a local cafe before getting ready for a nice French meal (thanks to Liz for booking reservations!).
We went to Le Chatieaubriand for dinner which is a well known French restaurant with a prix fixe menu. We got the associated wine pairing and
The famous lock bridge
Supposedly they cut them down often because of weight, but it's just covered in locks of all shapes and sizes that people have written their names on. There are a few enterprising individuals there who will happily sell you a lock to put up. Our favorite inscription was "James & ?" I learned that it really does make a difference when you have a certain wine with a certain food! It actually tasted different. The dishes were varied and amazing. We ate everything from fish to sweetbread to roe. Very nice dinner!
In the morning Paula left us. She flew to Italy to start the second leg while Liz and I stayed a couple more days in Paris. For day 3, Liz and I started with a run to the Louvre. Fitness and bucket list! Efficient. Just like running in nyc.
Our speed tour of the Louvre was very goal oriented. We walked through Napoleon's apartment (it wasn't short haha), then b-line to the Mona Lisa and happened to pass the Winged Victory and Venus de Milo. It was like a scavenger hunt. We ended with the Sphinx and out we went. They say it would take 3 months to walk through and see everything. It really is huge! We saw the highlights in 1.5 hours. I'm really impressed by the scope of their holdings though. I would definitely recommend going to the louvre and maybe budget an extra day for it. It's up there with one of the
Ceviche!
Tues night we had a fancy prix fixe meal at Le Chateaubriand. There were 5 appetizers, 2 fish/meat plates, dessert, and we got the wine pairings with them all. This was one of our favorites. Ceviche in a floral bath (can't remember what kind). We also had sweetbreads and skate, both of which were very good, like everything else there. best museums I've ever been to. We almost skipped it but I'm glad we went!
From there we again meandered back through the very narrow streets (foreshadowing - they got much more narrow later on in the trip) and searched out a brunch place (who cares that it's noon on a weekday!) We found a gem with fabulous omelettes, which I think is a valid lunch option in Paris. Aside from sitting on top of each other and almost everyone smoking (you don't really get how awful it is when you see those cute little Paris cafes in the movies), it was a great meal! After our second-hand cigarette to finish the meal, we finished our walk back to the hotel.
After a nice refreshing midday primp, we set out for another bucket list item. The catacombs! It ended up being my favorite stop I think. Very interesting story. The old cemetaries in Paris were having cave ins and were getting full, so they decided to reuse the old mining tunnels as burial grounds in the 1700-1800s. At night for months they trucked disenterred bodies across the city and dumped them in piles down shafts. They were just
Dessert
This was a surprise, and their only advice was to eat in one bite, though we were very entertained when the demure woman near us declined that advice and ended up with yolk all over her face haha. It's meringe on the bottom (egg whites) with a runny (raw?) yolk on top (the base of custard). Omg so good!! bones at that point, so I guess it was easier. What it left was a huge pile of bones that are impossible to separate. So someone's grandmother ended up in pieces among many other broken skeletons. At some point decades later they arranged the bones along the walls of the tunnels and opened part of it to visitors (at first just VIPs, then to the general public). The audio guide was very helpful. Highly recommend the catacombs!
After that nice cool little break (the weather has been 70s and sunny all week! Beautiful) we set off in search of sushi for dinner and landed at a fabulous little sushi spot down by the city center. Liz who is a miso aficionado, said the miso there was the best she'd ever had. High praise! We had stopped at a rando little Boulanger on the way and I had the best baguette so far (so much better warm!) Then a nice slow long walk back. Basically most of Paris for us was hitting the big sites and walking miles through the city (I broke 30,000 on my Fitbit).
For our last full day in Paris, we aimed for brunch at
Sushi in Paris!
Awesome find. Liz was craving sushi and we found a really good place! Called Rice and Fish. a highly rated Australian cafe nearby (I was so looking forward to avocado on toast and poached eggs), only to find that it was closed for 3 weeks. Not on a roll here. Instead we ended up at a very nice cafe right down the street, with everyone else who did the same thing that we did. It was another great breakfast! After that we took the metro to the Museé D'Orsay. Very nice museum that is somehow the #1 thing to do in Paris on trip advisor! It was nice but I don't know about #1... They have some famous works by Van Gogh, Monet, etc. And very nicely laid out. But this is where I learned that a lot of these famous works have copies at other museums! Somehow less special to say I've seen the famous Renoir painting if it's also hanging in NYC. I think it's partly highly rated because it's an old train station which gives it a cool vibe.
By then it was mid afternoon so we decided to do a view of Paris from either the top of the Eiffel tower, which has long lines, or from the Montparnasse, which is the
Croque Madame!
Croque monsieur is grilled ham and cheese, and madame is the same with an egg. So good! And everything always has fries (they're just fries in France haha). Fortunately we finished our meal before the guy next to us lit up. No pic to show how close the typical tables are, but you're just about touching. And it's not just one cigarette, it's chain smoking. Right on top of you. While you're eating. equivalent of the twin towers in NY - business buildings with great views. We chose the latter and headed to the top, stopping along the way at a baguette place of course. 😊 We can't figure out how the Parisians aren't huge since they too walk around eating baguettes all day. I guess because the majority of their other meals are cigarettes and espresso.
The views from the top were great! And it was nice to see the Eiffel tower in those views. We did this instead of the actual Eiffel tower or the arc de triumph, which I've heard is awesome to climb the stairs for the view. But one awesome view is enough for me. A nice glass - or 2- of champagne and we headed back down to wander the town some more. My last bucket list item was Eiffel tower at night. We had a glass of wine at the base of the tower while killing time.
The sun set around 9:30, and by 10 we were watching the very cool sparkling lights! They twinkle for 5 min on the hour all night. Cool light show! Even when it was just lit up it
Montparnasse selfie
Way in the background is the Eiffel Tower! was nice! We found a pretty good Indian restaurant near the tower for a super late dinner, à la Paris. Then a nice metro back to the hotel. Liz turned in but I met Shweta out for a drink. She came a couple days early with another friend and they were staying close by. Just a quick visit since we would meet up in a few days in Italy. Though that's where I found out that either we had a really bad wine or "natural" wine is terrible. Very harsh and acidic. Tasted like it needs to be decanted for like a year. I actually thought it had turned but the waitress tasted it and said no.
The next morning was breakfast in the hotel, then uber to the airport for our hop to Naples! That's where we learned they have a 50ml limit for carry ons which is quite a bit smaller than 3oz. Also you have to prepay for weight and it is crazy expensive if you want more than 40lbs. It worked out fine though and we said au revoir to Paris and bon giorno to Naples!
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Aunt Mad
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Very Cool!
Sounds like you had a WONDERFUL visit to gay Paris &, as always, you did a superb job in telling all about it! C'est magnifique!!