Ahhh Paris!

We saw our companions off early the next morning after much hugging and kissing good bye, then we realised we were on our own for the first time in six weeks. We were a little "terrified" and a bit excited about the prospects. We left our 4-star hotel across from the Omnisports stadium where "Linkin Park" were playing the night before. This group is a big hit here...and I believe (cos I don't know who they are! Although David does!) they are well known internationally!!

We packed our bags, after a lesuirely breakfast and left the hotel and caught the Metro across town to our new hotel. The Hotel Marignan on Rue de Sommerand was recommended to us by our dear friends Greg and Judy. They did warn us that this was a cheap 1 or 2 star hotel, but as it was located in the Latin Quarter it was close to everything that we wanted to see in Paris. How right they were, although they did neglect to tell us that there was no elevator and our host "Paul" was quick to tell that we had our own balcony and toilet and then mentioned the shared shower and FIFTH FLOOR!!!!!!!! This meant a narrow spiral staircase and 92 steps (yes, I counted them - everytime I used them). David could make it in one go, but I could only make to the third or fourth floor before having to take a breather. Ahhh Paris!!!!

David in the cupboard that
is the toilet!

Our first thoughts were "Fawlty Towers" when we "took" in our room. The room was about the size of our bedroom at home, with a small double bed and a foldout single bed blocking the balcony. Oh yes the balcony was about 2 ft by 4 ft (huge!) The bathroom and toilet (which had a very squeaky door) was also in the room. David's knees were hard up against the toilet door when it was closed! THEN we had to wait nervously (spying out the door) for the shower room, then race across the hallway and slam the door behind. Coming out was even more hazardous!

Breakfast was included in the price of the room, and when we arrived we were led to a very small table and asked "en kaffee or chocolat?" Hmmm decisions? The very matronly French woman brought us a tray of goodies to eat including fresh bread sticks and butter, along with canned fruit salad, packaged jam, nutella and cheese. It went down a treat! (I ate the bread being Gluten free and all - isn't fresh white bread and butter worth the risk?)

We then spent the day wandering the Paris streets and found some wonderful shops...the display in the windows were amazing. Meats, cheese, marionettes, very stylish plastic chairs, parasols (I wanted one very badly), flowers, etc.  

A window of cheese..the one in the middle looks
like something that was left in the back of my
fridge for a few months!!

A feast for the eyes and nose (although the cheese shops smelt like "poo").


Ibu (African artefacts merchant
and his two young daughters.
Try to guess how old he is...

 We found a market with fresh produce, foie gras (we spoke to the producer "David" who said that his south eastern property has been featured on SBS Food Safari), wooden African artefacts (spoke to Ibu and his daughters - see photo) and a bakery of course! We bought a selection of cheese to have for our French lunch in the Menage (kitchen garden) of the Museum de Cluny with its Roman bathhouse ruins dating from the 1st century...very chic!

What a feast in the kitchen garden of the
Museum de Cluny...gorgeous!

The Paris streets of the Latin Quarter are fascinating and we spent quite a lot of time wandering. We frequented "our" Lebanese cafe a couple of times and enjoyed wonderful food and their own special tea: orange blossom, thyme and some other herb...very delicious. Ahhh Paris!

David and the Dame "Our Lady
of Paris"! Beautiful place of
worship and prayer.

We were staying two blocks from Notre Dame. What a beautiful church! We delighted in her architecture, and I think I took pictures of every angle. We also spent an hour or so sitting inside marvelling at her beauty...and pondering the souls that had worshipped in her grandure and prayed for our loved ones (inlcuding our dear friend Marlene facing chemo over the next six months - please include her in your prayers also!) We felt totally at peace in this wonderful place.

Next we took in the Orangery...a Museum which houses Monet's Water Lilies. I think David expected this to be a place outside where oranges used to grow...which is an easy mistake!! But we were delighted to wander around and around the beautiful Water Lilies and view these from every angle. We were also allowed to take pictures of the paintings but I found out that I cannot put these on the blog, so you will have to wait till I get home to have a look at them. There was also an exhibition of a photographer of the late 1800s - early 1900s, Heinrich Kuhn, whose works were stunning (Google him!). He used very advanced techniques to great effect. So, another delightful afternoon. We wandered home again through the streets...crowded but great for people watching. Ahhh Paris!

On our last day in Paris we wandered off to the Louvre, as one does! We travelled by Metro (even though only a few stations) and found ourselves in the shopping centre leading to the Museum and guess what? We found the little triangle meeting up with the big triangle and short queues into the Museum. This was a great start to our 8 (EIGHT) hour wander through the Louvre...oh yes, there is a lot to see in the Louvre...lots and lots and lots. (Statistics: if you look at everything in the Louvre for 30 seconds, it would take 3 months to get through everything there...scary!)

We took an audio tour to start with which took us past the important pieces eg Mona Lisa (I got a front row view of her and took her picture as well.) I think they have given up trying to stop people from taking photos in the Museums, but they do specify no flash..but even then people were using flash, which was slightly annoying! Anyway...what else did we see: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory (magnificent even without her head!), Hammurabi's Stone (Google!), Rameses II statue, lots and lots of magnificent statues...I do love the lovely "bottoms" on these statues, the French and Dutch masters...lots of paintings. We had to stop a few times. We had lunch in their very classy cafe and enjoyed a delightful meal with white wine...Ahhh Paris! (I haven't been able to post any pictures of the Louvre or the Orangery as the blog somehow or another censors these pictures and shut down the blog - I thought I had lost everything but was able to find it all again...very scary! So you will have to wait for these when I get home!)

We were foot sore to say the least, but decided to walk home along the Seine...and what a magical walk it was. The trees along the banks where lit up and looked stunning in their autumn colour. All the buildings along the way were also lit up including our lady of Paris...Ah Paris!


Paris at nightime...gorgeous!



Along the Seine...takes your breath away!



Our last view of the Eiffel Tower! Stunning!


As we were travelling down the escalators the next day on the way to Madrid, we looked at each other and declared our love for Paris (and each other!) and we promised to return one day...Ahhhh Paris!