Paris

I had grand plans to document our long weekend in Paris, but with being sick and Christmas approaching, time has simply gotten away from me.  Instead, I'll keep it simple and just share ten things I want to remember about our trip to Paris.  Mark left on Monday to attend a conference and I left Wednesday night to meet him on Thursday.  Lyla stayed in New York with her Bammie and Pa and didn't miss us a wink.

1. We did a bunch of touristy stuff we would never do it New York.  We would never go near Saks in December but went to see the department store holiday windows (they love Mamma Mia there).  We would never go to St. Patrick's during the holidays, but we went to Notre Dame.  We would never shop on Fifth Avenue, but we found ourselves on Faubourg several times (Chanel stores in Paris are almost as ubiquitous as Gap stores in the U.S.

2. People in Paris use "ooh la la" in their everyday conversation.  We were having lunch at a little cafe when a woman came in and sat at the table next to us.  She started talking to us in French (I think about how cold it was because she was kind of hugging herself and rubbing her arms) and at the end of her sentence said "ooh la la."  Fabulous.

3. Outdoor cafes and markets are open and busy even in the winter.  I was amazed by all the people sitting outside at restaurants and all the outdoor markets that were open in December.  Every restaurant had those outdoor heat lamps and often times the outdoor seating area was more crowded than the indoor seating area. And it was COLD.  We eventually realized that the reason for this is that you can smoke if you are sitting outside.  I hate to generalize, but I will -- everyone smokes in Paris.

4. You can never eat enough Croque Monsieur.

5. Next time we go, I want to stay at a hotel near the D'Orsay (7th Arrondissement).  I loved the cute streets and boutiques in that area.

6. Paris is a great walking city.  In one day, we walked from our hotel on Hausmann, down to Les Halles, across to Notre Dame, through the Latin Quarter, along St. Germain, across the Seine, through the Tuleries, past the Louvre, across Vendome, and back along Fabourge.  I'm impressed with myself for remembering all these neighborhoods/streets.  I did no planning before the trip (which is unusual for me) and we just winged it all weekend.
7. My favorite street we stumbled upon was Rue Montorgueil.  It was all open markets -- butcher, fish, chocolate, pastries, cheese, etc.  And I actually saw women walking with baguettes in brown paper bags.  So French!

8. I could never justify buying Christian Louboutins in the U.S., but in Paris, it doesn't seem so bad.

9. Riding the Ferris Wheel is touristy but worth it.  The view of the city is awesome.

10. We went to La Relais de Venice (known as L'Entrecote) one night.  We waited on line for about 30 minutes before we got a table.  There is no menu -- they only serve steak frites.  The only question is how you want your steak cooked.  Regulars write down the temperature and their drink order on the brown paper tablecloths so the waitress can put the order in right away.  And when you are done, they serve you ANOTHER portion of steak frites.  Ooh la la!