Bonjour!
It's day 2, and even though I thought we had slept off our jet lag, we in fact had not (more on that later).
It's Saturday in Paris, which we discovered means that most of the bakeries open late or are closed all together, people sleep in (9am is legitimately a ghost town), and everyone hangs out in the parks.
We decided we were going to cook breakfast at home first, and then head out for an adventure. The strawberries we picked up at the supermarket were phenomenal. I've never tasted anything like them. That sounds silly, but they sort of changed my life this morning. Red and juicy all the way through.
Ok enough about the strawberries.
We felt so French running down to one of the bakeries that we knew would be open and picking up a couple of chocolate croissants (learning to say 'pain au chocolat' without sounding like a couple of losers), and whipping up some quick eggs and tea.
Breakfast put a big smile on our faces this morning. The apartment is so bright and cheery. What a great reason to paint every wall white for the rest of time and even buy a white table.
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is that our apartment building is super old and adorable. I'm one of those people that really loves old things, so as we were settling in, I kept discovering more nuances about this place that I love.
The lift barely fits 2 people, and the spiral staircase could not possibly be any more charming.
But maybe my favorite thing about the apartment is that there are 3 different worlds outside each of our windows.
Kitchen window: Lunchtime recess & kids playing in an echoing gym. Laughter and squeals.
Living room window: People cordially greeting each other in the courtyard. I haven't heard anyone speaking in English yet. You can see the cobblestone, the different window gardens hanging from each persons apartment, doors closing, polite hellos.
Bedroom window: cars driving by on the little side street, slowing down when they get to the speed hump right in front of our window. Dogs barking as they leave the grooming suite below our apartment. Friendly chatter from people sitting at tables at the corner bakery which is called "Les Temps des Cerises" or "Cherry Season".
It's all so inspiring -- things that are common to someone who has lived here for awhile, but so new and wonderful to us.
The rest of the day was simple but wonderful. We sat in Luxembourg Gardens and did some people watching. We ate lunch at our favorite place from our last trip here, Au Pere Louis (the snails are still delicious). We wandered around the neighborhood until we could no longer stand, and then we came home for what was supposed to be a "short" nap.
4 hours later, we woke up and headed to dinner. Luckily a 9pm dinner is actually early for most Parisians.
We found our way to Chez Janou, an adorable bistro where we ordered duck, scallops risotto, and of course tons of wine. I knew it was the perfect spot right when we walked in, because their bar snack for waiting customers was a tiny bowl of greek olives (my favorite).
The one mission we fell a little short on today was finding flowers. So hopefully tomorrow we will have better luck, and less of a need for naptime.
Today's view from our iPhones...
As much as I love my big camera, there's something to be said for just truly grabbing a quick snapshot--no edits, not frills. Today we decided to leave the camera at home and just snap a few photos here and there of things that made us happy.
Place des Vosges: We noticed that this beautiful park is only steps away from our apartment. So, on our way to dinner tonight we decided to detour a bit and pass through it. It was was small and peaceful. Today we just passed through, but I think tomorrow we may go and read for awhile, or just lie on the grass.
Jardin du Luxembourg: Today we wandered over to the hotel where we stayed during our last visit. It was so sweet and nostalgic. We ended up spending the afternoon at Luxembourg Gardens, which was just steps away from the hotel. People watching, drowsy afternoon sun, those green chairs spread out all over the park, and even a children's boat race in the fountain. It was dreamy.
Je t'aime: We passed this little red door on the way to dinner with "I love you" written beside it in what looked like crayon. There was something so charming about it, and it made me smile.
The tiny lift: hehe, these teeny elevators make me giggle. Gotta squeeze in, press 4 and hope we don't cause the thing to break.
