Paris Trip Day 6

We slept in this morning. Not in a rush to do much. Most of the museums and sights we wanted to go to were closed on Mondays so we opted to visit a neighborhood a few miles southeast of the Eiffle Tower. Along the way we stopped into a crepe restaurant. The Fiance had Buckwheat Crepe Sausage and Cheese, I had Buckwheat Crepe Ratatouille. We both ordered coffee which came with sugar cubes and a small chunk of chocolate to add to the cup. Coffee here come in small (expresso cups) and large (regular cups). Coffee was nothing great, but helps clean the tongue. It was my first time eating a crepe and wanted to taste what Ratatouille was so I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone. Verdict, awesome. I am going to learn the Ratatouille recipe and make it every weekend.
After 3 hours of exploring, the Fiance thought we should randomly step off a stop and walk our way back home. I love how adventurous this man is. So we stepped off the next stop and walked our way to Porte Malliot where we did more window shopping. Before that, we stopped into a bakery to pick up macaroons to take home. We also came across a Thai restaurant that had fried frog legs. We got lost for an hour and found our way back to the apartment. The Fiance's feet was starting to hurt and I offered to piggy back him home, but he didn't want to. We spent the early evening taking a nap and talking.
After our break, we headed back to the Thai restaurant with fried frog legs. My dish was delicious, but I wouldn't order frogs again. The Fiance wasn't excited about his duck dish. It wasn't prepared as well as my duck soup I order earlier on our Paris Trip. We then took a stroll down the beautifully lit streets. Christmas decoration everywhere, lovers holding hands and arms, and the cold crisp air. The Fiance and I are in total bliss, but in back of our minds we are thinking of home. We miss our home and family. I definitly want to take my kids back to Paris in the future. We are leaving our flat tomorrow and have booked a hotel that is across from the airport. I fly out early Wednesday and the Fiance flies out later. Recap of everything will follow in a couple of days.

Paris Trip Day 5

Sunday Mass at Norte Dame Cathedral was amazing. It was definitely an experience I will always remember. I woke up at 9AM to the Fiance's alarm. The alarm was in my dream which had Betty White, one of our Zoo's benefactor, and 2 French ladies. I thought it was my cell phone ringing and I couldn't find it so I woke from my dream only to realize it was only that, a dream, and the ringing was the alarm.
We stopped at Hotel de Ville, which looked like a tiny village from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. We walked across the bridge and found a long line to enter Norte Dame. If you want to attend Mass, you can wait on the side if you think the visitor line is too long. The line for Mass doesn't open/start until 10-15 mins before the start of service. The exterior of the catherdal was true beauty. To think that it would have been demolished had it not been for Victor Hugo's Hunchback of Norte Dame. Restoration is ongoing, but worth it. Interior is even more majestic. The ceiling above looks down at you in a cold stare as the organ carries on its haunting tune echoing throughout the entire building. It is a lot more dramatic in person; music and interior.
Mass started at 11:30AM. We attended international mass which was partly in English. It was highly attended by tourists. We found seats not too far from the main alter. The priest greeted everyone from all over the world. And before we knew it, mass ended right at 12:30PM. We then toured the rest of building. So many statues of important Catholic figures and painting depicting good versus evil, kindness and virtue.
After touring the gardens surrounding the cathedral we decided to break for lunch. We ate at a nearby restaurant which the Fiance spotted walking into Norte Dame. He was in the mood for roasted chicken, I wanted to try how the French prepare lamb so I had lamb chops. Everything was delicious.
To walk off dinner we decided to visit the famous lock bridge I've mentioned in one of the blogs. It was a sight to see. Covered from start to end of the bridge were all sorts of locks from lovers all over the world. Bike locks were also on there.
We left the bridge and headed towards the Metro to visit the Christmad market in La Defense. Once there, we found the market carfefully placed in the middle of large skyscrapers. We walked it a bit and then headed to the mall called 4 Quatres.
Tired from an all day excursion we headed home. Most shops are closed on Sundays and some close early if they were opened. We stopped into our neighborhood's bakery and bought a little bit of everything. We feasted on our ecclectic dinner and hung out at the flat. Can't believe our trip is ending. Tomorrow will probably be a wrap up of things. Till tomorrow!

Paris Trip Day 4

Woke up late morning today. Since we were unable to get Dad's shirt yesterday, we decided to do it first thing today. We grabbed the Metro and exited Champs-Elysees only to find that the exit has been closed off for unknown reasons. We had to reboard the Metro and exit the next stop at Franklin D. Roosevelt which takes you to a tourist shopping area. We walked about 3 blocks and found ourselves in a rich neighborhood lined with high end designers: Valentino, Gucci, YSL, etc. It was like a Paris Rodeo Drive, minus heavy traffic. We found the shop that sold my dad's shirt located directly across from the Palais de L'Elysee. There were guards everywhere. We went into the shop and was kindly greeted by the female clerk. I asked if she spoke English, "Parlez-vous Anglais?" She said yes. So I asked her if she can help me find a short sleeve shirt for my dad. She informed me that shirts are out of season and their new line only had sweaters and long sleeve shirts. After telling her a story of my dad's devotion and loyalty to the Montegut shirt he bought in 1975, she happily told me she will check downstairs. While she went to the basement, I took a look around the shop. It was a tiny shop (probably fit 10 people comfortably), 2 stories, boutique-like. The first floor had womens clothing and 4 articles of children clothing. The 2nd floor had men's clothing and a sitting area. Few clothes hung here and there. The clerk came back with a few shirts still in their packages. I picked out a burgandy one and she rang it up. We then headed out to do more shopping and ended up back at the Seine River. I brought some of Nick's ashes on this trip to scatter. We got to the shallow end of the bank and I sprinkled the ashes into the river. With the Eiffle Tower behind us, I think Nick would like this spot as well. I said a prayer and we crossed the bridge to sit in the park. As we watched the sun slowly fading behind the Eiffle tower, the cold air bit my nose and ears. It was sign for us to head home for a quiet dinner. Today we had ravioli in beef stew.
After a warm meal, we both passed out on the bed. I woke up, it was 9PM! I wanted to check out another Christmas Market East of us, so we boarded the Metro and headed towards La Defense where the famous La Grande Arche stood. We found our way out of the maze of connecting tunnels to the surface and found the Christmas Market closed. But trip was not wasted, I saw an interestingly huge thumb statue across the way and the famous Arche. Constructed by modern design, the Arche was truly Grand. After looking at the structure in awe the Fiance and I decided to visit when light is out so we can visit the market was well. Tomorrow, we will be attending Sunday mass at Norte Dame. After, we might head to the Rodin museum or head back to the Christmas market in La Defense. We are halfway done with our trip, only a couple more days left until we fly home.

Paris Trip Day 3

The Fiance wanted to check out Chinatown today. Before we headed out, the Fiance stepped out to buy a fresh baguette from the bakery just 5 steps away from our front door. Did I mention there is a butcher shop next door? Little by little we are living like Parisians. I toasted the fresh baguette and spread the butter we picked up at the grocery store last night. I also added the stinky moldy cheese to my breakfast. Delicious!
We made our way out to the Metro when I noticed I only had 1 Metro pass. I panicked at first, but knew there was no way I could have dropped the other ticket, but had to go back to the flat to double check. The Station was only 5 mins away and I wanted to check out the open market we saw along the way. We ended up buying some fresh fruits for snacking and headed towards our flat. We walked back to the flat, unload our groceries, and then I found out I had the ticket all along; it was stuck to my phone. Silly me.
We headed back to the station, grabbed line 1, transferred to line 14, and arrived in Chinatown - dominately occupied by Vietnamese. Paris' Chinatown is bigger than Viet-town in Orlando, Florida, but smaller than San Francisco's. There are a fair share of shops, Pho restaurants, bakeries and Oriental markets, but the unique thing was everything is in French and had French fusion. We also came across an indoor mall with counterfeit clothing and imitations.
After walking the "mall", we headed home to rest our feet a bit. The Fiance took a nap and I made beef broth for soup dinner. It is soup weather and nothing taste better than hot soup and fresh baguettes.
When the Fiance woke up we geared up for the cold cold night walk to finish the other side of the Christmas market. Before we hit the market, I had to stop into the shop that sold the shirt my Dad wanted. Thanks Lil' Sis for figuring out Dad's text message. Silly Dad and your broken English text. But the shop was closed. We found out quickly that a lot of shops close early on a Friday (6PM). The block where the shirt was located was also blocked off for the Summit meeting (I had no idea that the World's Leaders were here for the week). There were a lot of guard presence tonight, but the streets were still busy with cars and tourists moving towards the Christmas markets probably not realizing a Summit meeting was going on. We reroute away from the guards and made our way to the Christmas market. The Fiance had his first crepe and I saw Santa Claus fly through the night sky equipped with a sleigh and reindeers (video to follow when we upload it back in the States).
Our legs were giving out so we headed home and called it a night. We had beef noodle soup with udon noodles and beef meatballs. So nice and warm in the belly! I want to taste more of Paris, hopefully we will visit a nice bakery tomorrow for some decadent pasteries. Goodnight!

Paris Trip Day 2

Woke up at 2AM today and was starving. We bought a baguette from the market yesterday and so I found myself on the kitchen floor (mini frig was pretty low) munching on the leftover half loaf. My dad texted me asking if I can find a shirt he bought in 1975. That was all he wanted. I texted back I will look for the brand. Anyone heard of Montergui? The Fiance woke up and thought it was time to wake up. I reassured him it wasn't and to go back to sleep. He didn't. We ended up planning/mapping out our day. We want to get the tourist thing out of the way so we decided Eiffle Tower and whatever is walkable around there. I then headed back to bed and the Fiance stayed up playing games.
We woke up later today and suit up for the 30 degree weather. The Fiance routed our walk to the tower which was 2 miles away. Along the way we bumped into the Arc de Triomphe and a bridge with lovers locks. I think this may be a replica of what was the original seen in the movie Now You See Me. At the end of the bridge there was a man holding a ring. He started to walk towards us holding out the ring asking if it belonged to us. I said no and he said he will "give" it to us. The Fiance took the gold ring which fits his ring finger and the man wished us luck in love. He the started to walk away and we looked at him in total shock. I am thinking to myself, how are we going to find the owner of this ring. Not a second later he turned around and asked for 5 euros. Yes, it was too good to be true. Deep down I knew it was wrong, but I gave it to him anyways. I dug deep into my pockets and pulled out two 2 euro coins and two 50 cent coins. He thanked us and we went on our way. The Fiance wanted to throw the ring into the Seine river but I wanted to keep it as a souvineir for my first con ever. We continued on to the tower which was within a block. It was getting windy and we took a few shots of the tower. We then headed towards the river for a quiet walk away from tourists. After a few meters of walking we crossed the bridge towards Palais de Chaillot. From the corner of my eye I spotted an Aquarium. This wasn't on a list of things to do in Paris, but why not. The aquarium was underground with movie theaters and large tanks equipped with calm and soothing music. After a bit of time we emerged from the aquarium and headed out for dinner. We ventured down a shopping district on avenue des Champs-Elysees and did a bit of shopping. My stomach was growling so I we looked about for something to stand out and there it was, amongst all the cafes and pizza was the Lotus de Siam a Chinese/Thai Restaurant. Dinner was delicious and the fact that we didn't have to tip made it all that much better.
We left the restaurant full and walked out to the many street vendors set up for the Christmas market. Avenue des Champs-Elysees was completely filled with people, trees were lit with blue and white lights, street corner are carefully decorated with massive round figurines, and you can smell hot wine sold between every other booth. After browsing the first mile of the first side we decided to head home. We stopped into a market and picked up a variety of cheese. I bought a 5 day unlimited bus/metro pass so we used it to get us back home. And here we are 10PM, tired and happy we accomplished so much in one day. Tomorrow we are going to take the metro to as far as we can and venture around there. If we have time I would like to visit Rodin Museum. Goodnight all! Oh yeah, I had my first french macaron today. It is addicting! Bought mine from Raymond Chocolates. I bought 6, the Fiance ate 3 and I had 3. YUM