Uh-Mare-Uh-Cans.........in Paris

Christmas road trips

2009-01-01T04:40:00.000-08:00

Pictures of Chamonix, Mont St. Michelle, Saumur, Le Mt. St. Michel, Normandy beaches.

I heart Mitch and Melissa!

2008-12-31T03:25:00.000-08:00

YAY! Mitch and Melissa came to Paris for a few days to visit on their way to Germany and Switzerland for Christmas!!! We had so much fun and were able to enjoy our time over great food, great laughs, and great sights here in the City of Lights!

We woke up one day to a beautiful, sunny, and not too cold day (is this even possible for Paris?) and decided to check out the ice skating rink in front of the Hotel De Ville and then walk to Notre Dame and ascend up the towers to take in the amazing panoramic views of Paris seen from the eyes of the gargoyles that protect Notre Dame's walls. We also walked into the bell tower where quasimodo lived :) and Melissa and I had some good laughs in front of the bell reenacting Quasimodo by stuffing our purses on our backs under our coats to create the hunch. The guard thought were were nuts and Mitch and Andy were no where to be scene! lol

M & M's last night we all met at Laduree on the Champs for a delicious dinner, hot chocolate and macaroons. After dinner we all walked the Champs and paid our much anticipated visit and photo opp to Louis Vuitton HQ... it just felt like home for Melissa and I :)

We walked over to the Eiffel Tower and had some beers and cider and I was so sad to say goodbye :(

Thanks Mitch and Mel for such a great visit! WE LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH and see you at the beach soon! Marcello sends his kisses to Rambo!

Gotan Project

2008-12-31T02:46:00.001-08:00

I have always loved this band. Listening reminds me of a cross between lying on a warm, sunny beach in South America (or Miami), the smell of suntan lotion, Brito painting, tall breezy palm trees, as well as sitting in a Parisian cafe, sipping a latte as the sun sets over the eiffel tower. How can that be though? Two extreme places in one dream???

The Gotan Project is a relaxed blend of tango dance rhythms and Argentinean instrumentation. The group was brought together by their passion to combine sound with image and to marry electronic and acoustic music violin, and vocals. The group based in Paris, originated in Buenos Aires, and consists of Parisians and Argentineans collaborating in a musical group playing pianos, bass, Spanish guitar, violins, a bandoneon (form of an accordion), a sultry bassa nova singer and two DJ"s. The music is unreal and absolutely so much fun to listen to.

Andy, myself, Sarah, Derek, Ashley, and Katrina all went to see them and we all loved the show so much.
The huge screen background showed various images from Buenos Aires, such as Palm Tree's and old 40's looking photo's from the race tracks and tango halls as well as some Paris images of the Champs electrified as the cars zoom down the avenue, all synced in harmony with the beats of the Gotan Project. They had tango dancers dancing across the stage and the group itself looked posh and polished in their white dresses or tight suits with red ties.
I really can't express enough how wonderful Gotan is!

Here are some pics from our show in Paris at L'Olympia.

I found a great review that sums them up on Amazon. "Gotan Project's sexy combination of chillout programming and authentic tango music became a lounge favorite and led to massive sales. Lightning struck twice when their first album was released two years later in the States--the domestic debut attracted the attention of electronic music hipsters, tango freaks, and world music geeks. And rightfully so. The Gotan trio of Philippe Cohen Solal, Christoph H. Müller, and Eduardo Makaroff write the album's strongest material themselves, but their imaginative incorporation of Frank Zappa's "Chunga's Revenge," Gato Barbieri's theme from the movie Last Tango In Paris and, not surprisingly, Astor Piazzolla's "Vuelvo Al Sur" into the Gotan world shows just how broad and inclusive their tastes really are. Naysayers may complain that this album can be heard in every hip restaurant and clothing boutique from Paris to Los Angeles, but sometimes the cream does rise to the top and gain mass acceptance, as it has here. Also includes a bonus disc of four remixes."

Bonjour from an official French EU "citizen"

2008-12-30T07:43:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is true what you see in the picture. Monsieur Marcello is an official French citizen. In fact he is more legal then Andy and I!
Viola!

Kong bar and restaurant, Alcazar, and Wagg..a very fun night out!

2008-12-14T04:14:00.000-08:00

Saturday night was a really really really really really fun night out with Andy and his classmates. This week is the last week of classes here in Paris and the school organized a Christmas/Good-bye party as 1/2 of the MBA class remains here in Paris while the others return to Philly.

It was also 2 of the girls birthday's and a few of us had dinner first at KONG on the top two floors of the prestigious Louis Vuitton building address– 1 Rue du Pont Neuf. The restaurant is an elevators ride up, above the Kenzo flagship stores. The top floor has a glass ceiling that looks out over the city, designed by Architect Jean-Jacquey, and much of the interior was designed by Phillipe Starck. The restaurant calls the design “a collision of modern and ancient Japan”. Ultra hip, the chairs were the Invisible Louis XV Armchairs, with eerie asian faces screen printed on the backs. The walls were covered in plasma screens with faces that would occasionally wink at customers passing by. The view of the Siene and the city below was breath taking, and the food by Chef Richard Pommies was quite delicious! Andy made the perfect reference to the atmosphere as well; you felt as if you were in a batman movie, in gotham city, the way the architecture was and the huge glass dome ceiling and walls that overlooked the city and Siene... very very posh; I LOVED it! It felt only appropriate to be ordering Champagne at such a venue... and so it began!

Sorry to have to pull out the Sex In The City trivia BUT this was the spot in the final episodes where Carrie meets Aleksandr Petrovsky's ex-wife over an awkward lunch! (see picture in camera roll)

After our awesome dinner we went over to Alcazar in St. Germaine area. The venue is owned by Johnny Depps wife Vanessa Paradis, who is one of my favorite actresses, certainly the star of one of my top favorite movies " La fille sur le pont ", I love her! There was a restaurant on the ground floor and then above on the mezzanine area was a bar/lounge place. This is where we met the other students. The music was good, CHampagne was overpriced and we had a great time laughing with everyone. I, like Andy too, will miss everyone that is staying here SO much :(

I guess it must have been close to 2:00 or so when we left and decided to go next door to a club called Wagg that was playing 80's dance mix music. It was so funny and so much fun being able to sing along to these old songs! lol We danced a bit too much and had way too much fun. I am definitely paying for it all today! I just learned today that Wagg was the club where Jim Morrison spent his last hours in before his death... interesting... if his feet felt anything like mine did afterwards, I see why he died! (ok that wasn't funny)

Avenue des Champs-Elysées at Christmas

2008-12-12T12:55:00.000-08:00

Last night Andy and I walked the Champs from metro Concorde, all the way to the Arc de Triumph. All along the avenue leading up to the "main" shopping area of the Ave. was lined on both sides with Christmas market stalls. The Avenue looked absolutely gorgeous with all the glittering lights and smells of vin chaud (hot mulled wine) and hot coco coming form the stalls. There were so many candy and sweets, it was insane. I almost couldn't control myself. We passed one stand that was making some Swiss type "cheesesteak" thing with potatoes, garlic, cheese and ham... it smelled delicious!
I attached a few pictures alongside.

The Louis Vuitton HQstore looked more amazing then ever all done up for Christmas and Cartier had that special ring to it (ha! no pun intended!) ;) (side note: Melissa, we have major damage to do along the Ave when you arrive).
Walking back we stopped in a few of the auto showrooms to see the futuristic models they produced and sell for about the cost of 100 Louis Vuitton bags.

Although all the stores can get a bit overwhelming, the Avenue looked so festive and really was beautiful to "stroll down".
I have to admit, after all the bashing I did of the French and their tacky decor, the Avenue proved me way wrong! Oh, I did however attach a tacky decor picture I mentioned for laughs!

a romantic day in a romantic city with my love!

2008-12-12T12:15:00.000-08:00

So this is what Paris is ALL about! I get it and I LOVE it!

We realized the other week that this week would be our last real "alone" time together in Paris. Next week our friends Mitch and Melissa are coming to visit (we are SO excited to see them!) and then Andy's brothers are coming for Christmas/New Years! Andy surprised me with lunch reservations at 3-star Michelin chef's Alain Senderens Lucas Cartons: Senderns, a 2-Michelin star restaurant in the 8th arrondissement!

We went all out today and had the most amazing lunch. This was hands down one of the BEST meals and wine tasting I ever had! So THIS is the Paris secret behind amazing food. If I could eat like this everyday, I would not think twice about leaving Paris! I am so excited to write about this menu. It was honestly the best food ever and exactly what I dreamt of Parisian food to taste like. My apologies for the bad quality pictures as the lighting and use of my camera on my iPhone made it tough.

The menu was paired up with the glass of wine they recommend, which we decided was best to do as well. For starters they brought us a chef sample tasting of a butternut squash soup (not a bowl, just a tiny portion) with smoked salmon in a creme fresh type puff on top of the soup. It was unreal. I could have ate this for a starter. I wanted more!

For starters I order a smoky-mushroom white Burgundy risotto paired with a glass of Santenay "Clos de Malte" 2001 - Louis Jadot. Andy had this absolutely delicious dish of Crispy prawns coriander paired with a Warwick "Rouchefer" 2006. The French menu when translated to English described it as "The sweetness of the lobster is enlivened by the crispness of the dough brick. This gives the flat density required in this Anjou that contact soy and coriander pleased." It wasn't "fried" yet had this delicately flaky outer shell.

For my main dish I had salted cod that was cut into the tinniest pieces and whipped into the fluffiest and creamiest mashed potatoes. Alongside, the dish was surrounded with greens and drizzled with the smallest amount of a balsamic reduction and 2 crispy garlic breads. It all complemented and blended just perfectly. I really could go on-and-on about how unbelievable this dish was! My cod was paired with a Mercurey 2004 - Castle Chamirey. Take note of the on picture of an up-close view of a garlic crouton-type "thing" in my dish... it not only was delicious, it had a piece of parsley baked into the center of it.

Andy ordered "Tartare de veau de lait et langoustine, vermicelle de riz, parmigiano reggiano", a veal tartare, paired with Pouilly Fuissé "Les Crays" 2006 - Domaine Forest.

After our amazing lunch, surrounded by people way out of our league :), we continued our late afternoon visit to the Muse Orsay!

When we got home I even got an early Christmas present from Andy... from Sabbia Rosa!

Ahhhh... a wonderful Parisian day! My nose up to the world! lol

BUT's, hair, Eldar Trio, christmas trees and random weekend things

2008-12-07T15:37:00.000-08:00

Sat I decided I was in critical need of some pampering. I found this organic salon and spa in the Marais and decided to make an appointment to get my hair done there. Naturally (no pun intended) it was a challenge as the English spoken at Coiffure Nature was as good as my French. With scissor cutting hand gestures and some laughs we made it through and I was very happy with the results! While at Coiffure Nature I was reminded why I love Paris. It's the little things they do, such as offering me an espresso, brewed while my hair was drying, served so perfectly. At home I would have got a mug with some crappy coffee and a plastic stirrer if I was lucky. The French certainly take pride in the most smallest of pleasures ( I sound like Amalie now!) and I have learned more and more to appreciate that. I hope I remember to do the same when we come home.

After my hair cut, Andy met me at Place des Vosges with Marcello and we had lunch at one of our favorite bistros and walked around and did some shopping. Marcello is quite the man...er...dog of leisure, and loves cafe life here in Paris. He always seems to get spoiled by the wait staff too wherever we are. Later that night we met up with Dave and went to dinner at our favorite crepe place, called Crepe Suzette. We then stumbled along into the bar areas of the Marais and decided to check out a jazz club/bar featuring a band called ELDAR TRIO. Eldar is a mix of 3 young, unbelievable talented men, the lead pianist from Los Angeles and up for a grammy nominee this year. There was a bass player and drummer too.

Today a few of us had tickets to Paris St. Germaine and Le Mans (a Ligue 1 game) here in the city. It was SO much fun! Our seats were amazing, right on the field (well, minus the mote that surrounds it to keep the insane fans off the field). It was at 9PM so we all met for dinner and drinks first, bundled up and walked over to the stadium. The energy from the crowds was amazing! I want to go next week and sit in the super rowdy section, next to the guys with the drums and pyro gear and building size flags and megaphones! It's amazing to see the players this close and live. Their agility and speed were insane. It was a huge game too b/c Paris SG was trying to win the Ligue 1 for the first time in 16 -17 years! THEY WON (the game) and the place went crazy! Everyone was yelling "BUT" "BUT" "BUT!" really loud and it was pasted all over the stadium!
lol... needless to say we all learned tonight that "BUT" (not said like we do) means "GOAL"! So maybe Paris doesn't have Chickie and Pete's crab fries, or Philly cheesesteaks or Peace of Pizza BUT BUT BUT (lol) it does have CREPES! At halftime (or whatever it's called in soccer) everyone went and got these hot crepes with nutella in them. Oh, I love that we got yelled at for taking pictures of the game while the guys behind us were smoking a joint that was big enough to get the entire stadium high! hahaha

Also attached in this random posting of weekend things is a picture of our lobby Christmas Tree. I have to rant a bit about how weird the French are... yes, yes, here we go again. The city is beginning to look beautiful with all the lights and decorations going up! I will be sure to post a bunch of pictures this week from around the city. Although there is holiday cheer, Andy and I can't get over how TACKY most of these decorations are (excluding the lights). I have yet to see a "normal" Christmas tree, meaning they are all fat, short, lop-sided... like Whoville trees! Then, to top the weird tree, the French have these God awful decorations. I seriously have not seen any normal decorations on trees yet, at least not in an entire uniformity. The other thing is (and I will try to capture in examples by pictures) the fake snow everywhere. Not the "ok this is expectable and looks cute" kind, but the kind that is white textured-plastic spray paint, sprayed all over an item or tree or window and therefore since it is white, it means snow. AWFUL! BLAH! Anyway, here is a picture of our lobby tree and yes, under all the plastic ornaments (there is a pair of pink plastic kids shoes) and colorful gaudy decor, there lurks a real tree. At least it makes us smile and laugh everyday! :)

24 more days until Christmas!

2008-12-01T06:01:00.000-08:00

HAPPY DECEMBER 1st!!!

Musee de l'Orangerie

2008-11-30T03:41:00.000-08:00

Both Andy's mom and dad told us this is a MUST see, and they were right on! Musee de l'Orangerie is an art gallery of impressionist and post-impressionist paintings located on the Place de la Concorde in Paris. It contains works by Paul Cezanne, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri Rousseau, Chaim Soutine, Alfred Sisley and Maurice Utrillo and others.

The gallery is on the bank of the Seine in the old orangery of the Tuileries Palace. I read that an "orangery" is a " building frequently found in the grounds of fashionable residences from the 17th to the 19th century and given a classicising architectural form. The orangery was similar to a greenhouse or conservatory. The name reflects the original use of the building as a place where citrus trees were often wintered in tubs under cover, surviving through harsh frosts though not expected to flower and fruit."

The orangery originated from the Renaissance gardens of Italy, when glass-making technology enabled sufficient expanses of clear glass to be produced.

The Musee de l'Orangerie most famous exhibition is the housing of a cycle of Monet's water-lily paintings, known as the Nympheas, which we were so lucky to see his inspiration for AND studio where these cycles were painted in Giverny, France! It was so great to see the actual works now on display. They are MASSIVE in size and the best part about the exhibition display is depending on what time of day you visit the museum, the colors cast different shades as the exhibit is housed in direct diffused light, as Monet intended. This is done by an oculus in the ceiling drawing in natural sunlight.

Below the Nympheas, which are housed on the first floor, is a gallery of impressionist and post-impressionist paintings which were incredible! The museum displayed them all in accordance to their friendships, partnerships, and inspiration between and amongst the featured artists of this time.

It was a bight and sunny day (can you believe that!) and not too frigid, which made this visit even more enjoyable as it is housed on the Concorde above the Tuileries Gardens along a tree lined boulevard. The area is gorgeous and the sunlight view of the Eiffel Tower was even extra special.

Enjoy our pictures!

Our American Thanksgiving in Paris

2008-11-28T09:00:00.001-08:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

Andy and I went to our great friends, Derek and Sarah's , apartment in St. Germaine and our other friend Dave joined us as well. Sarah and I spent the entire day (as this was a last minute decision) shopping for American Thanksgiving "products" in Paris... not an easy task! We not only had so much fun trekking ALL over Paris shopping, we pulled it off and it couldn't have been better! We had wine, Champagne, oysters, horderves, TURKEY (I made my tofu veggie loaf), gravy (Campbell's mushroom soup added), green beans, corn bread, mashed potatoes, squash, cranberry sauce, AND for dessert.... drum roll please... pumpkin pie and cinnamon ice cream (and lots more wine)!

Here our some pictures from the night, enjoy!

Also I am attaching some pictures from "Gran Epicerie" at Bon Marche. For those of you never there... it is a mix of Wegman's and Whole Foods on steroids. It was a supermarket like I have never seen. One could easily spend 5 hours there and find anything you can imagine from all over the world. There was a Dom Perignon Champagne bar inside the supermarket where for 17E you can sit and have a glass, or for 300+E drink a bottle. There was a candy bar, and actual bar that one sits at and "orders" from the candy "bar tender" treats to enjoy! I really can't begin to explain how beautiful and overwhelming this market was!

Click on pictures to the right to view them all w/ captions

to quote the great American...John Adams

2008-11-21T16:21:00.000-08:00

in speaking of Paris... " I find the weather here most insalubrious"

Paris random...

2008-11-18T11:24:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures (see slide show next to this post) of a few random things like dinners at great French restaurants where Dave and Andy tried (or so it seemed) to order the most disgusting things on the menu (like cow cheek), a visit to the Pompidou, an incredible concert to see "The Charlie Hunter Trio" at the Sunset Jazz CLub with Derek and Sarah, and a fall afternoon walk through the beautiful Tuileries gardens and of course some random Marcello pictures to throw in. Enjoy!

where champagne flows like water

2008-11-18T09:10:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! My apologies as it has been a while since my last post. Andy has been extremely busy with class but we have managed to make the most of the time we have exploring Paris. I will include some photos of our day excursions to a few museums and such. The weather has gotten colder and the Christmas decorations have stared to adorn the city of lights. Andy, Katrina and I were in Starbucks the other day and Christmas music was playing. I can't believe it is that time of year! I love the smell of fireplaces burning as you walk through the streets in the evening. Everyone is bundling up and big, chunky, long scarves are definitely the "in" thing this year here.

Last weekend we decided to take the train from Paris to Rheim (Champagne valley) to visit some of the champagne estates for a day trip. We started at the estate of G.H. Mumm where we toured their cellars and productions site. We then did a 3-glass tasting of a rose, a cru, and a brut. (Mind you this was about 11:30 and I didn't eat anything yet). Basically, breakfast was Champagne... not to bad! We were able to see the cellar room where all the reserve bottles for the estate were kept, dating back to the 1800's when the first reserve was made. This room is used for the estate "master" who samples bottles from this first reserve so he can make sure the current process and tastes as true to the house's flavor. Imagine his job? I am envious. Mumm is the official sponsor for F1 racing.

After Mumm we stumbled our way into the town center (which surprisingly was not busy... actually it was freakishly quite... like NIght of the Living Dead quite) and had lunch at this delicious restaurant our tour guide recommended. I had mini raviolis in a light cream and zucchini sauce and naturally a large cappuccino.

Afterwards we went to the Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin estates and walked around. Unfortunately we couldn't get a cellar tour of these grounds as they were booked 3 months in advance to tour! The estate was gorgeous and grande, just as one would imagine. Sadly the vineyards were not in season and we couldn't actually see the grapes being grown. We learned that champagne, like wine, should always be stored on it's side, never standing upright.One of the guys we went with named Robert, from Andy's class, was telling us (he is from California) all about the vineyards out there in Napa and Sonoma and how great the tours are. It's my next vacation goal for sure!

It's funny how Americans tend to view champagne as a celebratory drink or stereotype it as a "girly" drink. The French do not. Champagne is taken and regarded just as precious as their wine and paired often with meals. I must say, I am a fan and would like to take this custom back with me to The States. We ended up buying a few bottles at each estate, but the best bottle (our saving bottle) was purchased from the Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin estate. It is a reserve that can only be bought on their grounds in Rheims or in Italy where for this bottle, the grapes are grown. Anything that is not manufactured in Rheims, is "sparkling wine" NOT champagne... shame on you for thinking otherwise!

Monet's garden at Giverny

2008-10-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

Today was absolutely wonderful! Andy's mom treated us to a day trip at Giverny to visit the house and gardens of Monet; his inspiration for paintings which we are so fortunate to see while here in Paris. The weather could not have been better either. It was a crisp fall day, sunny (rare for Paris) and not too cold!

Giverny is about a 45 minute ride outside of Paris, near Normandy; a gorgeous little village where Monet's house borders the little road. There are two parts in Monet's garden: a flower garden called Clos Normand in front of the house and a Japanese inspired water garden on the other side of the road. The two parts of Monet's garden contrast yet complement one another. There were fruit trees, such as kiwi trees/vines growing along overhead walkways, all types of wildflowers everywhere you looked, and stunning rose bushes and vines.

The water garden was inspired by the Japanese gardens that Monet knew from the prints he collected avidly which was a trend during this time with the introduction of the Asian culture through print works and artifacts. In this water garden there is the famous Japanese bridge covered with wisterias, other smaller bridges, weeping willows, a bamboo woods and the famous nympheas which Monet loved to paint.

After walking through the gardens we toured his home which is just beautiful. It was one of the "happiest" places I could of imagined living in. Besides the overabundance of floral everywhere, the home was painted in bright, yet calm, colors of yellow, green, blues/turquoises and decorated in a typical French country style. His massive bedroom windows/French doors overlooked his abundant gardens. We then toured his studio upon where he painted his massive wall-size water lilies (inspired from his garden) now housed in Paris at the Musée de l'Orangerie, which is next on our list of museums to see.

Near Monet's house is also the American art Museum which houses artists inspired by Monet. Although he never offered himself in any teaching role, his presence in the village ensured the steady growth of the colony and accounted for a new techniques and coloristic changes in the paintings of the Americans who worked there.

We walked around the museum for a while and then strolled through the little village and enjoyed cappuccinos at a cafe where we sat outside and just soaked in the fresh country air. Andy's mom bought us the most adorable little espresso cups and spoons too; I can't wait to use them as they will be a great little memory of our fun day in Giverny!

Brooke's wedding weekend!

2008-10-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

Andy and I just returned from a fun weekend back home in the States. We flew in for Brooke and Jeff's wedding!!
The wedding was Friday night at the Manor House in Commonwealth. The wedding was perfect, the weather was gorgeous, Brooke looked AMAZING, the ceremony was beautiful and the reception was a blast! We stayed with my parents and a night at Andy's parents (whom are in Paris right now) to see Michael and Kevin (Andy's brothers), which was wonderful; we missed them!
Here are some pictures from the wedding; click on any of the pictures to enlarge them

random weekend photos and Nuit Blanche (White Night) in Paris

2008-10-06T02:10:00.000-07:00

The weekend was great. Friday night we went out to a few bars in the St. Germain area with Andy's classmates, who are all so nice and fun to be around! Sat (as posted below this entry) was a nice day of walking around and shopping. Sat night was interesting, it was called the " Nuit Blanche" and is the yearly night when "Art and Culture Reign Until Dawn". Paris Nuit Blanche (White Night) has become a hotly-anticipated annual celebration of all things art and culture in the city of lights. Attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, Nuit Blanche hosts Paris galleries, museums, city halls, and even swimming pools open their doors all night until 6AM to visitors-with free entry. Elaborate light installations, edgy performances, concerts, and building transformations all take place. The city is packed with people.

We met up with people in the Marais area, next to the Pompidou center to start around 10:30 and then walked to the Louvre and then through to Notre Dame and St. Michele. We then took the Metro to Gare de l’Est, where the bulk of the activities and art was presented. My camera dies (of course) but others took pictures so once I can get hem, I will share.

Yesterday we went to the market and then decided in the evening to head over to Notre Dame to "The Canadians" pub to watch the EAGLES. It was fun, despite their loss..ugh. I don't know what came over us but before we left I made pasta (from scratch of course!) which is SO filling. Andy had meatballs he added to his form the Italian guy at the market earlier and then we made this amazing, hearty, onion sauce to top it. I also had an avocado and spinach salad. During the game (which was only an 1/2 hour after dinner) we pigged out. I had an order of nachos that were piled high with guacamole, cheese, sour cream, and sauce. Andy had hot wings and we both had beers. We were gross. We absolutely had and all-american weekend in terms of food. lol

god bless "Breakfast in America"

2008-10-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

So we have been reading and hearing about this diner in our neighborhood started and run by an all American staff called "Breakfast in America" (see weblink below) and decided to finally go. After a fun night out drinking, a good-old American breakfast sounded PERFECT. At this point in our living experiences here in Pari... we have just about had it with bread and butter for breakfast.
We got to the diner and it was pretty crowded; reminded me of Sabrina's back at home. The menu was incredible for us. I can't tell you how excited we were just seeing the menu (all English) FILLED with REAL omelets, pancakes, bagels and CREAM CHEESE, and HOMEFRIES! yay homefries!
I ordered a Mexican omelet with cheddar cheese, sour cream, salsa,onions, homefries and coffee. Andy ordered a hamburger with onions, bacon... the works. We both started our meal with a bagel and cream cheese. It was sadly one of the best meals we have ate here! haha They gave us a coupon for buy 10 meals, get one free, lol, we were are all over this! With Stevie Wonder jammin in the background, it was a comfort feeling of being back in Philly, eating a great Sat. brunch.

Now I am going to rant about the French. :) As we were in line waiting to be seated, feeling a tad hungover and watching though a large glass window at the people inside eating, there were 4 French girls sitting in front of us (through the glass) eating pancakes, hamburgers and a bagel. Outside, Andy and I were observing their eating habits... they had cut EVERYTHING with their knives... WHO CUTS A BAGEL AND CREAM CHEESE WITH A FORK AND KNIFE? What? Come again? Who the heck eats hamburgers with a knife... do they not understand why the bun was created? To make this all worse, the one girl proceeds to put syrup on her pancakes... she literally put (as did the girl next to her then) a DROP..a tiny drop of syrup on these HUGE pancakes and proceeded to spread it around with her knife... again, WHAT? POUR THAT SH*T ON THOSE PANCAKES LADY!
By now our blood was boiling and we couldn't wait to get inside and show these French'ies how to eat an American breakfast! hahah
Hence, our knives were never used (except to spread the entire case of cream cheese on my bagel) !
We had so much fun observing and laughing, as I am sure they did when they saw us shovel food into our mouths! haha

After breakfast we walked around the Marais and did some shopping. We stopped late in the afternoon for an early dinner at a wonderful brasserie. I noticed everyone drinking hot chocolate here so I ordered it... and to give the French some credit (after a slight bashing above)... they certainly know how to do hot chocolate! My tray came out with two pitchers and a mug (and a sugar cube). One pitcher had frothing hot milk, the other had melted chocolate... I poured the hot milk into my mug over a sugar cube, then poured almost the entire little pitcher of the melted chocolate into my mug, stirred it.. and smiled from cheek to cheek. It was THE most amazing hot chocolate I have ever had! Andy in the meantime decided to eat a SECOND hamburger! haha

We had a really fun day of shopping, walking around and pigging out!

http://breakfast-in-america.com/main/

Gustave Moreau Museum-unicorns and princesses for boys ;)

2008-09-27T09:05:00.000-07:00

Andy and I had a great weekend! We enjoyed a fun dinner and night out with our friends Derek and Sarah (whom we love going out with) and with the weather finally being sunny here, we decided on a walk around Paris and a visit to the Gustave Moreau museum to see his largest housed collection. After the museum we ate a late lunch at this DELICIOUS Crepperie near the Gallerie Lafayette. My crepe was stuffed to the brim with slices of potatoes, tomatoes, melted cheese and scallion... it was SO yummy! Andy had an "everything" crepe, as I called it, because it had everything you can imagine inside it. Steak, cheese, eggs, tomatoes, onions, etc. haha.

The Moreau museum is housed in his former estate which he had owned since 1852 and lived at with his parents. He worked primarily on the third floor of this stunning home. He willed his home and art to France and wished to make his home a museum for his works to be shared with the public.

Gustave Moreau was a French Symbolist painter. He was born and died in Paris. I read that later in his life he became a professor at Paris' École des Beaux-Arts and was a teacher to many the students whom evolved into the fauvist painters, Henri Matisse and Georges Rouault inparticular.

Moreau painted mythological and biblical characters as a literary idea more so then visual images. They are mostly dark-romance themes, appealing to the Symbolist writers and artists, who saw him as a inventor to their movement.

I loved this museum and Moreau's works so much; it quite possibly makes my top 3 favorite museums. There was something about the untouched and intimate setting of his home, the muted salmon-colored walls, lavishly gilded encased paintings, the scattered arrangements of his paintings (he painted over 8,000 works), their massive size, and the representation of ancient characters and allegorical figures depicted in their darkest moments. (again, note the Keri Maiello pathetically weak draw-in of allegorical figures)

Amongst my favorites (besides his most famous and personally loved, "Apparition") was a smaller and very dark painting of Mary Magdeline weeping. The colors were muted and dull with the central focus being on three large black crosses that loomed above Mary's ambiguous body while she sat weeping and slumped over in the lower right part of the painting. The tone was SO define. You didn't need to see her tears or facial expression to evoke a feeling of sorrow. The colors used and murky formations created that feeling in a more powerful way then would a detailed facial expression.

I also loved that Moreau pushed the limits for his paintings in regards to the story parts he chose to bring back to life. No one dared to discuss, let alone vividly detail such reconstructions like "The Daughters of Thespius". How morbid and distraught a topic yet he painted it SO beautifully filling the massive painting with poignant erotic and fertility symbols via swans, bull heads, crescent moons, all intwined with the nymph-like bodies of Thespius's daughters. For one not familiar with the story climax... in a nutshell... Thespius offered up to the Gods a "gift" of himself bedding all 50 daughters of his.

I am amazed at how much Florentine influence was so prevalent within Moreau's work, and was told (by Andy whom was doing some reading), that Moreau spent but only a few weeks, on-and-off, over 2 years in Florence. Clearly he was greatly moved by his time spent studying there, despite it being a short duration. In the painting above "The Daughter of Thespius", Thespius himsef is posed in a very Michelangeloesque way with the musculature of his body, not to mention his sitting position as well (Reminiscent to Adam on the Sistine Chapel ceiling as well as other nudes painted by Michelangelo). Also, reminiscent of FLorentine works was a painting titled "The Birth of Venus" which Venus's body posture and sea shell-chariot, all mimic the same as Botticelli's. In Gustave Moreau's depiction of the "Slaughter of Penelope's suitors", the contrapposto pose dominates almost every character within this painting.

What a better a topic to embody Moreau's dream-like style of work then in his most popular "Apparition". How can anyone resit images of THE femme fatale in history! Once again, I found a Florentine influence as I saw (probably my favorite) statue of "The Head of Medusa", by Benvenuto Cellini (his bronze statue found in the Loggia dei Lanzi) in the same bloody, muscles still in tact, beheading in the Apparition.

Gustave Moreau...how "manly" a man to paint unicorns, swans (Leda and the Swan), and beautifully cloaked (and nude) women and men (props to you if you distinguish boy from girl) masking them behind sexual eroticism, dark romanticism and violence!

Venice, Italy

2008-09-21T12:53:00.000-07:00

Buona Sera everyone!

Andy, Marcello and I have just returned from a wonderful mini-vacation to Vencie. We decided to take the train from Paris to Venice and spend 3 days/2 night there.

The train ride stunk...it was LONG and irritating. We shared our cabin with 4 other people so it was tight quarterers. It was an overnight train so thankfully it made time go faster and we were able to just sleep (uncomfortable of course). Marcello didn't make a peep and slept under the covers with me the entire time. Our train left Paris at 8pm, so we decided to eat aboard the train. We sat with two British women who were very sweet and very interested in our political views on the election... always a questionable conversation, but here in Europe, agreeable nonetheless. Our dinner (for train food) wasn't too bad actually. I should have known given it was an Italian train. 3 types of pasta, meats and fruit and tort cakes.

We arrived Thursday morning and after checking into our hotel, we headed straight for a cafe to order our usual... a cappuccino and doppio espresso, which naturally were delicious. Marcello instantly befriended the waitstaff here and our waiter brought him two HUGE pieces of prosciutto which he devoured! They were pieces bigger then him! A perfect treat for him as to accompany his new Italian attitude... he was a ham here in Venice, a total hit with the crowds. People actually stopped us to take his picture, it was ridiculous; everyone loved him.

Our hotel was wonderfully located in the Dorsoduro area of Venice (about 5 min walk to San Marco sq). It was an area that felt more Italian and not so tourist crazed. (Venice is 98% tourist and 2 % Italians). Our hotel was located next to the Accademia Gallery, which I could not wait to explore! That evening we decided to splurge and book reservations at the "rinomato" Da Fiore in the S. Polo area. I came across this restaurant from a Food and Wine review as well as a Giada TOP recommendation; one of her favorite places to eat in all of Italy! If it was her favorite, I knew it would be mine too! I temporarily forgot I also didn't make Giada's paycheck which allows her to dine at Michelin Star restaurants, but hey, when in Rome... when in Venice.

Before our dinner reservation, we headed to San Marco to pay a visit to the famous Harry's Bar to enjoy the original Bellini! It was so good and so much fun to be there and experience that! I have always wanted to go there! I did some looking into the background of the Bellini (obviously named after Giovanni Bellini- the Venetian artist) and found that the bellini was invented by Giuseppe Cipriani, founder of Harry's Bar in Venice, Italy. He named it this because of its unique pink color, which reminded him of the color of the toga on a saint in a painting by the 15th-century Venetian artist Giovanni Bellini. It is made with puréed white peaches and Prosecco, an Italian sparkling wine; so enjoyable! There were about 25 people at the bar with us ordering the drinks too; it was a fun start to our evening!

A little side note: I also was informed that Cipriani is also accredited with the appetizer dish of/called "Carpaccio" (also named after the Venetian artist Vittore Carpaccio). He said it was first served to the countess Amalia Nani Mocenigo in 1950 when she informed the bar's owner that her doctor had recommended she eat only raw meat.

We arrived at Da Fiore a bit early so we sat at the bar and ordered some wine and enjoyed some appetizers. You can see the menu in one of our pictures (it turned out quite clear actually). The restaurant is very intimate and situated along the canal with a tiny room (2-top table) sitting in an extended area over the canal with an open window. The menu was recently updated for the seasonal foods, which I just love. I ordered a pumpkin and porcini mushroom soup, served with crispy parmesan bread. For my main course I ordered a fresh tagliatelle pasta with cream and porcini mushrooms. Andy ordered an appetizer of sea salt oysters and for his main corse ordered the wild sea bream in a salt-crust. For desert, the restaurant brought us a tray of little various pastries. It was such a delicious dinner!

Friday we woke up, ate breakfast at our hotel (included) and then went to the Academia Galleries. Adorning its walls were masterpieces by Venice's painters. The highlight of which include Giovanni Bellini's "Madonna Enthroned" and Carpaccio's "The Presentation" and Giorgione's "The Tempest" (my favorite), which has been called the first landscape in the history of Western painting. I LOVE the mysterious stormy sky above the city, alluding to a disturbing feeling which culminates with the lightening bolt cracking through the air. I am entranced with the "random" allegorical figures; I am a sucker for guise of characters! It is said that Giorgione previously painted a second nude woman bathing where the man now stands (via x-ray); what was he painting I wonder!? Many of the masterpieces were taken from Venetian churches and monasteries to enrich the art gallery. I was amazed at the massive sizes of the works! The Academia also housed some Titians, which I adored and could stare at all day! I also was excited to stumble upon Francesco Zuccarelli's "Rape of Europa", which I had learned of in school but never saw or really heard anything more about this. There it was amongst other Zuccarelli's panels in the Academia! I must also note the incredible chills I got when coming to Titian's "Pieta". A picture of this just cannot evoke the same feelings you have when standing in front of this large painting. The Academia places this lower down on the wall as to bring the viewer more into the scene, level with Nicodemus. Titian paints his own portrait into the face of Nicodemus, whom is staring the dead Christ in the face. In turn, Titian is reflecting upon his own old age, and soon dying breath; staring it all honestly in the face of death, of Christ.

Friday evening we took the boats into Saint Mark's square for dinner and drinks. We had such a fun night! The weather was perfect! We ate dinner at a little restaurant along the way, nothing special, but very good. (I of course ate pasta) and Andy had spinach ravioli's in a pumpkin nut squash sauce. We shared a delicious bottle of wine and then headed into San Marco square to listen to music and walk around...oh... I also had a gelato...shocker. After drinking a bit too much, we stumbled back to our vapaoratto (which runs all night... brilliant!) to take back to our hotel.

Saturday, our last day in Venice (boo!) was gorgeous! The weather couldn't have been more perfect. There was nothing but sunshine and the temperatures were in the high 80's, but being along the water, a wonderful breeze kept us cool. I wanted this day to never end! Paris is in full blown fall, it is barley sunny and I dress in scarves and coats (which ok, are fun, BUT I MISS THE WARMTH). We decided to spend our day wondering all over Venice, particularly along the waterways (as opposed to the center of town). We naturally stopped for a gelato to aid my addiction and enjoyed a relaxing loooong lunch, again, outside at a beautiful open air restaurant where I feasted on yet another delicious bowl of pasta! We sat next to and befriended a couple near our age from Argentina whom were in Venice with their little girl Lina (she was a little over a year). It was adorable watching her run around the square and chase the pigeons. She was enamored with Macrello but was reluctant to pet him. Finally, after about an hour , she mustered up courage to walk over and thump/pet his back. Afterwards she began clapping for herself when she did! hahaha SO CUTE! We left Venice around 8pm for our overnight (hell) train back to Pari.

I love Italy so much and Italian people are truly so warm and fun to "attempt" to talk/laugh with, much more so then the French (although the French have not been as bad as people perceive.) The main difference I notice most is that Italians actually smile, in fact, they LOVE to smile! I find that normal by my standards. When I walk into a store and someone is helping me, I always smile and say "hello". In Paris NO ONE smiles, smiling actually indicates "flirting" on the streets and one is told not to smile unless you are friends. It's pretty cold. They (the French) really need to get over themselves too b/c they really aren't that great and they live in such a cool city... what the heck is there not to smile about! Anyway, the Italians get this... they realize they live (in my opinion) in the most beautiful county in the world; they would be crazy to wake up in Italy and not smile!

Please enjoy our photo's although my apologies b/c it was such a long trip there (on this terrible train), so I am wearing the effects on my face plus I was battling a horrible sinus infection and felt lousy... apologies!

Anita to Chunk- the decline of gelato

2008-09-11T12:59:00.000-07:00

Please do not be scared if upon my return to The States you do not recognize me… blame in on the love affair with the chocolatier next door to our flat.

Someone should report her to the police (and me to fat camp)! It isn’t fair that she sells her gelato by the container; is that not illegal?

Does she not realize I went from my sweet movie comparison of myself as Anita Ekberg in La Dolce Vita; my dainty little cone and ONE scoop of gelato, to Chunk from The Goonies with my entire container of gelato and spoon in hand!

I will be unavailable most of the day today; I will be doing sit ups.

Please turn up volume and listen to this first clip below of "me" in the Gelato store (Just hit the play button).

2008-09-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

Chamonix/Mt. Blanc - France

2008-09-03T14:52:00.000-07:00

Bonjour everyone! It is Wednesday morning and I am finally getting a chance to update our blog. It is a cool, rainy, dreary day in Paris today. (shocker!) Marcello and I decided to get to know Voltaire today…Boulevard Voltaire that is! I needed to do some shopping and heard there was a great Bio Market (organic food market), so we decided to venture there. We are now sitting at a wonderful little café and I am drinking my piping hot cappuccino (of course with chocolate shavings atop), and since I am feeling quite Parisian today (after making my first Quiche last night…see blog later on this), I decided to order the Parisian breakfast of bread and butter with fresh jam…just perfect to begin my catch up blogging.

Andy and I decided on a few days in Chamonix, France. Mt. Blanc, and I am SO happy we did.! We decided (against ALL guidebook advice) to rent a car in Paris and drive to Chamonix, which is about 6 1/2 hours through the countryside’s of Dijon and Burgundy. Thankfully when reserving the car, we also reserved a Garmin navigational system to go in it. We decided I would be driving and with the help of the Garmin I figured it wouldn’t be too difficult.

We began our drive into the city “oo’ing and ahh’ing” at all the monuments and sights (side note: my hands were in a blood-draining grip around the steering wheel and in hindsight, I don’t think I was breathing… is that possible?). After about 20 minutes of center city driving, we realized the Garmin wasn’t programmed properly and was merely simulating our drive instead of navigating us! Long story short, we figured it all out and the rest of our drive was smooth and beautiful. I have formally declared Madonna’s “Give it to me” our driving anthem, as we heard it at least 4 million times on our drive. (Side note: I sang along all 4 million times too).

After about $60.00 in highway (robbery) tolls, roads that were skinnier then Kate Moss on crack, more twisted then Gary Glitter, and viaducts higher then the Eifel Tower, we arrived in beautiful Chamonix. Sadly it was late at night so we were unable to see the scenery, which was about to stun us the next morning. The owners of our B&B, James and Antonia, were the coolest! They are originally from London and everyday they rock climb, glacier climb, hike, and in the winter run a ski company. (See their weblink in this blog). Of course they have an adorable Bernese Mountain dog and matching Landrovers; dah!

We woke up to the most beautiful scenery I have ever scene. The top of Mt. Blanc was stunning! The cool, crisp, fresh mountain air was so invigorating, especially after city living. The temperature was perfect, the sun was out (unlike in Paris), and it was absolutely so peaceful.

Breakfast was at 9:00 and to our delight, everyone staying at the B&B were either from the UK, Scotland, or Australia; hence everyone spoke English and it was so nice conversing. At the table we got talking with a couple that were our age and from Australia, Adam and Becca. They were awesome! They invited Andy and I to join them the following day on their “Canyoning” trip. I was so happy to be having a fun conversation with cool people our age that I agreed without knowing what I just signed myself up for. You can read more about this on Andy’s post, which will explain why Andy was looking at me like I was NUTS when I agreed to accompany them.

Andy, Marcello and I decided to spend our first day hiking some trials up the mountain. Antonia and James gave us a great map and picked a perfect hike for us. We left the B&B after breakfast, stopped in town, which is an INCREDIBLBLY beautiful and really cool town, to get me a pair of hiking shoes. The town is a melting pot of Swiss, Italian and French cultures, with a ton of great restaurants and stores ranging from the most relevant sporting good store (everyone here is so active) to Chanel! (Which was my “hiking” destination for later in the day while Andy napped).

We found our trail which lead to Chalet Flora, our destination. Marcello did GREAT on our hike (which was WAY more rigorous that I anticipated). He was off his leash and very adventurous. How many teacup yorkies do you know that hiked the ALPS? (lol)

After about 2 1/2 hours or so we got to our destination, which was a wildflower Chalet way up in the mountains that runs on propane and serves as a mini restaurant for hikers. It of course overlooks Mt. Blanc and is just breathtaking. (See pictures in our slideshow). On our way we stopped (mainly at my request) for rest and breath-catching time. During one of my breath-catching, heart pounding, wobbling knee pit stops, a man in his 50’s came FLYING buy us running down the dam mountain! He was in perfect shape and was devoid of any signs of weakness or tiredness. I felt like an ass. He even managed to say “Bonjour”, ever so delightfully to us. By the time I mustered my breath to reply, the man was 1/2 way down the mountain.

After resting a bit we descended back down the mountain and into town for some lunch. Now, besides the pastries, both Andy and I have not been all that impressed with Parisian food. We both agree our best-ever meal was eaten in Portugal at “A Travesa” (the old monastery location) http://www.atravessa.com/
For all the hype of Parisian food, it’s been tough. I mean we aren’t eating meals at Guy Savoy or anything but we aren’t eating at too shabby of places either.
Anyway, passing all these real Italian restaurants made me crave the food, so we ate at this awesome Italian restaurant and pigged out. It was everything my heart desired. Fresh, hearty pasta, perfectly made tomato sauce and real salads (with greens not wilted iceberg lettuce), and the best garlic bread. Nothing flooring insofar as creativity, but just delicious and filling, oh, and of course we had our cappuccino’s. God bless the Italians!

After scarfing down lunch we were both so tired and sore, we headed back to the B&B to rest and relax.

Later that evening we headed out for dinner at this awesome Swiss restaurant. It was a perfect brisk, cool night so we sat outside and ordered a bottle of a Swiss red wine, which was delicious! Andy had a big bowl of French onion soup and we both ordered fondue. Mine was a cheese with mushrooms and Andy’s was cheese with meat in it. I LOVED mine. We had such a great night; finished the bottle of wine, and walked back to the B&B as we had to be up early for our “canyoning” adventure… yikes.

(See Andy’s post on our canyoning experience.)

So, after our amazingly fun day of repelling down 70 foot waterfalls and sliding through natural rock formation waterslides in the middle of the mountains, Adam, Andy, Becca and I decided to relax and catch some sun on the deck and then head out for dinner and drinks.

We went into town and ate at a Swiss restaurant known for their “Sovoy” cooking, which Adam and Andy were excited about. Another great evening outdoors with great wine, great food and great company! I wish everyone could have access to Chamonix’s mountain spring. The “tap” water, which no European would drink, was exquisite. It was better then any bottle water you could buy. I have never seen streams that were so clear and flowing that you could see the bottom.

Our last day in Chamonix the 4 of us decided to buy tickets to ascend the top of Mt. Blanc…all 15,000 feet above us! Again, what was I thinking? After Canyoning though, I felt like anything was possible!

Standing atop Mt. Blac was astounding. I have never in my life seen such a view, and although I felt a bit light headed and woozy, it was one of the most amazing experiences. Sadly, the day before, there was an avalanche on Mt. Blanc and killed a few people. Knowing this made it all the more shocking seeing so many climbers atop the mountain hiking and climbing around.
Words really can’t explain the magnificence of our views, please see our pictures and videos.

Andy and I had so so so much fun with so many active adventures packed in our mini- urban escape; it was so refreshing. I will end this blog by quoting myself on words I said as we packed up our car to leave Chamonix… (WARNING: this sounds extremely snobby given where we live... lol) “ Awe man… we have to go back to Paris now, that stinks!?”

Let them eat cake!

2008-08-23T16:25:00.000-07:00

With rainy weather and needing to get some personal errands done, Andy and I decided to spend most of our week venturing within our area, and decided to spend one of our days visiting Bastille fortress/jail which is about 4 blocks from our flat.

I am not quite sure what the problem was when Marie yelled “qu'ils mangent de la brioche” to the "popular class".
Given the pastries and sweets I have eaten here so far, I certainly would not have revolted against such words, especially if the cakes she was referring too were from Laduree!

Vive la Révolution!

Despite such a tumultuous history of high towered walls, rodent infested prison cells, guillotines, and gunfire, a bronze “Colonne de Juillet” (July Column), crowned by the Angel of Liberty statue to commemorate those who died in the revolutions of 1830 and 1848, now looms where this once notorious grim square was. Modern day “Bastille” is now nothing more then a huge traffic circle in the middle a diverse and lively neighborhood. (see picture)

Although Marie was imprisoned and beheaded in Conciergerie (which I will make my way to shortly), for the peasant class, the Bastille stood as a symbol of the hypocrisy and corruption of the aristocratic government, controlled mostly by nobility and clergy. The storming of Bastille marked the entry of the "popular class" into the French Revolution.

Another day was spent wondering around one of my new favorite spots (and minutes form our flat), the Marais district. Although I don’t have many pictures (yet) to exemplify how incredible this neighborhood is, take my word; it is incredible!
We are so lucky to live here.

We decided to start at the Musee Picasso, which primarily housed collections from his Blue, Pink and Cubist periods with a focus on his proficiency in the range of materials and techniques he used.
Although this was interesting because I personally didn’t realize how many mixed medias Picasso experimented with, the works themselves were “strange”. To quote Andy “ I would rather buy the art from the dealer on the square then this shit” lol. I did however view two paintings that I had never heard of or seen, and fell in love with. One was titled “Sunday” and the other, “ The Swimmer”. The museum is housed in a breathtaking old hotel, “The Hotel Sale”.

We then decided to walk around the shops, art galleries and café’s within the Marais. There are so many wonderful boutique stores, galleries and café’s here. We walked through the streets until we came to the district border where the Pompidou Centre is.

I haven’t made it into the Centre yet this trip, but it houses the Modern Art Collections. The building is incredible and so cool. The building was designed to be “inside out”. The brightly colored pipes are the actual building utility pipes that are on the outside instead of hidden and covered within the building.

Wednesday we spent back in Marais relaxing in the Place des Vosges square and park. (see pictures) Place des Vosges is amazing. It is Paris’ oldest and most beautiful square. It was once the sight of jousting tournaments. The mansions along this square housed the upper class citizens such as Moliere and Victor Hugo, who wrote Les Miserables here!

Thursday it rained all day and we decided to go to ENPC (Andy’s school) in St. Germaine. God, I love St. Germaine! After visiting Andy’s school, which is housed in a 17th century building and was home to the first engineering institute, we met with some people from his school and then had lunch (which is a minimum of 2 hours on Parisian time) in this adorable bistro nearby Café Les Deux Magots. Andy had a bowl of French onion soup and I had an avacodo salad with warm goat cheese croutons, and we each enjoyed our Café Crems. A perfect lunch for a damp, rainy day. To top the rainy day off, across from our bistro was a Laduree which I OBVIOULSY drug Andy into and ordered four mini macaroons to take home. (Side note: Some French "you know what", cut in front of me while standing in line… everyone who knows me will be shocked and proud to hear that I kept my composer and let her order (despite a few mean words mumbled under my breath). Ah… the power of Laduree.

Friday… what an interesting day. I have been reading and hearing all about this flea market type venue called Marche aux Puces de St-Quen. It is THE largest market (flea, antiques (legit), jewelry, clothes…etc.) in the world. Over 2,000 stores stretch along a 10+ mile row!

We arrived in the afternoon and I have never seen so many people in my life. It was a shit-show. The place was a dump with trashy people. The first mile or so we trekked through was filled with repetitive cheap designer-imposture clothes, sneakers, knock off ANYTHING, bong shops, and crap souvenirs.

After pushing our way through the endless crowds of the Paris “popular class” haha, we finally made it to the antique sections of the area. (Upon referencing my “Born to Shop Paris” guide that Andy loves to hate, I consulted the map and diagram of the markets layout). The antique portions were amazing and extremely expensive. Original art work and the most beautiful furniture that you would see in places like Versailles or the Versace Mansion. Ornate bronze and marble tables, huge mirrors, vases and old oil painting encased in beautiful wooden frames. I don’t know who buys this stuff, but I wish I could! This part of the market was absolutely worth the trip to see.

After an exhausting day in the market/shit-show, we made our way past the “blind” man on the street hustling tricks for money, men selling “real” Chanel glasses, KFC and McDonalds, beggars with one leg, gypsies selling counterfeit Metro tickets and an Indian women wailing out for money, onto our Metro and back home. We had a nice dinner at a neighborhood Tibetan restaurant and are now wrapping up last minute details for our weekend road trip to Chamonix/Mt. Blanc to get some fresh mountain air and possibly a wine tasting or two… stay tuned!

" Le Macaron de la Galette"

2008-08-17T16:08:00.000-07:00

(Sunday 8/17/08)

We decided to spend the day visiting Sacre-Coeur and Montmartre (which is one of my favorite sights and areas to see). To quote one of my travel books "Painters and Poets, from Picasso to Apollinaire, put the "art" in Montmartre". I just love it here!

We began by walking the famous steps up to the Sacre-Coeur (Sacred Heart) basilica. The basilica was was built as a memorial to the 58,000 French soldiers killed during the Franco-Prussian War.

After taking in the most amazing panoramic views of Paris, we paid our 5 Euro to climb the steps of the tower as well as descend into it's crypts. The climb was brutal (side note: I am not in shape at all) but once atop, the view couldn't be more beautiful. You can see the entire layout of the city and Haussmann's urban planning layout of Paris with it's long boulevards, wide streets and historic building facades. I loved seeing the gargoyles that are fixed atop Sacre-Coeur to ward off evil spirits so close, they are fascinating and intricate.

The bell tower, that we looked into from the dome, contains one of the heaviest bells in the world. It weights 19 tons!

Inside the basilica was gorgeous too. Sadly we were not allowed to take pictures. Upon entering the church, there is a large Byzantine mosaic of Christ which decorates the ceiling vault over the main alter.

We then went underneath the basilica to visit the crypts where tombs and various Saint's relics are held.

Leaving Sacre-Coeur we walked into it's neighborhood of Montmartre, which is a lively historic village with cobblestone streets, tiny gardens, cafe's, cabarets, creperies, boutiques, trendy bars and bakeries. Although it is a major tourist trap, we saw plenty of aspiring artists coming to soak up the scene and enjoy the amazing views. The film Amelie (which is one of my all-time favorites films) made this area famous too. I missed her house (and Van Gough's/brothers) but I have their locations and plan to see soon.

While wondering around the neighborhood my grumbling stomach led us (or I'd like to believe) right down a tiny little street, smack in front of THE Moulin De la Galette! I can't tell you how excited I was! The Galette was much visited and painted by famous artists like Corot, Renoir (a personal favorite), van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso (to name a few).

The history in a nutshell is that Montmartre once had more the 30 windmills, used for pressing grapes and wheat, but now Le Moulin de la Galette is one of the only remaining windmills left. In the 19th century it became a dance hall which inspired the artists I mentioned above. I have always loved Renior's version of the Galette, titled " Le Moulin De la Galette",(which is in Musee d'Orsay here in Paris) for the characters "in the moment" lively expressions. I believe most of the characters in this painting were friends of his. It was, for Renoir I feel, daily life at it's most grand.

OK back to food... so, Andy, seeing my overwhelming sense of excitement upon the relation to the paintings and this now restaurant, as well as being the best boyfriend in the world, offered to have dinner inside! The restaurants' boasting of it's Michelin Star rating also aided in the decision :)

For appetizers, we ordered a Pink Grapefruit, Crab Meat mousse with Sabayon sea urchin mayonnaise... although you can see platters on our slide show in this blog, I will leave commentating on this platter for Andy's "WTF section" of the blog.

Our meals were delicious. Andy ordered a fish (I forget the name) which was incredible; salty, buttery (two of my favorite ingredients) and I ordered a pesto pasta with wild mushrooms.

Now, to save the best for last, dessert... oh my god is all I can say. I ordered a fresh strawberry dish with buttery, yet flaky, sugared wafer-like cookies, smothered in a balsamic sugar cream. It was amazing. Andy ordered a variety of 3 creme brule's. Vanilla, coffee and a liquorice flavor, all which were accompanied with matching flavor macarons (not to be confused with a Macron or Macaroon), which has now become my latest obsession.

When Andy ordered the liquorice flavor dish, I made a "yucky" face and the waiter was taken back by my cringed-face look. Once the tray arrived I took a bite of Andy's macaron, the liquorice one upon which I shunned, and thought I was in bakery heaven! I have never tasted anything so delicious! The waiter thought this was hilarious that I suddenly "love" the liquorice macaron and told the chef, who in turn personally brought out to our table TWO more liquorice macarons for us!

Renoir beware, I am almost as inspired to paint this dam macaron and title my painting

" Le Macaron de la Galette"!

First few days.....

2008-08-16T08:48:00.000-07:00

So the first few days have been spent walking around and seeing a few sights, getting ourselves settled and comfortable, and trying not to be frugal. I've noticed the dollar gaining a little bit of ground on the euro, but at this point, it's not exactly advantageous to be a good ol' uh-mare-uh-can boy in the EU when it comes to spending....thankfully, baguettes and cheese are cheap and delicious.

Paris is beautiful....I've never seen anything like it. Around every corner is an architectural masterpiece - bridges, buildings, churches, etc....everything is on such a grand scale. You just can't build like this anymore. The lavishness of everything makes me wonder about the psyche of the Louis' and Napoleon....nevertheless, we get to reap the benefits today.

Anyway....................please take a look at the picture above. What the fuck?

Seriously, your city is unbelievable. I know it's a fashion capital, which explains the eccentricities of grandmothers with bright red hair, 60 year old men with nose piercings and mohawks, and the array of hipsters rebelling against "the man". I think it's great. I love diversity....and I can take what I like and leave what I don't. To each their own.

But between all of the major roads are beautiful gardens and lines of trees. There are statues and benches....but there are also weirdos sleeping right where I would like to sit. And I know every city has it's homeless, but in Paris, they take the good spots. The guy in the picture particularly pissed me off. I honestly thought he was dead for about 15 minutes while we sat and had cappuccinos from a cafe across the street. It turns out that he was just passed out, which we learned when he lifted his head and an empty bottle of wine rolled down the hill....

Cheers,

Andy

Arrival

2008-08-15T10:59:00.000-07:00

Bonjour!

Andy, Marcello and I have arrived safe and sound and are loving it here already. Our apartment is adorable and in a fun neighborhood. We are a block away from the Republic Metro and have a ton of cafe's, bars and little shops all in close walking distance to us. What makes me most happy about our location is the man in the Crepe cart on our corner. For 2 EURO I get a hot butter/sugar crepe and a free French lesson (as he humorously corrects Andy and I).

We just got our internet up-and-running today as well as buying cell phones, so we are still trying to adjust with everything. Just going to the Monoprix (super-supermarket) can be a challenge, as we discovered trying to purchase dishwashing detergent.

We are going to start doing our shopping at a local open market about 2 blocks from us where everything is much cheaper then the supermarket, plus that just feels like the proper French thing to do. ;)

Everyone has been kind and helpful and most people speak English well enough to understand our ignorant ways of pointing and hand gestures as to ask for something...ugh... we keep working on Rosetta Stone to remedy this sooner then later.

I am pleased to report that my diet of dairy products is in full swing and I am loving it! Anyone who has been to Europe can attest that there is something so special and delicious about European dairy verse ours. The yogurt alone is to die for! I think they use cream instead of milk (side note: I am not claiming this diet healthy); it is so rich and just wonderful. I also found a flavor which is vanilla yogurt mixed with thin chocolate shavings in it. I eat one before bed. I am officially gross now.

The cappuccino's are delicious here and I make a point to have one in the morning, although the obvious realization that is costs much less to buy espresso and make it ourselves has set in today, so we will be brewing our own at home. The cafe's are adding up fast! The French apparently aren't big on the whole foam atop the cappuccino thing, but they make up for that with chocolate shavings and a piece of chocolate on my saucer. I am a happy girl here.

Paris has this awesome bike share (like Philly car share) that is huge over here. Andy's mom actually told us about it and she was right on! We are going to try and get bikes this weekend and ride around as the weather is perfect. It is in the low to mid 70's and at night it gets into the low 60's...cute scarf and coat weather for me! Its funny too, for Paris being the fashion capital of the world (not stepping on any Milanese toes which I personally rank #1), I have to say everyone is quite casual and unique. The uniqueness I love best. People are dressed every which way and yet look great! I'm not sure how this works over here and not in the US. I'll work on uncovering that secret later. No one just picks up the latest fashion trend from a Vogue magazine and wears it like it is their own. They accessorize it; that is key. I love not seeing the typical cookie cutter fashions that are prevalent in Rittenhouse Sq. I love the creativity here; people are actually themselves. Andy is actually out shopping now for a skin tight black turtleneck, tight factory spray painted jeans, a fohawk haircut, a razor for his mustache and most important, French cologne, upon which he will douse himself in.

Au Revoir!