Paris

Again & Again & Again

If you follow me on social media you would have seen I recently packed my bags and hit the skies for, you guessed it, Paris. It is hard not to return time and time again and as if the croissants weren’t calling me enough I had the extra excuse of attending the Christian Dior, The Designer of Dreams exhibition to make the trip even more worthwhile.

The first thing I have to say is that I’m getting better and better at this packing light business. What helped this time was the fact that I treated myself to one of those hard-case wheelie suitcases. Small enough to use as cabin/hand luggage and big enough to pack clothes, shoes, make-up and all the other bits and bobs you may need for a short break. This has nothing to do with Paris of course but if you are like me and need choice when on holidays, even for four days it is nice to have the room to pack a few options without worrying about weight and what to put everything in.

Ok let’s get to the good bits; Paris in the autumn. It was a lovely time to stroll the streets and stroll we did. I always try to do Paris by foot. For me, it’s the best way to see the city and this trip was no different. Thankfully after all that strolling we were able to rest our weary heads in a beautiful, quirky, comfortable tiny apartment near Canal Saint Martin. It was a great choice for our base in Paris and I couldn’t recommend it enough.

Let’s talk food. This trip actually turned into a bit of a foodie break which was a lovely surprise given my constant nausea. Croissants are always top of my list and if there is ever a time that I indulge in pure heavenly goodness it is in Paris stuffing my face with croissants. We had a choice of two mind-blowing boulangeries at our door step. The older of the two, Du Pain Et Des Idées was something so elegantly theatrical in its decor and the edible goodies the stars of the show. The newer boulangerie of the two, Liberté in complete contrast is a sleek, modern establishment with queues of customers out the door. Seriously spoilt for choice!

Before leaving I had looked at a few places to eat thanks to Culture Trip. Often after a day of walking I can be rather indecisive and get to that point of eating almost anything and being disappointed that I didn’t plan the evening better. Not this time. Every meal was a success. We stayed local most nights thanks to the abundance of cafés and bars in the neighbourhood. We found an amazing pizza restaurant close by and even managed to get a table without a reservation. I thank bubs and my late afternoon nap for this. We often headed out early for dinner and it worked in our favour as it seems no one else eats dinner at 6:30pm. The pizzas were delicious and as a vegetarian I was happy to see more than one option available and the decor was divine. Da Graziella is worth a visit for both food and surroundings.

Something a little less fancy but in no way less tasty is Maoz Vegetarian Restaurant. Mr B and I visit this establishment every time we visit Paris and sometimes more than once. Cheap, tasty and if you’re smart you will pile up your falafel sandwich with all the extra toppings so much so that not even two hands can hold it all together. Better still if the weather permits take your over-flowing falafel sandwich to the nearby park to battle the pigeons and gaze at Notre Dame.

I don’t know if things are changing in Paris or if it was the area we stayed in but I was happy to see many cafés and restaurants taking a vegan, organic approach to food. Even though I was only generally interested in croissants and fresh baguettes I was really spoilt for choice and there were more places to eat than we had time for. A good problem indeed.

I apologise for the lack of photographs but I decided as much as possible when it came to food to put the camera away, soak up my surroundings and fully enjoy every mouthful. I took a slightly different approach when it came to visiting The Musée des Arts Décoratifs and Christian Dior, The Designer of Dreams. That deserves a post all unto itself!