Actually, we ended up really enjoying the apartment and were very grateful for the unsolicited discount. The location could not have been better, half a block from Place des Voges, with the 96 bus on the corner and the 69 bus 2 blocks away. The Bastille and St Paul metro stops were about a 5 minute walk, so there was great transportation options very close by.

The apartment itself was very spacious, especially by Parisian standards. The kitchen has everything we could possibly need, including a separate clothes dryer that dried much better than the combination units we have had previously. The free wifi worked seamlessly, even with 4 laptops/ipads using it at the same time (hey, technology is a wonderful thing ~ we didn't have to talk to each other all night if we didn't want to, lol). We had free phone calls to North America which made it easy to keep in touch with our daughter and son. There was a nice flat screen TV which we hardly ever turned on since we were much too busy either being out or on the internet.

The bedrooms were very big and the beds were comfortable. The bathroom was also big by European standards and we never ran out of hot water, even with 4 adults taking showers every day.

I would happily rent this apartment again, especially if we came with our daughter and grandson, since one of the bedrooms has 2 twin beds. The location and extra conveniences can't be beat.

At the end of the day, we felt that David, our landlord, was very nice to offer us that discount. Our only inconvenience was not being able to open our bedroom windows, which wasn't that big an issue since it got rather cool at night anyways. There was construction noise that began at about 8am on weekdays, but that just ensured we got up and got going! There were 2 big windows in the living room/dining room and one in the kitchen that let in sun and a breeze, so we didn't feel like the apartment wasn't bright or airy enough.

We did find that the apartment could use some freshening up. The couch and chair in the living room have seen better days and even a slip cover would make them look better. The decor is faded, the wood floors could be refinished and it could be spruced up as a whole to give a better impression when you walk in for the first time, but in the end, we were very comfortable there and you get used to the quirks and shortcomings after a few days. David is a very nice guy who is very busy with his work and raising 2 little kids, so I don't think he spends as much time and money on the apartment as he could, but that just means that the rent is reasonable for a place of this size with this location. You are not getting top of the line, but you are not paying top of the line prices, either!

The true test is would we rent this apartment again and the answer is yes. In fact, we hope to do so in 2 years time when we come back with Sebastian.

Jo

We made our way back to the garment district for our 1pm reservation at Frenchies, a tiny bistro on rue du Nil near rue Montorgeuil. This restaurant, recently featured on an episode of No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain, has become one of the hardest tables to book in Paris and it's only through my pig headed stubborness and dozens of phone calls to Paris from home that I managed to snag a lunch reservation about 1 week before we left. It certainly was worth the wait. The place seats about 30 people in total and the chef changes the menu on a daily basis depending on what's fresh. There were 2 choices each for entree, main dish and dessert. Den had the tomato salad, which was bursting with fresh, light flavour. I had the grilled calamari served with thin slices of dakon radish and tiny sliced green beans. We both had the gnocchi with lamb and olives for our main dish and it was the lightest, airiest gnocchi I have ever had and I have 2 Italian sister-in-laws! Den is still raving about this dish. We decided on cafe gourmand for dessert. We had good espressos with a little spice cake that was nice, it just didn't wow like everything else we had. Our table neighbours had the panna cotta and the moans coming from both mother and daughter indicated we made the wrong choice for dessert. Lunch was 28 euros for 3 courses, a great value for the quality and inventiveness of the ingredients we were given. The chef was gracious enough to sign my lunch menu and I told him I would sell it on eBay one day. He told me I'd make more money by making reservations and selling those. We also heard another diner tell the chef that he had dined at Per Se and French Laundry in the US and that his meal at Frenchies had been better than either of those! After lunch, we decided to walk to Parc Monceau in the 8th, but we got sidetracked along the way with some shopping along the grand boulevard Hausseman. Instead, we walked towards La Concorde so we could take Line 1 of the metro which drops us off a few blocks from our apartment.

We relaxed a few hours and got ready for dinner at Josephine Chez Dumonet, a traditional bistro in the 6th. We took the 96 bus again right at the door, going in the opposite from our trip to Belleville yesterday. Josephine is a very busy place and I had made reservations a few days before, knowing that this was not a place you just walk into. Again, we saw people turned away during our meal. SInce it was such a nice balmy evening (especially for October and especially for Canadians!), we asked for a table outside. Initially, they told us they were all reserved and led us to a table in the back room, but then our waiter decided he could give us an outside table after all and took us back to the front of the restaurant. We were very happy at this kind gesture and told him so.

Josephine serves traditional French cuisine in huge portions. We had been warned about the size of the portions, so we decided to split both an entree and a dessert. We had the foie gras to start and were each served a huge slab. There was probably about a quarter pound of foie gras on each plate and we were deliriously happy not to have to skimp on how much we slathered on our little slices of toasted bread. Next came Den's cassoulet in a large cast iron pot which could have served at least 2 people and my chateaubriand, serve blue rare with a mound of thinly sliced potatoes and a simple green salad. Both meals were great comfort food, which while not breaking any food boundaries or reinventing any recipes, served exactly the purpose they were supposed to ~ give the diner traditional French cuisine in a very comfortable setting. Our waiters were funny and friendly and professional. We had ordered our dessert, the famous Grand Marnier souffle, at the same time as the rest of our meal, and it came to the table steaming hot, huge and pillowy and was served with a little glass of Grand Marnier to pour over the souffle. It was soooo good and the perfect end to a huge, delicious meal. We took the metro back home but we really should have walked our meal off. Oh well, we'll walk tomorrow..........

Our last full day in Paris was the most beautiful fall day I've seen in a long time. Sunshine and 25 degrees brought out most of Paris and the streets were packed with Parisians and tourists taking advantage of one of the last nice days of the year. We had decided that we had done enough running around during our trip and we were going to relax and spend most of the day at Jardin Luxembourg enjoying the warmth, the sunshine, the beautiful fall colours and the great people watching. We walked from our apartment down rue Rivoli for one last time and crossed over to the 6th and meandered to the park, getting there around 1pm. We found some chairs near the pond and just sat and napped and read and napped and took in all the scenery, the couples and families and friends strolling and playing and relaxing. We had some baguettes in the park for lunch and happened upon an orchestra playing a free concert as we were about to leave, so we stayed an extra hour listening to movie themes, including the theme from the Godfather. It was the perfect end to a perfect stay in Paris and we left the park around 5pm. We walked back though the 5th and strolled along the Seine near Notre Dame, listening to the church bells peal and enjoying our last hours in the city we have grown to love. We didn't want the day to end, the sunshine was still streaming warmth past 6pm and we finally made it back to the apartment around 6:30.

We had made reservations at Au Vieux Comptoir, a wine bar we had enjoyed last year in the 1st, but we really weren't up to another huge meal after our food orgy of the past few weeks. We decided to stay in the area and just walk around and see what tempted us. The streets and terraces were stilled filled with people enjoying a beautiful Saturday and we ended up at Les Fous d'en Face on place Bourg Tibourg. We both had salmon for dinner, which was very good, nice and moist and flavourful, served with rice and steamed veggies. Our last dessert was brown sugar creme brulee for me and a slab of chocolate cake in a pool of creme anglaise for Den. You can see that our reserve to have a sensible meal ended at dessert, but it was our last one in Paris, so it's understandable, isn't it! We walked slowly back to the apartment and finished our packing. Morning came way too early, our shuttle drove us to CDG uneventfully and the flight home was too long and boring.

So comes to an end another wonderful trip to Paris, cementing our love for this city of beauty and light, great food and wine, unbelievable architecture, tiny cobbled streets and grand boulevards, large manicured green spaces and densely packed city areas. We can't wait to bring our grandson Sebastian here in 2 years and show him this majestic city. Until then, Paris, je t'aime.............

Dinner was spectacular, but I never expect any less from Mr Rose. His new place in the 1st is a shiny jewel with the open kitchen as the centerpiece, where diners can watch the master at work. Despite all his wild success, Daniel remains calm, humble, sweet, witty and dedicated to giving people the freshest ingredients in the most imaginable ways possible. There are 3 floors ~ the main floor which houses the kitchen and main dining room, the first basement level with the newly opened wine bar, and the second basement level which stores all the carefully chosen wines in a controlled cellar.

We were warmly welcomed by Daniel, who recognized us from our previous encounters (he even remembered meeting me and my daughter outside the Spring boutique in May!). we met Mr and Mrs AiP just a moment later and got the party started! We were joined by friends of AiP since my friends had to cancel dinner with us at the last minute. Conversation flowed like we had known everyone for years and we really enjoyed meeting people from such varied backgrounds and experiences.

The food......ah, what can I say about the food except that it was magnificent. Daniel has this knack for putting things together that shouldn't really go together, but they just do. (I will apologize for the lack of detail in my course descriptions. I was having too much fun talking with AiP and the rest of our tablemates to take notes, as was Den, who never even thought of taking out the camera.) The first course was a medley of fall mushrooms in a foam with pomegranate seeds ~ it was a revelation of autumn flavours, earthy and meaty and just delicious. We then had a huge shrimp in a tempura type batter served with a carpaccio of fish underneath. Very fresh and light. Our main meal was veal sweetbreads and tete de veau with a variety of radishes and parsnips in a wonderful sauce. This was my introduction to sweetbreads and what a revelation it was ~ they were slightly crispy on the outside and meltingly tender on the inside. I will be looking for them on menus from now on. We then shared a fantastic cheese course which including a selection of about 6-7 different cheeses, including brebis, roquefort, brie de Meaux, cantale and a very runny Epoisse, which was almost orgasmic!

We were then served 3 dessert courses ~ apple with thyme ice cream, chocolate quenelle with a salted caramel sauce, and an olive oil ganache on a little pool of mures reduction ~ needless to say, they were all delicious and sinful and I think I dreamt about them last night!

We shared 3 bottles of fantastic wine (1 white and 2 reds, and unfortunately I don't know anything about them except that they were expensive and delicious!) Our meal lasted almost 4 hours and time flew by as we were consumed with great food and conversation. Daniel served us one last little morsel of fun, 2 tiny squares of graham crackers with something runny and yummy in between. We were the last ones to leave Spring at a little past midnight and I can honestly say that this was, once again, the culinary highlight of our trip. This place is such a contradiction ~ it's both a temple of high culinary offerings and a fun, down to earth joint where one can relax and just enjoy the taste sensations that keep coming.

AiP, it was a treat meeting you and D and sharing a table and an evening with your friends. A la prochaine!

Den and I realized we hadn't had our fallafel fix yet, so we walked over to l'As du Fallafel where there was almost no line up (!) and devoured those huge sandwiches on the sidewalk along with everyone else. Well sated, we took the bus to the 9th where we spend the early afternoon just walking around, enjoying rue des Martyrs again and where I decided on the spur of the moment to have my hair cut! Sporting my new Parisian head, we then met our friends at a franchise bar on rue de Clichy (they were already there and I'm too ashamed to name it ~ suffice it to say our 2 cocktails cost us 20 euros!) We then walked over to the Musee Erotique, a very, ahem, different type of museum. We spent about 90 minutes giggling and pointing at the very candid exhibits and even watched some snippets of really old pornographic films which made us realize there really is nothing new in sex! We then took the metro home and Den and I got ready for our dinner at Spring. Jo and Luc had decided not to join us and I had asked our dining companion from Slow Travel/Chowhound to see if she could find 2 people to join us for our table of 6. This being one of the hardest tables to book in Paris, she had no problem getting 2 wonderfully interesting foodies to join us. (There will be a separate entry on our meal as Daniel's brilliance deserves its own space.)

Thursday morning came too fast and our friends had a 10:15 Eurostar to London to catch. After many hugs and kisses and cries of "We'll always have Paris", Den and I were left on our own for our last 3 days. We had made plans with a fellow poster on another Paris website, Our Paris Forum, to give us a tour of various parts of Belleville. I had made reservations at La Baratin since we would already be in the area and off Den and I went on the 96 bus which is right outside our door. We got off in lower Belleville and spent the late morning wandering around, exploring this very working class, but no less fascinating part of Paris. Our lunch at Le Baratin was really good. This tiny cafe on a tinier street is owned by an Argentinian female chef who has built up a well deserved reputation for delicious, reasonably priced and down to earth cuisine. There's lots of great wine available by the glass and there's a cute little cat who rules the roost and goes to sit by whoever shares a morsel with it. Lunch is 16 euros for 3 courses. We started with a beet salad and a slab of foie gras (which was a 10 euro supplement but since we hadn't had fois gras in a few days, we were powerless to resist!). Den had the skate with capers and parboiled potatoes for his main and I had a delicious stew of lamb (it was the neck, but as strange as that sounds, it was so tender and melt in your mouth) on a bed of citrus flavoured rice. Dessert was a decent creme caramel and the asmosphere was of old world Paris with nary a tourist in sight. Full of deliciousness, we continued to wander Belleville until we made our way to our meeting place with Peter, who has been coming to Paris for years by himself for 3-4 days at a time. He was a wonderful tour guide who showed us the Mouzaia area, parts of Buttes Chaumont which we had failed to discover on our walk last year, the beautiful view from the top of Parc Belleville and the wonderfully wacky rue Desnoyers, where graffiti artists have covered both sides of a long alleyway with their distinctive works of art. Peter shared a lot of history and fun facts with us over the 3 hours we spent with him and time flew as we discovered a part of Paris few tourists will ever see. It was so nice of him to give us part of his precious time in Paris to give us this introduction to Belleville and we will always treasure this day and meeting such a sweet, generous person. Den really loved rue Desnoyers and took many pictures and videos of the artists at work. We ended up at a very cool bar on the corner where we all shared a beer and enjoyed the great people watching. 3 beer cost us less than half of what we had paid for our cocktails on rue de Clichy the day before, proving that Paris doesn't have to be expensive if you are willing to live, eat and drink as regular Parisians do.

After saying our goodbyes to Peter, we took the metro back to the Marais and had dinner at Breizh Cafe, a creperie I had wanted to try after reading many great reviews. It was the perfect way to end our long day of walking ~ it was in the neighbourhood and it was good, simple and relatively inexpensive. I devoured 6 wonderful oysters for my appetizer and Den had a small crepe entry with the Bordier seaweed butter that Daniel Rose introduced us to last year. I had a mushroom, ham and cheese buckwheat crepe for dinner and Den had the Normandy one (sorry, I can' remember the ingredients, which is why I really should blog as we go along!). We shared a bottle of cider during our meal and a Dame Poire crepe for dessert. The place was full and again we saw people being turned away, proving that you should make a little bit of an effort in researching and reserving restaurants if you want to ensure you eat really well in Paris. Contrary to popular belief, it's easy to eat very badly in Paris, especially if you don't get away from the heavily populated tourist areas.

We strolled back home, delighted with our day of discovering a new arrondissement of Paris and meeting a wonderful new friend.

We decided to go our separate ways on Monday ~ Jo wasn't feeling well and they both needed a day of rest from my relentless walking tour! Den and I decided to walk to the Galeries Lafayette shopping area and we took our time walking through the 2nd and 9th arrondissements, seeking out new little streets and sights along the way. Lafayette is as impressive as ever with the beautiful stained glass ceiling and the encircling balustrades. We took our time looking around, not really shopping for anything (my wallet runs more towards rue d'Alessia than les grands magasins Hausseman!) but I did see a little diamond bracelet valued at 131,000 euros that caught my eye, but since I didn't let Den buy any Ferraris at the car show, he wouldn't let me splurge on this eye candy! We had lunch at the cafeteria on the 6th floor (ah, Paris, where the wine comes out of a dispenser and costs less than Den's ice tea! You wonder why I love this city!). Calling this a cafeteria is like calling Notre Dame a church ~ it really doesn't do it any justice. There were dozens of fresh food options, even more decadend dessert choices and did I mention the wine was available from a soft drink dispenser! The seating area offers wonderful views of Paris and we enjoyed a great lunch and a nice rest. We then went up to the terrace where Den took his multitude of pictures of Paris laid out before us. We spent the rest of the afternoon at the food emporium across the street, buying overpriced treats and salivating over all the different offerings. We took the metro back where we joined up with Luc and Jo, who was feeling much better. After catching up over drinks in the apartment, we decided to go for a walk to enjoy the bracing evening air. We walked in the Northern Marais, enjoying the little streets, bars and cafes and all the people just walking around. We stopped at a brasserie on the corner of Bretagne and Turenne where Luc had steak frites and Den and I shares a veggie bruschetta. Of course, we had some wine and then we ambled home around midnight.

Tuesday morning saw us go our separate ways again ~ Jo & Luc were leaving on Thursday morning and they had some major shopping to do before they left. Den and I decided to wander over to the left bank and just do some more exploring. We stopped on Ile St Louis for some shopping (didn't buy anything but had fun looking) and I decided we would try to have lunch at Les Papilles if we could. We were very lucky that they had space for us with no reservation (we saw them turn away at least 10 people after we were seated). This is a small wine bar/bistro in the 5th that has a very well deserved reputation for good cuisine du marche. The walls are covered with wine bottles offered for sale at retail prices plus a 7 euro corkage fee. The chef offers a different menu every day depending on what is fresh that day. We both opted for just the marmite of the day instead of a 3 course lunch. The chef had made a superb veal osso bucco with fall vegetables (including roasted garlic gloves, what a treat!) in a rich demi-glace sauce. The portion was more than enough for both of us and the veal was fall off the bone tender. Of course, we both scooped out the rich marrow and spread it over our bread. Although we were both full from this delicious comfort food, we couldn't resist the rice pudding served with stewed apples and salted caramel sauce. Den wouldn't share, so we both ordered one and managed to put away both portions quite nicely. It was soooooo good. We had a half litre of the house red which went very nicely with the veal. We really enjoyed our lunch and I would like to return for dinner one day for the full meal.

We had to walk off our meal so we ambled over to the Luxembourg Gardens for a while and then decided to walk to the Rodin Museum, just to sit in the gardens and enjoy a coffee. This is one of the best deals in Paris, you can enter the gardens for just 1 euro and see some of Rodin's masterpieces in a very regal garden setting. We took the metro back and joined up with our friends for a casual dinner at Pizza Momo on rue St Antoine. We had been there last week and were all in the mood for something easy and fun. We then walked over to Pom Canelle on Ile St Louis for desserts that none of us needed. Full to the gills, we decided we need to walk some more and Jo and Luc really wanted to stroll down the Champs Elysees before they left, so we took the metro to the Arc de Triomphe and joined the thousands of people still out at 11pm on a Tuesday night on this very busy, very touristy boulevard. It was a fun, kitschy end to our day.

We relaxed a while in the apartment and got ready for our dinner at Nomiya, the temporary restaurant atop the Palais de Tokyo. I had lunch here with my daughter in May and so enjoyed the experience that when they extended the term of the restaurant for another year, I vowed I would try to make reservations for the four of us. You can only reserve on the internet one month ahead of time. Reservations open at 10am Paris time so I got up at 4am our time on 4 different occasions but was unable to snag our places. I then began to check the website 7-8 times a day looking for cancellations and found one about 3 weeks before we left!

The restaurant is rectangle-shaped and only seats 12. The kitchen is part of the space and you can watch and interact with the chef as he cooks your dinner. The meal is 100 euros per person and includes champagne, wine, 7 courses, water and coffee. Oh, and it also includes the most spectacular view of the Eiffel Tower which is directly across the Seine from the restaurant. Our waiter told us that the meal is meant to be enjoyed with all our senses, including the sight of the Tower, which is why we were surrounded by windows. We are also part of the display as the restaurant is lit up with bluish lights which are visible from below and which draw people's attention as they walk along the Seine.

We got to know our table mates which included 2 couples from Paris, a couple from Boston and a couple from Australia. Everyone was so happy to be there and it was a very relaxed, comfortable atmosphere. Our good looking waiter set the tone for the meal and ensured everyone had a wonderful evening.

We began with tiny beef filets which had been marinated for 24 hours and were served raw. They were so tender, they melted in your mouth and I was sad they were just the amuse bouche as I would have gladly eaten a plate of them! Our first course was crusted foie gras served with a fig chutney and a slice of pink beet. The foie gras was creamy and the sweet chutney was a perfect foil for the unctuous meat. We were then served scallops with some type of jelly and powdered lobster roe (sorry, by this time, the champagne and wine were starting to take their toll and I kind of lost track of some of the food descriptions!). The scallops were raw, kind of cerviche style and were so creamy and light. The waiter kept pouring the wine a volonte and everyone was starting to feel more comfortable with each other and getting to know their neighbours. Our main course was a large white fish filet pan fried (again, can't remember which type of fish except that it was really good!). It was served with tiny potatoes, a carrot emulsion and broccoli. Next came the cheese plate (you guessed it, can't remember which kind, except it was a hard orange cheese thinly sliced and served with fresh figs. The fig theme was continued with a wonderful fig sorbet to clear our palate and we were then served a dark chocolate cake with a rum ganache in a salted caramel sauce (funny how I can remember the dessert details, isn't it!!). Perfect espressos finished the meal and by this time, we were all friends and talking and laughing as if we had known each other for years. We got to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle for us 3 times during the meal and it truly was an experience I will never forget. Everyone lingered and had some more wine and we finally left a little before midnight. This was one of the highlights of our trip for me and I'm so happy I was able to share it with my hubby and our best friends.

We took things easy on Monday, walking through the 2nd towards Galleries Lafayette. We had lunch at the 6th floor cafeteria and enjoyed another great view of Paris. We spent too much money at the food emporium downstairs and were home by 5pm, for a relaxing glass of wine and some blogging. Not sure what tonight holds for us, we may just take it easy and stay in and recharge our batteries for the rest of the week.

When we last left our heros and heroines, they had just had a wonderful meal at La Grande Cascade to celebrate Den's 50th birthday. Thursday morning dawned grey and rainy but no matter ~ we have a tour of the Gerard Mulot patisserie at 10am through Meeting the French. We took the metro to the Glaciere stop in the 13th and walked one block to the bakery. This is a wonderful tour of the macaron and chocolate making facilities for all 3 Mulot bakeries. At 12 euros, it's one of the best bargains available in Paris, in my opinion.

We went into the back room to meet Patrick, who has been making macarons for Mr Mulot for over 25 years. He showed us how the process is still done mostly by hand, including the mixing of the macaron covers. The different flavours come from the inside filling and the covers just taste of almond paste, no matter what colours they are. We got to sample the 2 flavours they were making that morning, lemon and orange cinnamon. We then went into the chocolate making room, which is a lot smaller than you would think. Antoine is the very handsome chocolate master and he explained the different sources of chocolate to us and gave us samples from the different regions of the world. He also showed us how they make pralines and ganaches and offered us samples of these delicious little morsels. These hand made chocolates take up to 2 days to make which explains the high cost of the finished product. At the end of our tour, we were given little boxes with 4 Mulot treats.

We decided to walk down rue d'Alessia, a street full of outlet and destockage stores and look for bargains........and bargains we found! I got a beautiful spring/fall coat as did Jo and I also got a few cool tops to wear with my Guess jean leggings. We stopped for a baguette lunch to fortify ourselves and then walked through Montparnasse and onto Luxembourg Gardens, stopping for a little drink at an outside cafe to enjoy the sunshine which had replaced our rainy day sometimes in the late mornings. We sat and enjoyed the Gardens for about an hour and then walked slowly back to the apartment, picking up some fresh pasta and sauce to make an easy dinner in after our feast of the night before. We walked for about 7 hours today, through the 13th, 14th, 5th and 4th arrondissements and were all in bed by 10pm, tired but happy with our day.

Friday morning came very fast. We had an 8am train to Reims so we were up and out the door by 7:15. We made our train with minutes to spare and were in Reims before 9am. This was another day of walking and shopping, much to our surprise. We had come to Reims for the beautiful cathedral and a tour of Veuve Cliquot but were surprised to see all the great shopping to be had. We spend most of the morning getting some great bargains, stopping for lunch at a tiny middle eastern place for some grilled lamb and chicken plates with bulgar, salad and fries ~ not the lunch I was envisioning in the Champagne capital of the world, but it sure hit the spot! We decided to walk to the other end of town for our tour of Veuve Cliquot and got there about 30 minutes early.

We had a wonderful tour of the chalk caves and our guide gave us lots of history on Mme Cliquot, who was one of the first business women of her time. We learned how champagne is made and how the bottles are rotated and stored and then we had a tasting of La Grande Dame, the vintage that was created to celebrate Mme Cliquot.

After our tour, we walked back to the center of town and visited the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral. This church is massive and full of history, including the baptism of Pope Clovis and the coronation of almost all the kings and queens of France for over 1000 years. The Chagall windows alone are worth a trip, the blues and reds are so intense and the scenes so moving, I just sat there for about 10 minutes staring at them.

We walked slowly back to the train station and had a drink before boarding our 6:45 train back to Paris. I love train travel, it's so relaxing and comfortable. We were back in the city by 7:30 and it had started raining. We were hungry and decided to stop at the Leon de Bruxelles near La Bastille for some moules frits. It was just the right meal for a group of hungry, tired people laden down with shopping bags! We were back in the apartment by around 11pm, very happy with our daytrip to Reims.

We all slept in on Saturday morning and didn't get out until almost 2pm! We really needed to catch up on our rest and recharge our batteries. We decided to go to the 2010 Mondial de L'Automobile at the exhibit hall at La Porte de Versailles. This is a massive car show that is only on once every 2 years. Even if you don't like cars, it's worth going to see the spectacular displays the different auto makers put on, each one trying to outdo the other. All the luxury brands are here, including Mercedes, BMW, Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborguini, Lotus, Bentely, Rolls Royce as well as the regular cars for the rest of us! Den was excited to see the Mini Cooper exhibit and to sit in one of these very cool little cars. I think this may be our next car purchase.

We stayed until almost 7:30 and took the metro back. We again decided to have dinner before heading back to the apartment since we were all hungry. We were lucky to snag an outside table at Pizza Momo, a little place on rue St Antoine that Den and I have been to twice before. It's been around for 30 years and does a brisk business in takeout pizzas. Our waiter told us the pizza guy makes about 300 pizzas a day, one at a time in the little antiquated wood burning oven. We had pizza and pasta and wine and dessert, and enjoyed the people watching on this very busy street, made even busier because this was Nuit Blanche. Crowds of people were strolling around, making their plans to see the art exhibits that are only up until the wee hours of the morning. We walked back to the apartment after dinner to get rid of our bags and purses and were back out on the streets, excited to take part of this once a year extravaganza. The weather was just perfect for walking and the streets were filled with people looking for the displays. Hotel de Ville was all lit up with sayings in different languages, there was a long line up to get into Notre Dame which we opted out of and there was a fantastic light and music display on the bridge between Ile la Cite and Ile St Louis. I think there were hundreds of thousands of people walking around, and it was a very unique, special experience that I was really happy to take part in. We walked back through the little streets of Le Marais and saw several smaller displays on the way home. We were back by 1am, not having the stamina to stay up all night but thrilled to have been part of it all anyways.

We have dinner at Nomiya tonight and will probably just walk around the area and take it easy today. It's a beautiful sunny day and we will take full advantage of it.

Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone!

The Canal has 9 locks, 1 single and 8 double locks. You rise 27 metres from the Seine to the end of the canal at La Villette. You also go through a fairly long tunnel with holes in the ceilings along the way that let in some light. These make for very dramatic pictures. We all had a lot of fun on the cruise, even though it does get long sometimes, especially going through the locks. We decided to walk back along the canal, stopping for coffees and then lunch at different little cafes along the way. It was a nice, leisurely walk on a warm sunny fall day. We took our time and did some shopping along the way, getting back to the apartment around 5:30pm.

We had some champagne to start celebrating Den's birthday early and got ready for dinner. I called a taxi to pick us up outside the apartment but it never showed up, so we walked down to rue St Antoine and hailed one on the street, and so we were a little late for our 8pm reservation.

La Grande Cascade is a Michelin 1 star restaurant in Bois de Boulogne way up in the 16th. It is very old world and ornately decorated with chandeliers, gilt mirrors, silver cutlery and beautiful china place settings. We were warmly welcomed by the maitre d and seated at a large window-side table for 4. One of the many wonderful waiters rolled up the champagne cart and we started Den's 50th birthday celebration with some very nice pink champagne.

We all chose from the Menu du Marche, which includes 3 courses, 2 glasses of wine, mineral water, coffee and all taxes and service for 85 euros. This is an excellent way to enjoy a wonderful dinner without worrying about extra costs, especially in a place like this where dinner could easily run to 300-500 euros per person.

All of our courses were sublime. I had shrimp with a leek mousse for my entree and Den has the foie gras de canard with a fig confit and a sangria gelee. Both courses were delicious, but I think Den's foie gras was the winner. Mine was good, but I found there was not enough contrast in taste and texture to make it stand out. The foie gras was so creamy and light and the sangria gelee just added that extra something.

Den has the veal roast with a side of mediterranean vegetables and I had the white tune medaillons crusted with a phyllo pastry and served with a sesame and acacia honey sauce. I think mine was the winner this time ~ the tuna was served rare like I has asked for and the sweet sauce was such a perfect compliment to the fish.

We both had the Baba Ivre de Rhum with a mango and caramel ice cream. I found it a little rich but Den loved it and scooped up every drop. Coffee and a little trio of mignardise finished off the meal.

I have to mention the wonderful serving staff. I did a lot of research to try to find the perfect place to celebrate Den's birthday. I wanted somewhere that would provide an exceptional food experience that we would long remember without a stuffy atmosphere. La Grande Cascade kept coming up on several food websites as a place that would fit the bill. We were delighted with the waiters who went out of their way to make us feel comfortable and ensure that we enjoyed the special night we had come for. The level of service was certainly up to Michelin star standards, with 4-6 people serving our food at a time, but the staff was friendly and professional at the same time, joking with us and encouraging Den to take as many pictures of our meal as he wanted. No one made us feel less than very special customers even though we ordered from the prix fixe menu. This is a place I would recommend to anyone who wants to experience a wonderful meal in a very special setting and who might feel intimidated by the grandeur of such a place. No worries ~ we were made to feel welcomed from our first moments right until the very end when they called a taxi for us and escorted us out, thanking us for giving them the opportunity to take care of us!

We were back in the apartment a little after midnight, full of delicious food and wonderful memories!

We decided to walk back down rue Mauberge towards rue Blanche to go visit Denise's temple of chocolat. We happened upon a tiny little massage place callled Le Lotus de Jade which has a special on for 60 minute massages for 35 euros. One of the tiny Asian women saw us looking at their window and came out to hand us a flyer and told us they could take us both right now if we wanted. This was the furthest thing on our minds this morning, but we both looked at each other and thought, why not! Den and I go for regular massages due to his generous benefits package at Kraft and we really enjoy them. We have been walking so much in Paris that we thought this would be a welcome break to our routine and it was! Their technique was very different from the massages we get in Canada but it was sooooooooo good! We left relaxed and ready to conquer the world.........well, conquer Paris, anyways!

We explored a bit more of the 9th, including rue Vicent Masse which is full of guitar and music stores. We got some guitar picks for our son and took pictures of a beautiful stained glass mural housing a private apartment building. We made our way to A L'Etoile D'or, Denise Acabo's temple of all things chocolate. We were here last year and Den had vowed to come back. Denise is a 60 something lady who dresses in schoolgirl checkered skirts and wears pigtails and is the very picture of someone who truly loves what she does. She only sells what she loves and the offerings in her store are the very best chocolates and sweets money can buy. We spend almost 50 euros on her decadent offerings and feel priviledged to be able to do so. Her enthusiasm is contagious and her happiness at what she does is shared by everyone who enters her domain.

We then decided to explore the little streets of Montmartre, staying far away from touristy Place du Tretre. We had cafe creme at a place in front of Square J RIctus with an awesome view of Paris down below. We wandered the streets and alleys of Montmartre for over an hour, finding Square Dalida, Le Moulin des Galettes and the Man coming out of the Wall among other treasures.

We took the metro home from Lamark Caulincourt (btw, I love the RATP Metro app for the iPhone ~ you just plug in where you are and where you want to go and it tells you how to do it, no internet required!) We stopped at the Monoprix for some provisions so we could have a quiet dinner at home and wait for the Stangs' arrival back from Normandy. Our landlord was at the apartment when we came back, fixing some minor issues in our bathroom and we invited him to sit down and have a beer with us. We chatted for over an hour and got to know him better. He's a really nice guy who's very busy raising 2 little kids with his wife which explains why the apartment is not as well kept as it could be. No matter, we actually have come to love it and would happily rent it again.

Once David left us, we made dinner from some charcuterie, cheese, spreads, baguettes and olives along with a wonderful bottle of white wine. Dessert was a few of Denise's sublime chocolates. Our friends should be home in an hour or so and we may or may not go out to begin an early celebration of Den's 50th birthday.

Tomorrow should be fantastic ~ we have dinner reservations at La Grande Cascade for Den's 50th and we may do the Canal St Martin cruise in the morning if it's a nice day. Have a wonderful evening everyone!

The restaurant is minimally yet tastefully decorated and seats about 30 people. The tables are very close together but we were lucky to have a very nice couple from Texas next to us and we chatted throughout the whole meal. We were seated right by the window on rue St Honoure, so we didn't have anyone on the other side and could enjoy the people watching outside as well.

The menu is 33 euros for 3 courses and includes a starter of terrine and tiny pickles with wonderful bread as you make your dinner choices. We started with a cream of mushroom soup with foie gras for Den and a vegetable millefuille for me. Mine was very good, with thin homemade noodles filled with still crunchy veggies in a light tomato sauce. Den's was pure food ecstasy, a rich cream broth infused with earthy mushroom flavours poured over a very generous mound of foie gras. Each bite of foie gras melted from the heat of the broth and Den actually moaned out loud a few times. The lady next to me has the same dish and she was making the same noises as my hubby!

Den chose the pork belly over lentils for his main dish and I had pigeon with (you guessed it) foie gras and mushrooms. Den's meat was crispy on the outside (the kind of crispy that makes you happy) and tender and very flavourful on the inside. My dish (which had a 14 euro supplement) was a thing of beauty ~ the meat was moist and very rare, the foie gras had been pan fried to perfection and melted in your mouth and the mushrooms were meaty and earthy and just a wonderful reflection of fall flavours. This was the first time I had pigeon, but I don't think it will be the last. We shared a little crock of creamy mashed potatoes.

Oh, I forgot to mention the wine. We were happy to see that there were many wines at modest prices and we chose a red wine from Languedoc called Domaine La Tour Vieille 2006 Collioure Puig Criol for 34 euros. I love wine but don't have the language skills to really describe it properly, so suffice it to say that it went really well with our meal and there wasn't a drop left at the end!

Dessert was roasted figs in a balsamic reduction with warm chevre for me and the Grand Marnier souffle for Den. My figs were delicious and the combination of the chevre, the balsamic sauce and the still firm figs was just perfect ~ not too sweet and a nice light end to my heavy meal. Den's souffle was light and airy and full of Grand Marnier goodness. The first attempt at the souffle fell flat (gee, I have a way with words, don't I!) and the waiter came to tell us that the chef was making a new one and would we mind waiting. They gave us a third dessert as a reward for our patience, two glasses full of something that looked and tasted like custard with fresh raspberries on top. It was delicious and just slid down our throats. We shared it with our new friends next to us.

We finished off with 2 espressos and they came with little madeleines, which I couldn't manage, but Den took one for the team and ate both! Dinner was 126 euros including a bottle of sparkling mineral water, our wine, coffees and all those sublime courses. We found this unbelievable value (we could have come through at just 100 euros if we had skipped the water, the coffee and the supplement for my main course). 100 euros for 3 courses with a good bottle of wine ~ who says you can't eat very well in Paris for a reasonable price?

We were there for over three hours, enjoyed chatting with our table mate and felt very lucky that I had managed to book this reservation for us. The waiters turned away about 6 couples in the time we were there. We walked slowly home on a beautiful fall evening, thankful for the 30 minute walk to digest our rich, delicious meal. This one is going on my "keeper" list and I know we will come back again during another trip.

Den and I decided to take the metro to La Defense and see a completely different side of Paris. La Grande Arche is certainly grande. The area is surrounded by huge glass buildings and houses many head offices of large French corporations. There are large modern sculptures all over the huge concrete expanse in the center of the buildings. You can see both the Arch de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower in the distance to remind you that you are still in Paris.

We went in to the big shopping center right next to La Defense but it was just like any other shopping center in any other big city, so we didn't stay very long. We took the metro to Concorde and went in search of lunch, which we found on rue Cambon right across from the Chanel store. It was a tiny little cafe called Chambolle Cafe with a round bar in the front and exposed brick walls and small tables along one side. Den had a nice bowl of onion soup and a grilled andouillette with fries. I had a delicious salad with foie gras, cured duck magret and roasted pine nuts. 2 glasses of bordeaux seemed to disappear very easily and Den had a beer. We ended with 2 expressos and off we went in search of the Maille store for some Aioli mustard for Den. We found it and stocked up, along with some balsamic vinegar and some orange pistachio mustard. We then walked slowly along rue Saint Honore, engaging in the French custom of leche vitrine (window licking!), looking into all the expensive designer store windows but not daring to go in. We made our way to G Detou, a food place on rue Tiquitonne near Montorgeuil that Den had wanted to go to after reading about it on David Lebovtiz (the Leib)'s blog. We didn't buy anything because we were already carrying too much stuff between the mustards and a bottle of wine we picked up at a very cool wine store near Madeleine.

We ambled home through rue St Denis, looking at the massage parlours and sex shops with a smile. We were starting to get a little tired by this time since we had been walking about 6 hours. We were back in the apartment a little after 5pm and Den took a little snooze while I downloaded our pictures and did a little laundry (we have a separate washer and dryer, a very rare thing in Paris!).

We have reservations at La Regalade St Honore tonight at 8pm which I'm really looking forward to. Time to get ready and go have another wonderful meal in Paris!

We set out at around 11am, the market is only about a 10 minute walk for our apartment. Apparently half of Paris had the same idea since the market was packed with people this morning. We walked about for almost 2 hours, enjoying the sights, sounds and smells of the market. (well, smells for Denis ~ I literally have no sense of smell, a lack that usually doesn't bother me that much but that is keenly missed in Paris.) We buy some fresh fruit, eggs, cheeses, pancetta and a lovely hard Italian sausage which has fennel in it and is slightly spicy as well, different types of olives, some mushroom spread, tarama, tziki (sp?) and eggplant caviar and a beautiful bouquet of flowers to brighten up our apartment.

We walk slowly home, enjoying the spinach and cheese roll we bought (well, actually this is our second one, Den bought one while we were shopping and while I told him I didn't want one, once I tasted it, I ate half of his so we had to go around and buy another on). Yum, Yum, it was deliciously lemony and soft and warm and just hit the right note on a cold day.

Den took a little nap back in the apartment and I tidied up a bit. We waited a little while to see if Jo & Luc might come back, but decided to go back out for a walk around the Marais. We walked all the tiny little street and I scored an Eiffel Tower charm for my Pandora bracelet. I'm been looking for one of these since Jo gave me the bracelet in May for my 50th birthday. We took our time, went into a few vintage shops for fun (saw some beautiful Louis Vuitton sandals, but they were still 300 euros, even pre-owned, lol). It was very moody walking around in the drizzling rain, just Den and I. It was one of those moments that makes me want to live here so badly (I have lots of those moments, unfortunately ~ are you listening, lottery gods!)

We were back home around 5pm and Jo and Luc walked in about 5 minutes behind us. We opened up some wine and talked about our days. They had taken their Velibs to the Opera area and walked around, then made their way slowly back through St Germain de Pres and the Latin Quarter. We took out some of our market bounty and made dinner out of our spreads, some tasty olives, cheeses, bread and chocolate! Den made a delicious little appetizer of warm dates with blue cheese on them ~ very good.

The Stangs decided they wanted to go back out and walk around some more, but we were all cozy warm in the apartment so we passed. I started a novel that was in the apartment (there are loads of great guide books on Paris, magazines, novels etc) and Den played on his iPad. Stangs were back about 90 minutes later and we all called it a night. I was happy with an early evening in to recharge my batteries for the days coming up.

Jo and Luc leave for Le Mans, Mont MIchel and Normandy today. They are renting a car and just going for a drive, stopping where they feel like and making it an overnighter. Den and I have reservations at La Regalade St Honoure tonight and I think we may take the metro to La Defense and just walk around. I've never been to this area but have seen great pictures of the very different sculptures that surround it (thanks Annette!) and we've wanted to explore it since. It will be cool to see the big Defense building. After that, we'll see where our day takes us.

Den is off in the early morning taking his beloved pictures and Jo has gone for a run. Luc is playing on his iPad and I am off to make coffee and get pain au chocolat.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

We unpacked and set out to show the Stangs a bit of the Marais. We wandered down to rue des Rosiers and Vielle du Temples, stopping at many of the small boutiques along the way. We made our way to Rivoli and back towards St Antoine, stopped for some baguette sandwiches for lunch and got some provision (mostly wine!) from the Monoprix. Jetlag was hitting us all pretty badly, so we took a little nap. Once we showered and freshened up, we were out the door around 7:30 to find a taxi to take us to the Olympia for the Jimmy Buffett concert.

As we walked down rue de Turenne trying to hail a cab, we had one of those moments that puts the lie to the "rude Parisian" myth. We were in front of Cafe des Musees and the waiter came out and told us it would be hard to hail a cab off the street. He called one for us on his cell phone and told us it would be there in 2 minutes, which it was. What a wonderful thing for a perfect stranger to do for us. We have had so many similar encounters in Paris over the years. People are truly nice here in this big, bustling city.

We made the concert with minutes to spare. The hall was packed with Parrotheads and Jimmy and his band played for almost 3 hours, singing all their hits and enjoying themselves as much as the audience. What an experience it was for us Buffett concert virgins! He did three encores and ended with an acoustic version of He Went To Paris. This was one of the most fun concerts I've ever been to, the audience really gets into it, dressing up in island gear, singing along with the songs, tossing beach balls and inflatable sharks around the room.

We walked back along Boulevard des Capucines and stopped at Le Grand Cafe Capucines for a late night dinner. Den and I each had very rare bavettes de boeuf with parsely potatoes and Jo and Luc each has French Onion soup. I has my first creme brulee of the trip for dessert and Den has fromage blanc with mango. The Stangs shared a moelleux au chocolat and we all had the house rose which was fine. Well sated, we took a cab back to the apartment and were all in bed by 1am. A long day, but a great entry back into the city we love.

We all slept in until about 10am on Saturday morning. Den went out to the great little bakery right across the street from our apartment and got us pain au chocolat and croissants while I made some coffee. Ah, the pain au chocolat! Impossibly flaky and buttery, still warm enough that the chocolate was soft in the middle. I want to live in Paris just for the pain au chocolat.

After a leisurely breakfast, we made our way out of the apartment around noon and walked around the Marais a little more, making our way to Rivoli. We stopped at some little shops along the way, as well as the BHV. We walked by Au Vieux Comptoir to try to make reservations for dinner that night, but they were full. As we were starting to get hungry for lunch by then, I remembered a bistro that I had been wanting to try for the last few years, La Rose de France on Place Dauphine on Ile la Cite. We walked over and were lucky to snag a table for four on the terrace. It was nice and sunny when we sat down but clouded over after about 20 minutes and even rained on us a bit. No matter, we are in Paris with our friends, having some wine and a great lunch. I had a huge salad with sun dried tomatoes, hearts of palm, serrano ham, huge shavings of parmesan and a very light vinigrette. Den has fois gras with a mango chutney and the Stangs shares a charcuterie plate.

Once sated, we thought about walking to Luxembourg Gardens to see if we could get some of the honey they only sell once a year, but Boul St Michel was closed for a huge Techno Parade and it started to rain again, so we decided to pass. Den and Luc wanted to go to the new Apple store at Carousel du Louvre to get some toys for their new iPads, so we headed over there and did a bit of shopping. We had never been here and it's kind of neat, there's a huge food court and lots of very expensive stores. We found the Apple store, De got a case for his iPad and I got a cover for my iPhone that has the Eiffel Tower and I Love Paris on it!

I then took us to the little square in front of the Comedie Francaise to see the beautiful metro station there. We had some roasted chestnuts from a street vendor and strolled through the gardens of the Palais Royale, the Gallerie Vivienne and rue Etienne Marcel. It was about 7pm by now and we had been walking for about 7 hours, so we decided it was time for a break. I know we were only minutes from rue Montorgeuil, so I made us soldier on and we scored 4 places on the outside terrace of Drole d'Endroit pour une Recontre (Strange place for a date), a little bar on the corner of Montorgeuil and Tiquetonne. We had drinks and tapas under a heat lamp and just people watched for a few hours. We were feeling pretty lucky to be sitting right there in the heart of Paris, relaxing after a wonderful first day.

We strolled back through the 2nd and onto rue Rambuteau, which turns into Francs Bourgeois. We were back into the apartment at around 9pm and called Caffe Angela to see if they had place for us for dinner. Luc wanted some Italian and we had had a great meal at this tiny cafe just down from l'As du Fallafel last year.

We had a wonderful meal in Angella's cozy little place with only 5 tables. We all had fresh pasta dishes, shared a bottle of Orivietto Classico and I had one of the best tiramisus I've ever had (and I have 2 Italian sister-in-laws, so I've had good tiramisu in my day!) Angella's waiter was sick, so she was serving tables as well as cooking everything. She was out of a few things, including the mushroom risotto that Jo and I initially had our eyes on. We may just have to come back and try it later on. The bill for the four of us was 118 euros, very good value for home cooked, honest fare like momma used to make.

We slowly walked back to our place and were in bed again a little past 1am. Den and I are up early this morning, he's playing on his iPad and I'm making this overdue entry on my blog. I think we will head to the Bastille market later this morning and play the rest of the day by ear.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

I've got some great restaurant reservations already lined up:

Dinner at La Regalade St Honoure on the 27th
Den's birthday celebration dinner at La Grande Cascade on the 29th
Dinner at Nomiya on October 3rd
Dinner at Spring on October 6th
Lunch at Frenchies on October 8
Dinner at Le Reminet (a big GTG for Our Paris Forum members) on October 8

I also hope to try Breizh Cafe, Les Papilles, Le Baratin, lunch at Musee Jaquemart Andree, tea at l'Institute du Monde Arab as well as revisit some old favourites like Au Vieux Comptoir and Caffe Angela.

We are going to the Jimmy Buffet concert on Friday night at the Olympia, have 2 Meeting the French Tours booked and we are going to Reims for the day on October 1. I'd like to redo the Canal St Martin cruise with our friends walk the Promenade Plantee, revisit Parc Buttes Chaumont as well as explore le Parc Belleville, go to the Montmartre Vendage, see the area around La Defense and even score some honey at the Luxembourg Gardens apiary. Oh, and sit and watch the world go by with a glass of wine or a cafe creme once in a while!

I don't know if we'll get around to all of this but we're going to give it our best shot!

We did receive some upsetting news about our apartment on Friday. My landlord sent me an e-mail telling us that there was renovations being done on our building. There is scaffolding set up and the windows in both bedrooms have been sealed. He has offered us a 30% discount on our rent for the inconvenience and offered to help us relocate if we find we don't want to stay there (although I don't know how he would find anything suitable for us at this late date). I was pretty upset and spent the day on Saturday sending out e-mails trying to find an alternate place, but of course, everything is booked up. Den was able to calm me down a little bit by Saturday night and has persuaded me to just wait and see what the apartment looks like when we get there Friday afternoon. He is convinced it will all be fine and is happy at the prospect of hundreds of extra euros (from the refund) to spend. Since I can't do anything else at this point, I'm trying to have a good attitude and enjoy the anticipation of our trip. I may have a backup with another agency if I need it, but I hope we won't need it.

So in 48 hours, we'll be at Trudeau airport in Montreal waiting anxiously for 9:15 to arrive so we can board and start our 4th (my 5th, after my quickie trip with Danielle in May) trip to Paris, the city we have grown to love and pine after! Stay tuned for my (overly long) reports on our adventures in the City of Lights!

After our regular breakfast of still warm croissants, pain au chocolat and pain au raisin, we set out for a girls morning of shopping on rue Rivoli. As we slowly walked down the little side streets towards the river, Danielle spied a tattoo parlour on the way. We went in to inquire on the cost of a little Eiffel Tower tattoo and it would have been 200 euros. Danielle felt that was too high and that the equivalent tattoo would only cost about 100 dollars in Canada, so we passed, but you could tell she was disappointed not to have this souvenir from Paris. We went to the H&M store and my favourite, C&A and Danielle bought herself some cute costume jewlery, some scarfs, a very Parisian summer purse, and some sweaters while I got Sebastian some cute summer outfits. It was getting close to lunch time and we were getting hungry, so we walked back to Les Halles area looking for somewhere to eat. We didn't want a big meal since we were having our cooking class at Nomiya that night. We decided on a cute corner cafe where we could sit and people watch once again and enjoy the beautiful sunshine. Danielle had a salad with walnuts, ham, tomatoes and little melted disks of goat cheese on toast, all in a horseradish vinagrette. I had another planche of ham, pate, cured salami and cheese and we split one more half litre of rose. We sat for over an hour enjoying our meal and the views of so many people walking around enjoying a Saturday afternoon in Paris. As we left, Danielle spied another place for tattos and piercings. She really was determined to have something done while in Paris and she decided to get a body piercing (I know, I know, but she's 25 and a mom herself, and I have to respect her decisions. )
She was very happy with her decision and now has a permanent souvenir of our trip to Paris together.

We decided to walk back towards Rivoli and go through the Louvre courtyard. We didn't really have time to visit any of the museums, but I took her through the passageway where you can look into one of the Louvre areas through a huge wall of windows and at least she was able to see a few sculptures. We sat at the fountains for a while, and engaged in our favourite pastime once more ~ just watching all the people from all over the world enjoying one of the world's premier attractions, the Louvre courtyard and the pyramid. I then decided we should walk through the Tullerie gardens right to Place de la Concorde so Danielle could enjoy more of Paris' highlights. It was a very warm sunny day and we made sure we drank lots of water as we strolled the gardens and enjoyed the many statues and the kids playing with the little boats in the pond. Once at Concorde, we went back to rue Rivoli and started our way back to the apartment, intending to stop at a terrace somewhere to have a drink and a snack as it was about 5pm by now. (Where do the days go when you are in Paris? We had been walking once again for about 7 hours!) As we walked on Rivoli, we happended upon Angelina's and I joked to Danielle asking if she still wanted the hot chocolate I had promised her before the trip. To my surprise, she did, even in this heat, so in we went. We were seated within 2 minutes and Danielle got to experience the wonderful treat that is Angelina's hot chocolate, along with a beautiful strawberry dessert. I had a huge cup of ice cream and sorbet, topped with whipped cream and tiny little macarons. Oh, and a coupe de champage to top it all off!! I kept telling myself that since we had walked so much for 4 days, I deserved a treat like this and any calories would be offset by all our exercise. It was sooooo good and we both enjoyed this extravagent afternoon delight!

Well sated, we continued on our way home and reached the apartment about 6:30. We relaxed a little bit and freshened up and were out the door a little after 7:30 to catch the metro to the Palais de Tokyo for our last hurrah in Paris, our cooking class at Nomiya. We got to the museum about 15 minutes before our 8:30 class and met some of the people we would be sharing the class with. We were very lucky to have a wonderful group of people including 2 couples from the US, a young couple from Amsterdam and 3 young women from Paris. We were guided to the state of the art kitchen equipped by Electrohome and introduced to our teacher for the evening, Raphael, a VERY good looking Parisian chef. We were given the choice of 3 cooking stations ~ main dish, side dish or dessert. Danielle and I opted for the main dish station and were joined by the very sweet couple from Amsterdam. She is a police officer and he is an IT tech with a large bank in Holland. Raphael had already smoked 4 large pieces of monkfish and Danielle and the couple were asked to cut it into about 1 inch pieces. I was given the task of blanching some sweet peas and washing some sorrel. We then alternated the fish with peas and sorrel. The 3 young women prepared an eggplant and curry puree and a fresh tomato and shallot sauce for the fish and the 2 American couples made a wonderful kiwi and passionfruit tiramisu. Raphael (did I mention how handsome he was yet? ) kept busy by helping everyone with their questions and making sure we kept on schedule. Dinner was ready at about 10pm and we all sat down and enjoyed the fruits of our labour, enhanced by a wonderful white wine from Touraine. We all knew each other a little better now and it was a fun, comfortable meal. Once done, we all helped with the clean up and Raphael (the good looking chef) escorted us outside to the top of the stairs where the restaurant is so we could get a glimpse of the wonderful view of the Eiffel Tower all lit up. Everyone was delighted with their evening and it was a wonderful end to our 4 day Paris adventure. We took the #72 bus back to Pont Neuf and took our last walk back to our apartment, getting back around midnight.

Morning came very soon and we had our last French pastries for breakfast and were out waiting for our shuttle driver a little after 9:30am. A quick ride back to CDG and a smooth flight back to Montreal concluded our whirlwind tour of Paris.

I know how lucky I am to have been able to have this time with my daughter and to show her the city that Den and I have both grown to love. During our lunch at Nomiya on Friday, someone asked Danielle if she was enjoying Paris and what was the most memorable thing she would take home with her about the city. She replied that if there was one thing she could share with people back home, it was the feeling that Parisians took the time to really enjoy life. She said that although life in Paris is quick paced, as any big city is, people don't seem caught up in the rat race as much as North Americans are, but are content to sit and enjoy a meal or a drink with friends and family and just be. I was very proud of her for being able to give such an insightful answer and also happy that she "got" Paris.

So now we are back to reality and I have started my countdown to our trip in the fall to celebrate Den's 50 birthday with our best friends (4 months from yesterday!). I'm so happy to have been able to share this experience with Danielle and have all that time to get to know her better. Her life has been so hectic in the past 6 years and she has had to grow up so quickly as a single mom, and I was happy to give her this break from responsibility and just enjoy some mother/daughter quality time. Life is good and we have to enjoy it while we can.