“We’ll always have Paris.” — Audrey Hepburn

Thursday, March 23, 2023: BONJOUR PARIS

We arrived in Paris after a long flight and, due to disruptions in France, we waited in the passport control line for nearly two hours. Traveling is hard, but our Paris Perfect Clairette apartment made it all worthwhile. The space is beautiful and comfortable and what a view!

After cleaning up, we explored our neighborhood in the 7e arrondissement. There were bakeries with beautiful breads and pastries, fruit markets featuring gariguettes (sweet, spring strawberries), cheese and wine shops with so many varieties, butcher shops tempting passersby with the delicious aroma of roasting chicken and potatoes, flower markets with buckets full of tulips, roses, hydrangeas, and ranunculus, pharmacies which I visited more than once to relieve my lingering bronchitis, and cafés with blankets on outdoor chairs to chase away the evening chill — all in classic Haussmannian buildings. We shopped for a living room picnic and settled in to watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle at 8:00 and 9:00 pm before finally getting some sleep.

Friday: ART NOUVEAU in the 7th, STROLLING, Shopping

We started our day with more exploring in the 7e arrondissement. We admired the Art Nouveau architecture of Jules Lavirotte on Avenue Rapp including the infamous building at number 29. (Learn more about these unique works of art in a future French Friday feature.)

Flâner (to stroll along without schedule or specific destination) is one of my favorite verbs. Friday was a perfect day to be a flâneuse.

We crossed the Seine to 8th arrondissement and strolled to Ladurée to enjoy macarons (framboise, pistache, fleur d’orangier, cassis) and a Kir Ladurée (Champagne and rose garnished with raspberries).

Allow we didn’t have a plan, we knew we would end up at Lancel. It was a very successful shopping excursion and a lovely afternoon until the wind picked up and a storm blew in.

Drenched and tired, we returned to our apartment to warm up before enjoying dinner at the Fontaine de Mars. We snuggling under red woolen blankets and watched the rain on the terrace. When the weather cleared, we returned home to our nightly sparkles.

SaturdaY: flea market, Quartier Latin, CrÊPE + Sparkles

We got up early on Saturday morning to explore the Vanves flea market. Unlike the Puces de Saint-Ouen, Vanves is “small” and less commercialized. When we arrived, the venders were just setting up. We walked through the tables twice feeling less than satisfied until we realized that the market continued across the street and for several blocks.

We were determined to find little French treasures to take home, but the things we liked were either too fragile, too large, or too expense. I found a vintage Leica camera that would be a great addition to my collection, but not for 500€. Even though we went home empty handed, it was fun to hunt for treasures and to watch venders and shoppers.

In the afternoon, we went to the newly-renovated Samaritaine department store, crossed over to the Île de la Cité, and strolled through the Place Dauphine to Notre Dame to see the restoration progress.

We browsed the bouquinistes along the Seine and marveled at the spring blossoms in the Square René Viviani before spending lots of time in Shakespeare and Company. I left with One True Sentence: Writers & Readers on Hemingway’s Art and continue to enjoy the book and its companion podcast.

We had a glass of rosé et a chou at Odette before hiking up La Montagne Sainte-Geneviève to Saint Étienne-du-Mont and the Panthéon. This was the only day when we were impacted by the garbage strikes and protesters.

On Saturday evening, we had French onion soup at the Champ de Mars across the street from our apartment. Rather than return home to watch the sparkles that night, we walked down the street to stand in the shadow of La Tour Eiffel. We continued around to the western side of the tower and crossed the Seine to Trocadéro where we had a crêpe au sucre and watched the sparkles along with the Saturday night crowd, the trinket vendors, and the buskers. It was wonderfully nostalgic.

Sunday: MUSÉE d’ORSAY, Repetto, Ritz, Bar Hemingway

It rained on Sunday morning so we spent a few hours in the Musée d’Orsay, my favorite museum in Paris. The former train station is filled with Impressionist masterpieces by all my favorite artists — Renoir, Monet, Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, and more, but it doesn’t feel too large or overwhelming.

When we left the museum, the rain had cleared and we enjoyed a nice lunch at Le Basilic in the shadow of La Basilique Sainte-Clotilde.

On Sunday evening, we got dressed up and headed to the Ritz. On the way to the Place Vendôme, we stopped in the Rue de la Paix to restock my favorite perfume at Repetto. It is such a lovely store with piles of pale pink ballet slippers, delicate and ornate tutus, and the original ballet flats in every color imaginable.

The Ritz is such special, welcoming place. It is a mix of sophisticated luxury and familiar comforts. We had a great evening at Bar Hemingway sipping Miss Bonds and enjoying the ambiance.

Monday: Lunch on the Eiffel Tower and The Dior Gallery

I have walked around it and under it and have taken the elevator to the top, but I have never dined on the Eiffel Tower. As a special treat for this trip, we booked lunch at Madame Brasserie, the Eiffel’s newest restaurant.

The prix fixe menu includes a ticket to the first tier of the tower and an incomparable view. I enjoyed a leek salad, followed by a spinach and cheese cannelloni on a bed of roasted butternut squash. We sampled both desserts — a pear and apple crisp and crème fraîche with seasonal fruits, honey, and granola.

After lunch, we visited the new Dior Gallery which opened in early spring. I loved the staircase with the iconic miniatures displayed in every hue, the original Bar Suit, Mr. Dior’s office and workroom, the sketches, and the evolution of suits, dresses, and gowns from the 1940s to the present.

Unfortunately, almost immediately after we arrived, I started to feel ill. Remember in An American Girl in Paris Part Une, the penultimate episode of Sex and the City, when Carrie entered the Dior boutique, slipped, and spilled her purse requiring her to “squat and scoop in Dior”? Well, my situation was much worse. I don’t think it was food poisoning because Nan felt fine. I believe there must have been blue cheese in my cannelloni and I had a very strong allergic reaction. Although I soon felt better, we stayed home on Monday night and watched Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris — how fitting after haven’t spent the afternoon dreaming of Dior gowns.

tuesday: Rue Cler, le soufflé, 1er arrondissement

We started our day with shopping for flowers and produce on the Rue Cler, a wonderful market street in the 7e arrondissement.

We spent the afternoon in the 1er arrondissement, shopping along the rue to Rivoli. I visited the Chanel flagship store on the rue Cambon to replenish my favorite lip liner and gloss. Even though it was a quick visit, the staff made me feel so special with Champagne and camelias.

We had a delicious lunch at on of my favorite restaurants in Paris, Le Soufflé. We had green salads and Chablis and shared a cheese soufflé followed by their signature Grand Marnier soufflé.

After lunch we strolled through the Palais Royal and the Galerie Vivienne and Véro-Dodat. We stopped to warm up at Le Nemours and visited E. Dehillerin, the iconic kitchen supply store frequented by Julia Child.

« Ce lieu déborde de vie, surtout à la pointe du jour et au coucher des oiseaux. » — Colette (“This place overflows with life, especially at daybreak and at sunset (when the birds go to sleep”)

On Tuesday evening, we returned to our apartment to watch Midnight in Paris, pausing the movie for hourly sparkles. I really like quiet evenings like this after running around Paris all day. We were so intentional about choosing a lovely apartment with a view, so it felt important to really take time to enjoy it.

Wednesday: Montmartre, Final bubbles + Sparkles

After two rather chilly days, we were blessed with sunshine and temps in the 70s for our last full day in Paris. It was the perfect day to wander around Montmartre from the Sacré-Coeur to the Place de Tertre, down the hill to La Maison Rose and the Place Dalida.

All of the art in the Place de Tertre varies in medium, style, and subject, but every work of art reflects a unique vision of Paris. This time, we discovered Mary-Karmen, a whimsical artist who creates amusing visual stories in watercolor and ink. I liked her style and casually mentioned that I would purchase one of her images if the featured dog were a beagle. She immediately offered to create a fun portrait of Miss Piper. It turned out so well that Nan commissioned one of Arthur too.

While we waited for our little paintings, we enjoyed a delicious lunch of moules-frites on the terrace of La Mère Catherine, founded in 1793.

After lunch, we wandered down the hill past Renoir’s Moulin de la Galette and Amélie’s Deux Moulins to the Moulin Rouge.

We returned with our treasures to prepare for an evening of “Bubbles and Sparkles” at our apartment. We welcomed Dave and Ann to enjoy a glass of Clairette de Die (the obvious choice given the name of our apartment), fresh fruit, cheese, olives, the requisite baguette, and a beautiful assortment of macarons.

We didn’t know that Wednesday night’s sparkles would be our last until the next trip to Paris.

Thursday: An Early Return

This trip was meant to be flexible. I didn’t over-plan, but there were a few things on my list for Paris 2023:

✓ Watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle every night from our beautiful Paris Perfect Clairette apartment in the 7th arrondissement.

✓ Shop in unique boutiques and discover les puces de Vanves. (I didn’t find a treasure to take home, but I got a purse at Lancel — on sale.)

✓ Have a cocktail (Miss Bond) in Bar Hemingway at the Ritz

✓ Savor the flavors of Paris: Warm baguettes, sweet and/or savory crêpes, macarons at Ladurée, choux at Odette, fresh produce from the local market, bold reds and sparkling wines… (and so much more)

✓ Take pictures of “the little things”— Sure, I photographed the iconic monuments if we were nearby, but I really tried to focus on the little things that make Paris special.

✓ See or do something new everyday — This was a great challenge, given that I have been to Paris so many times. Usually, I am helping someone else discover Paris for the first time so we tend to visit the “must-dos”. This time I could be much more casual and spontaneous. Here were my firsts:

3/23/23: Paris Perfect Clairette appointment
3/24/23: Lavirotte buildings on Avenue Rapp
3/25/23: Puces de Vanves and Samaritaine
3/26/23: Lunch at Basilic and a Saint Germain spritz
3/27/23: Lunch on the Eiffel Tower and the Dior Gallery
3/28/23: Galerie Véro-Dodat and E. Dehillerin
3/29/23: Commissioning a sketch of my dog and hosting friends in Paris

On Thursday morning, we did laundry and pre-packed until it was time to check in for our Friday flight. We planned to stroll through the Luxembourg Gardens in the afternoon and have a late lunch in Saint-Germain before returning home for one more evening of Eiffel Tower sparkles.

Sure my plans for this trip were flexible, but I didn’t anticipate losing a day in Paris. When we attempted to check in at 11:00, we received an error message directing us to call Delta regarding our flight. The flight was being serviced by Air France and there was a risk that it would be cancelled due to the strikes. We were advised to fly out on Thursday night since the 5:00 pm flight was already confirmed. Although we were sad to leave our lovely apartment and miss our final night of sparkles, we decided it was best to play it safe rather than risk cancellation and have no where to stay on Friday.

So Thursday transformed into a long, hard day of travel, but I tried to make the best of it by editing photos and watching movies on the plane (both Mamma mias and both Top Guns). After a stop in Atlanta to clear customs and switch planes, we landed in Milwaukee just after midnight. In hindsight, we made the right decision to leave early since we avoided both a flight cancellation and severe weather in the Midwest on Friday. I was also able to see the doctor and get some prescriptions that finally cured the bronchitis that definitely slowed me down on this trip.

It is always nice to be home, but I am already looking forward to my next trip.

We'll Always Have Paris