Headed into the city center and escaped the predicted rain by going to the Louvre.
We stopped at some of the iconic works and also explored many areas we had not been.
Spent many hours wandering the halls, visiting the ancient Egyptian artifacts ending with 18th century French paintings.
Walked along the Seine and made our way to Hotel de Ville where we met Aurora for lunch. She took us to one of her favorite local bistros where we enjoyed crepes. Very tasty. After, we walked the streets of the 4th arrondissement where she lived for eight years. She left to pick up Analuna from school, and we walked the banks of the river over to the Ile de la Cité, browsing some of the book stands on the way. Went into Notre Dame.
After warming up inside, we made out way to Ile Saint Louis where we couldn't resist ice cream cones from Bertillon, even though it was decently chilly. Martin had pistachio, and Kate chose chocolate. By then it was 5pm and we had dinner reservations near the Pompidou at 9:30pm. We decided that since we are in Paris for a short time, and we want to make the most of it, so we challenged ourselves to explore the area until dinner.
We causally strolled back to the 4th arrondissement and went into the Pompidou. We particularly enjoyed their bookstore where we spent about an hour browsing through various books. Then we walked along the Seine and saw the Tour Eiffel sparkling at 7pm. Magical! Continued along the outside of the Louvre and past the Tuileries Gardens.
As we reached the Place de la Concorde, it started to rain fairly hard.
Huddled under an umbrella, we looked for a cafe in the direction of our restaurant. We walked through Place de Vendome, window-shopping and saw the Opera house from afar. Eventually we stumbled upon a tiny cafe. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by the one waiter and an interesting gentleman sitting at a corner table. As we sipped our coffees, we realized this man was the owner. Just so you can picture him, he was about 70 with a long grey beard, black beret and a Hawaiian shirt, all the while reading French philosophy and interacting with the restaurant goers. It was a tiny cafe with only locals who seemed to know each other just from coming here. It was fun for us to watch the life of the locals.
After finishing our coffees, we resumed our walk slowly to the restaurant, and arrived there just before 9:30pm. Together, we shared a fondue and a bottle of Bourgogne red wine. The cheese was delicious and particularly comforting after a long day of walking in the cold.
- Martin & Kate
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Location:Rue Berthe,Paris,France
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