Doggy in the window

I saw this adorable westie looking out the window of a salon today. So
adorable!! I just love seeing all the scruffy westies in Paris!

Elena and I are in the airport now. My flight leaves in a couple of
hours and then I will be back in steamy NY. It has been nice to walk
around a chilly Paris when I know a hot summer is coming.

Montmartre

Last night Elena stayed in our neighborhood for dinner. The walk to
dinner was lovely. Lots of hills and curving streets and stairs. The
very top of the Sacre Coeur was visible at one point.

Blah

I just had a very bad Métro experience. We were getting on at the
Madeleine station and Elena didn't have any more tickets, nor were
there any machines to buy tickets, so we slipped in together with my
ticket. For the first time in my life I was approached while calmly
reading by book on the reain by RATP people and asked to produce my
ticket. Since Elena kept it I had nothing to show them. I had to pay
€40!!! It was horrible. So many people were staring at me while I
spoke with the mean men. Yuck. Elena then bought me a yummy sushi
lunch to make me feel better.

Cooking class

Elena and I took a cooking class today. We met up with the group at
9am just outside of Paris. It included a visit to the market to buy
all the ingredients and then we all got a chance to cook the meal. We
made cauliflower soup with Roquefort and then stuffed lamb shoulder.
The lamb and soup in the foreground are ours.

We had a really nice group of people. Four other Americans, an
Australian woman, a young man from Scotland and a very sweet woman
from Brittany. After we cooked we all sat down to taste our food. It
was simple and delicious. I will definitely recreate it at home!

So mean

I sent this photo to a friend as a taunt. She told me that if she saw
a photo of me eating a 'framboise' flavored macaron she might just
break her screen. So that's exactly what I sent her. I didn't even eat
that macaron. It is still sitting in the box. Very mean of me.

Even more...

More Reims

Chagall

Marc Chagall designed these windows for the Reims cathedral in 1971
using 13th century methods. The details are completely lost in this
photograph, unfortunately. The glass looked like a painting. So
beautiful.

Reims

We are in Reims right now. The cathedral is stunning. So intricate and
overwhelming.

Chez Marianne

I love the Marais!! Lunch at Chez Marianne is one of my favorite
things. Something you just cannot find in NY. We strolled around
earlier and stopped in to meet a friend of a friend at her boutique,
Precursor. It is always fun to come so far and talk about mutual
friends.

Au Bon Marché

Yesterday we went to Bon Marché to look at pretty things. I was very
good and left with only tights (cause it's chilly here!) and lipstick.
Then we went to the Épicerie to buy some pretty foor or our apartment.
I just love the way they display produce.

Today we are going to the Marais! There will be pictures of falafel
later.

Paris

After a very bumpy flight on the biggest plane I have ever been on (I
was on the upper level of an airbus) I arrived in chilly Paris! The
happy sight of Elena and our adorable little apartment in Montmartre
made me forget my exhaustion for a little while.

We took it easy on the first day. With some pastries Elena had picked
up and our beloved nescafe we settled down at the table to eat and
catch up. After a refreshing nap we searched for a place to have
dinner on a Sunday evening.

Drouant, near the Opéra, was very yummy. My appetizer was four little
plates of different vegetables. It was delicious. The best was the
chilled zucchini soup with mint.

Our waiter, André, really made the meal, though. I have never had a
more flirtatious waiter in Paris! He complimented my French - always
nice to hear after not speaking much for many months. When Elena left
me alone at the table he came over to see how everything was and then
leaned over my chair and said, "en français, quand une femme est trop
belle on dit qu'elle est sublime. Vous êtes sublime." I am pretty sure
my face got very pink and then I thanked him for the compliment. He
really did not want us to leave and asked if he would see us again
soon (he won't). It was a very nice way to start our trip!!!