Laudree and the Macaron Mission
It’s true. I’ll fess up right now. I, The Armchair Parisian, had never tried a macaron. My niece and I set out to right this oversight. All day we’d ask each other: What’s our mission? and in perfectly bad french accents we’d reply in unison Macarons! then dissolve into giggles.
So off to Laudree we went for a little spoiling of the dinner appetite…
Forgive me for not taking the time to fix my lighting settings here, but I was being sneaky as the frown on photos. The choices were a little overwhelming…
…so we each chose three and headed for a café where we ordered drinks and inspected our expensive little puffs of sugar…
Then we each took turns taking bites, giving our expert opinions on each. I did not like the pink one (framboise) at all, but the green one (pistachio) wasn’t too bad. Overall they were a little too sweet for my taste. But we soldiered on until we both groaned, OK, no more…
Knockers, Doors and Knobs – 1
Knockers, Door & Knobs ~ oh my! Can’t help myself ~ got a fascination for them and in Paris, there are interesting finds at every turn….
Want a closer look at the details?
Sunny Snap in St. Germain
During my last visit to Paris, I didn’t get many sunny days like this. In fact, it was more like sunny moments. So, doing the only sensible thing, I took them…snap…snap..snap…when I could…
I want to wear my accessories like this…
OK, so I want the dress and the accessories themselves….and somewhere to wear them… How very glam…
Happy New Year!
May 2012 bring you all many good things ~ including time in Paris!
Eiffel Essential #2
Printemps Holiday 2011
If you’re in Paris during the holiday season, a fun thing to do is visit the Printemps holiday windows.
I will admit to not actually giving a whit’s thought to what time of day might be best to visit for optimal photo opportunities….
….but I have to say, I kind of like the other-worldy double-exposure effect going on in these über luxurious displays… maybe you agree….?
Santa!
So there I was, strolling through the flower market on Sunday morning when I spied these two having themselves a jolly old time…
…then I saw that they were laughing at one of their naughty des amis…
I admit to succumbing to a silly, juvenile giggle.
Tis the Season of Lights…
I dare say, I find the holiday lights along the Boulevard Saint-Germain…..
…..to be ever so much more appealing than the color-changing hula-hoops that now grace the Champs-Élysée…..
What’s your vote…?
When next we meet…
…I will have loads of new Paris eye-candy to share! Packing piles are being made, meager French is being practiced, excitement is building… I simply can’t wait to….
…taste that first café crème…
….or perhaps a nice cup of tea while shopping a passage…
….revisit the Musee D’Orsay…
….to ogle some marvelous stained glass…
….see the Christmas lights on the Champs Élysée…
…window shop the galleries in St. Germain…
…maybe stop in the Louvre…
…stroll aimlessly through neighborhoods…
…..discover a new church or duex…
….take in some dizzying views…
…dine in quaint, cozy, fun places…
…take in some Christmas decorations…
…see if I can find these….
…catch an unexpected moment…
…walk a market street...
…as well as a Christmas market…
…check in on some the quieter residents of Paris…
…drink in all the wonderful ironwork and interesting buildings…
…who knows, we might catch a protest in action…
….on our way to discovering something entirely new…
…you never know ~ I might even dare to ride a Velib bike!
…yeah, I’m excited :-)
Pont Neuf
I am getting so excited, I can barely work. Plans are coming together for my trip to Paris in December! My image stash desperately needs replenishing (my last trip predated The Armchair Parisian’s existence), which is why my poor petit blog has been so sadly neglected. I promise to fill as many GBs as I can with images to share here in the coming year!
But ~ I did find these and a few more I’ll share before my departure. While The Armchair Parisian isn’t so much an informative blog as it is…tasty Parisian snippits, an inspiration, a glimpse… I thought I’d share a few details about Pont Neuf…
Despite its name, which means “new bridge” Pont Neuf is actually the oldest standing bridge in Paris. Construction was begun in 1578 with the laying of its first stone by Henry III. After a few design changes and delays, it was completed in 1607 under the reign of Henry IV. There were supposed to be houses built on the bridge, but this idea was nixed by Henry IV as he felt it would impeded clear views of the Louvre.
An interesting detail of this bridge are the 384 heads ~ or grotesque mascarons ~ that adorn it. No two are alike!
What the heck…?
I love, love, love a museum. Anywhere. While I tend not to bother snapping pics of the Mona Lisa and such, I will snap the oddities. These are the ones that leave you scratching your head saying, “What the heck…?” Here are a few snaps from various museums, including the D’Orsay, The Louvre, The Met in NYC and the British Museum in London.
….and while this one below is not a museum snap (it was hanging outside a restaurant in Montmarte), it falls squarely in the “What the heck” category, non?
Drinks at the Ritz
Every now and again, one must splurge during a trip. Well, if you’re moi, anyway. On one particular Parisian foray, my mother and I went to The Hemingway Bar in the Ritz. We managed to get a couple discreet shots in before being politely scolded by the server.
Besides the lovely array of tasty nibbles they bring to the table, they charmingly put a rose in every drink.
My all-time favorite photo from all my trips is this one of my mother laughing, later in Pizza Pino with a pocketbook full of roses… What fun we had that night!
Taxi!
I’ll be honest ~ I don’t recall exactly where this was. I think it might have been in the Montmarte vicinity, but I wouldn’t swear to it. I do remember that the taxi was not available, our feet were tired and we just ended up having a drink at that restaurant!
