Sometimes my trips take on an unexpected theme. This trips’ theme has turned into one of religion, or should I say spiritualism.

It started with our private concert given by the woman’s choir of the Madeleine Church, followed certainly at the Thorn of Crowns ceremony, and again yesterday being serendipitously blessed at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal and the stories our Irish friend told us at Cuisine de Bar.

And now it continues with MC. Since the last time I saw MC, maybe 4 years ago, she has been studying and painting Icon art with a group from her village including taking trips to Russia to study the paintings. She is really into it and has brought a book of photos of the paintings that she has done.

With a nice bottle of wine and the chocolates she made for us- packaged in that French way of making a simple box a special gift- we go thru her book and she enlightens us on the art of Icon painting.

In a simple definition Icon painting is the painting of a holy being- Jesus, Mary, saints and angels-on a flat panel, usually wood. This style of painting originated in Eastern European Churches especially Catholic Churches.

The paintings are full of symbolism and the connection with the Catholic Church is fascinating.

We go thru her book and she explains the subject in the paintings. This night has turned into our own private art tour in the comfort of our pjs in our living room.

We show her the holy water plaque with the 3 sprigs of lily flower and 3 stars that my sister bought at the Vanves flea market. She tells us that the 3 lily flowers represents the 3 stars of Mary-one for love, amour-one for virgin, virgo, verge and the 3rd sprig- grace-Mother Mary full of grace.

Now that we know this we see it everywhere in Paris, on a building wall, the sign of store near Sacre Coeur, in churches- and of course the prayer that every Catholic knows, (practicing and the non- practicing alike) that begins with Hail Mary full of grace… takes on a whole new meaning for me.

One more thing she tells us is that most persons born in France celebrate two birthdays, their birth day and the day of the saint whose name they were given. Apparently there are 365 saint days celebrated in France and she pulls out her pocket calendar and there they were, all 365 days listed with their saint.

What a great ending to another wonderful day in Paris.

You are bringing back such good memories for me. You are visiting some of our favorite places. We have been to St. Catherine Laboure a few times. We brought back medals and I wear one. We also went down the passage where Le Procope is on our visit to Paris last Christmas. We went to Un Dimanche a Paris and loaded up on chocolate. They have some really great stuff there.

Your report continues to enchant me. A perfect read for our upcoming trip.

Love the trip report. But that apartment! I stayed in it last year with my daughter and would not return...did the tub fill with water during your showers as it did for ours? Regardless, the location is superb and after all, you are in Paris, so...all is well. I ãm enjoying the spirit of discovery that underlines your report and can't wait to read more.

Love that Cour du Commerce passage way but love Un Dimanche a Paris even more! If you didn't try the macarons, definitely go back someday. They are fab!

Always have wanted to get to Bar de Cuisine and it just hasn't happened...maybe next trip! City Pharma will also have to be included...heaven for me (they should add shoes and then it would be)!

Hub and I stayed on Rue de la Cherche Midi and loved that street. Enjoying this very much.

Enjoying traveling with you. We always think of Cherche Midi as "the shoe street"---even though I don't have the feet for all those beauties, there's no harm in looking.

denisea----planning already? I'm working on a March adventure right now, but will get to Paris planning closer to summer. Paris in Sept. seems to be our MO so maybe our paths will cross.

This continues to be a singularly rewarding trip report. You are revealing your lovely self and Paris all at the same time. It's really nice to know you, and thanks for the journey.

Wonderful trip report. I have taken so many notes of things to do this May while in Paris. Several years ago went to the two level drugstore with my daughter and her friend that lives in Paris. I was told what to buy for my skin problems and of course I had to buy several of each item. Walked out with a $700.00 bill. We still talk about that purchase. My daughter tells me I could easily spend $100 dollars in a 7-11.

TPAYT, I am! Hoping for Sept or Oct. so, maybe our paths will finally cross!

Loving your report as I prepare for my trip with my mom in May!

To all-thank you for still reading along and your comments.
Yes, rue Cherche midi for shoes-love shoes too-so I guess it would be alright to admit in this group that my first trip to France i bought 3 pairs-but I won't mention how many i had brought!

dlejhunt-no problem with the shower for us-that would have really bummed me out.

benitakaren-it would be very easy to spend $700 at Citi pharma with all their lotions and potions.

tacionictravler-what a nice thing to say -Thank you! and nice knowing you too.

continuing with this long trip report:

Today is Wednesday and we all have different plans for the morning.

My sister and I are going across the bridge, past the Princess Diana memorial, to the street market at President Wilson Ave. MC is meeting with a fellow painter to take in an exhibit of ICON paintings at the Louvre and French Friend is going along to make sure she makes the connection. We will all meet up later in Montmartre.

We have another great morning at the market getting our food for the next few days.

It is really a budget saver eating at home. We are spending about 2/3 less in our food budget and eating wonderful tasting food-(although being in Paris the savings does get spent just not on food). We did not plan this but being so close to this street market, rue Cler and the Carrefour grocery store we eat at home almost daily. I will now always take this into consideration when booking an apt…the proximity to food markets and grocery stores.

We decide to take the bus to Montmartre. It is a really good decision. I have taken a taxi there-first trip at night-and all the other times I have gone I have taken the metro. I love the metro, but not the metro to Sacre Coeur-it gets really crowded and I get…um…uncomfortable.

The bus was a great choice. We are not sure where to get off, and up ahead we see an inviting stretch of street that is tree lined with shops and lights strung across-we think that is heading too far away from Montmartre so get off the bus.
Next time I will need to go a little further and investigate this street. Does anyone know about this stretch? I think it might have been rue Caulaincourt?

We get off right near the cemetery (another thing to explore next time). We head down rue Lepic following the street and our instinct.

We get to Place Abbessess right as it starts to rain. We duck into St Jean Cathedral to wait out the rain. It is a small, beautiful church, with a lot of mosaics and art nouveau style stained glass.

Near the alter the crèche is set up. Baby Jesus is missing and we find out later that in France they do not put Baby Jesus in place until Christmas Eve. I think that is kinda perfect-the way it should be.

After the rain stops we head down to the bottom of Sacre Coeur near the carousel where we will be meeting French Friend.

I have my first encounter with the big green les toilettes- when a girls gotta go a girls gotta go-especially when she is really not a girl but une femme d’un certain age-all in all, not too bad. You just need to get in and out really fast…which is kinda hard to do when you are wearing so many clothes.
There is an process/art to taking off layers of clothes and therefore a time factor which has to be considered when going to les toilettes-first the gloves come off, then the purse, then the scarf, then the coat etc…whew…a lot for someone use to wearing just sundresses-then, where do you put all that stuff you just took off?

We have a little time before we are to meet French Friend and we are near a shop that I have been trying to go to for few trips.

It has funny hours of operation and I have never hit it right.

Today it is open and wow…what a beautiful shop.
Talk about eye candy.

Belle de Jour-www.belle-de-jour.fr-an expat from Ohio on the metro to Puce St Ouen told me about this shop and he said if you are looking for perfume bottles this is the place to go.

The perfume bottles are beautiful works of art from the early 1900s belle époque period and range from sets that sell for a lot of euros to reproductions that are not so much money.

They even have a few Avon girl perfume bottles from the 70s-remember those?

As we are looking at all the pretties French Friend walks by…and now we do a second take around the store.

I buy a reproduction red art nouveau style bottle-it comes with a little funnel and a post card of the store.

French Friend tells us that we are near a great fabric store.

At the foot of Sacre Coeur to the right of the stairs is Marche Saint-Pierre. This store is huge- 6 different levels- you spiral up wide wooden stairs to each floor which specializes in different fabrics for different purposes (for some it might be better to take the elevator up and spiral down).
On the floor with bath fabrics there are French washcloths. French Friend tells us they are the best and she always stocks up on them when she is in France-two pieces of terry cloth sown together to make a mitt in an array of colors. I buy a few for my husband because besides food I have a hard time finding something to bring home for him. He really liked them so now I too will always buy them when in France.

We make our way up to the church where we will meet MC and fellow painter.

It is freezing up here!

The coldest day of our trip so far.

We stand around waiting in front of the church but it is too cold so we have to move.

We check out the little park on the side of the church.

We take photos of each other at the famous photo op next to the church, each of us running up and down the stairs taking our turn trying to get the great shot like the one you see on postcards everywhere. You know the one looking down the stairs with the center rail and the beautiful ornate light post framed by trees on either side of the stairs. That shot is really hard to capture… the postcards get it best.

Finally MC and fellow painter arrive and we can go into the warmth of the church.

We stay in the church for quite a while. Shelter from the cold-plus MC and fellow painter are really into this church.

I notice things I had not noticed before.
Like the dome ceilings, which are beautifully painted with stars.

Fellow painter-who we find out is a former nun- tells us some of the back story about Sacre Coeur.

She told us that the church was built to not only honor those who died during the French revolution and the Franco-Prussian war but to inspire faith in the French people who were still struggling.

The construction of the church was completely paid for by private donations-as she put it-by the goodness of people.

The fundraising was mainly the efforts of two businessmen.

She also told us that the Blessed Sacrament has been on continuous display since 1885 in a monstrance (vessel) on the high alter.
Because of the continuous display people from all over the world make pilgrimages to pray here and that is why they “shush” you when you are in the church so as not to disturb those that are praying.

I have mixed feelings about Montmartre. Sometimes I really like it and sometimes not so much.

But here’s the thing I keep going back because the times I have really liked it- it was grand.

Like the Sunday afternoon I saw a group singing on the steps overlooking Paris. We sat there for hours being entertained-they were great, the crowd was great, the view of Paris spread out in front of us on that clear day was great. They had everyone singing along and would pull individuals out of the crowd to sing with them. A really good time had by all.

Or the time we stroll the back streets and find the village of Montmartre not the tourist catering Montmartre.

Today’s visit to Montmartre is pretty good.

There are no crowds of people- I mean almost no one in the Place Tertre.
I have never experienced that.

A few artist, a few people that’s it.

The square is lit by a full moon with blue lights strung across - it looks really charming.

But it is really cold and getting late, so we decide to head to dinner.

As I am hungry and cold I would have preferred to eat right now on the square, enjoying the un- crowded picturesque square, but everyone else wants to go back to the apt and refresh before dinner.

So this is what we do… we take that dreaded, crowded metro train back to the 7th.

This is the night we tried to get into Reed-the restaurant in the 7th that denisea and others recommend.
The menu looked really good, but it is full and by now it is really late and we are really hungry.

We end up on rue Cler at Café Marche. This is my first time eating here. French Friend and MC really liked it. They said it was like home cooking.

I liked the atmosphere and company way more than the food.

We ate outdoors in the screened in heated room with a view of the Christmas decorations strung across the street and the people passing by. Eating here this night was mostly locals and it was the happening spot on the block for sure.

We pass on desert, which as soon as we got home realized was a big mistake.
We still have some of MC’s homemade chocolats so we devour those then off to sleep.

She also told us that the Blessed Sacrament has been on continuous display since 1885 in a monstrance (vessel) on the high alter.
Because of the continuous display people from all over the world make pilgrimages to pray here and that is why they “shush” you when you are in the church so as not to disturb those that are praying.>>

on our last visit to Paris we happened to arrive at Sacre Coeur on a saturday morning when they were celebrating mass, which was just lovely. DH and i sat down to listen to the wonderful singing and we were very surprised at the numbers of people who just kept walking and talking throughout. i didn't hear any "shushing" sadly.

thanks for carrying on with your TR - I'm loving the detail!

Thanks annhig and anyone else continuing to read.

After a relaxing morning and rounds of hugs and kisses French Friend and MC leave to go home to their village.

We set off walking to Musée des Arts Decoratifs but it is so cold out we hop on the metro.
When we get there we find out today’s admission is free thanks to some sort of social protest. The permanent exhibits would not be open but the temporary exhibits are.

We head in…
I am not sure if I should try and explain what I saw, as it might be like trying to explain a dream you had to someone. The listener may not get it like I do- or get bored with me trying to explain it enough so that you do get it.

But it was so cool I will try – and I will get if you stop reading at any point cause you don’t get it.

We head to the grand staircase which is white stone and there is a huge mannequin dressed in a skin tight black T- shirt with a long black skirt that is draped over a large metal hoop that is partly exposed so that you see the motorized cart she is on. She is wearing a large black circular hat the covers her eyes, her face is the only skin you can see and it stands out being white with bright red lips.

That’s the first thing we see- and it is very striking.

Maybe I should post some pictures so you get it?

When we get to the top of the stars there is a real girl, dressed all in white. She is wearing a princess gown, her long blond hair is in a single braid down her back and her hands are in a white fur muff. She has on a tall tiara made of large white pearls that extends down to her neck and becomes a choker.

She looks like a Russian snow princess to me-or what I think one would look like if there was such a creature.

The cool thing about her is she is gliding-not walking.

What…I know, you just had to see it…she must have been on skates, but you could not see the wheels and the control was probably in the muff she was holding. She was very stoic with perfect posture and a still expression. She would stop and people would marvel at her, then she would glide off.

Not sure pictures would even help as this point, but I will keep describing…

The next room we go into is a square room with Grace Jones’ head sticking out of a pile of sand that is on a square platform (remember her-the actress, model, singer from the 70s). Her neck is very long and her face is very angular with her hair sticking straight up. As you watch the light in the room changes and becomes neon blue and her eyes white laser beams…very bizarre.

As you progress into the exhibits rooms there are more Grace Jones images-Grace wearing sunglasses, Grace heads in little niches, Grace with her whole body on paintings and photos.

This artist definitely had a thing for Grace.

In the next room there is a twin of the snow princess sitting very straight in a chair in front of a large mirror. She is speaking in a foreign language and at the end of her dialog the reflection in the mirror is a hologram of her with fire coming from her fingers and surrounding her.

In another room there are 4 or 5 smaller versions of the mannequin women all spinning around. The walls of this room is all mirrors so the spinning mannequins are all around you.

Along with all this bizarre eye candy there is an exhibit of Babar, the lovable elephant from the children’s books.

There is also a collection of shoes and haute couture made from colorful bird feathers.

Really fantastic day at the museum.

We leave and since we are in the area we decide to go to the Marais.

On the way there we stop at a great little patisserie-
Oh mon Cake-154 rue Saint-Honore.

The first floor is really small with a few small café tables, upstairs is a big lounge with sofas and magazines. Besides the good looking pastries they also serve breakfast and lunch.

We indulge in a chocolat chaud and a brownie. Yum!

A great place to chill after such a head rush at the museum.

We walk around the Marais and check out the two big white Christmas trees in front of the Hotel de Ville. There is a skating rink set up but it is not open. It is very festive around the square. Inside the Hotel de Ville there are more Christmas trees made out of green plastic soda bottles with red lights inside them.

We catch the bus back to the 6th with plans of eating dinner at my favorite bistro, Les Flores-but somehow we forget how to get off the bus.

By the time we figure it out we decide it is too far to walk back so we continue on to the 7th and rue Cler where we get roast chicken and the trimmings for a nice dinner at home.

well, i don't need any photos, FF. I can see that girl on skates in my mind's eye very well.

Never been to the Musée des Arts Decoratifs so it's gone on my list.

Sorry you couldn't get into Reed. It really is very good. I did not much care for Cafe du Marche on our 1st trip to Paris in 2006. We ate a few times at Tribeca also on Rue Cler during that trip and really enjoyed it. We went back for Christmas 2011 and ate at Tribeca on Christmas Eve and my husband got food poisoning. Never again.

annhig-thanks for reply, I was more than a little hesitant to go into detail about the exhibits ....haha

Irock5-i agree about Cafe du Marche-but so hungry I did manage to lick my plate clean!

I will wrap this TR up soon with the last days of the adventure.

A day at the market…

On Saturday we head to the big granddaddy of the Paris flea markets- Le Marche aux Puces Saint-Ouen.

I have been here a few times and have still not been to every market. It is a huge brocante (antique market) with different named markets dedicated to different things shooting off the main street.

Here is link to a website with information on the flea markets in Paris:
http://www.gisparis.com/paris_shopping/flea_market.htm

We took the metro there which is the best way to get there unless you splurge on a taxi.

We start at our neighborhood metro stop La Tour Murbourg. As we are waiting for the train to come I notice 3 young men waiting too. They are dressed nice and are clean cut. As the doors open and we start to get on one of them puts their hand in my sisters coat pocket. I instinctively reach and grab his wrist. Then they jump back off the train to wait for their next victim.

I was surprised by my reaction. No thinking involved I just acted. Lucky for us he did not get anything.
It happened so fast that no matter how much you read that you need to be aware of your surroundings I think it is really hard to be aware all the time especially when you are not expecting something bad to happen.

I have read all the tips about things to do to prevent being a victim of pickpockets with one of the tips not to stand by the train door. What we also found out is don’t sit anywhere near the doors either.

This train had a row of seats againinst the back wall and we took a seat in the middle equal distance away from either door. With each stop the train gets more and more crowded. What we didn’t anticipate was as the train started filling up people crowd into this space. Then a man and women start yelling at each other and the women starts pushing the man into us and once again instinctively I react by saying loudly to anyone who will listen-Monsieur, Madame s’il vous plait- as I am trying to get the wave of the crowd to not sit on my lap. Since no one is listening to me our next move is us literally standing on our seats to get above the crush of people.

After a few stops it starts to thin out and we can sit down in our seats and breathe. I don’t know if the yelling was a distraction tactic but I do know I did not like this metro ride.

It was bad-really bad.

But once again we are fortunate and still have all our valuables.

Here’s my take on the Puces Saint-Ouen -

I have been there 3 times now and have only bought one thing- a beautiful bejeweled vintage barrette from the 1930s.

There is a ton of cool stuff to see like-furniture, paintings, chandeliers, vintage jewelry and clothing-but not a lot of bargains or things you could bring home on a plane.

The metro ride is not a good one (for me), and then you get off the metro and to get to the cool stuff you have to walk thru a seedy area with men playing shell type betting games on the sidewalk.

Puces Saint-Ouen has over 2,000 vendors who are very established each having their permanent stalls. I think that there is no real bargaining going on with these professionals.

After this last experience unless I buy an apartment in Paris that I need to furnish- (which will probably not happen-but a girl can dream) or my travel partner really wants to go- for the above reasons I will go to the flea market at Vanves instead.

Vanves is not big.

Vanves has the feel of a traditional flea market- an atmosphere that you might just find a treasure within the makeshift vendor stands.

We leave Puces Saint-Ouen the way we came, on the metro with no additional bags.
We thought about taking the bus but it is standing room only so we take our chances on the metro and happily have no incidents.

We head to Isle Saint Louis, and the calm of watching the twilight sky from the luxury of a sidewalk café.

The night is really nice-not too cold-and it is very festive on the Isle so we do some shopping and this time we succeed in getting additional bags.

We never got to the antique markets. Glad you were unscathed on the metro. Really enjoying this!

How great to read your report and reminisce. We stayed in that apartment in December of 2009 and enjoyed it thoroughly. Yes, a little on the shabby side but but clean and fine for 2 people,
Always laugh when I think of the PePe room. Really enjoyed your report. We did get to two of Constant"s restaurants on S.D. and also ate at the restaurant across the street and to the left as you came out of the apt. which was a big, typical Parisian spot. Thanks!