Schnauzer reporting live from Paris May09
May 5th, 2009, 03:09 AM
#21
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Hi Schnauzer, enjoying your report. I'm also from the suburbs of Sydney and appreciate that it is a huge contrast to be in the centre of the busy city like Paris. You did well to sleep on the plane, last time I barely got a wink either way and the jet lag was horrible.
For your aching feet - before you head out each day, put some water in the fridge or make ice, or both, whatever is possible. When you get back if you have an appropriate container, soak your poor feet in the iciest water you can stand for 10 minutes or so. It really hurts, but 1/2 an hour later you will feel so much better.
I love the story of you walking tour on your own. My first trip to Paris we were only a block away from le bon Marche and it became one of our favourite haunts, aren't those cakes fabulous!! I strolled through there one day, highly amused to watch my two very stylish (early 50's) girlfriends being followed by a security guard - I've no idea why, as they looked very respectable!!
Keep your report coming, it's a lovely read.
For your aching feet - before you head out each day, put some water in the fridge or make ice, or both, whatever is possible. When you get back if you have an appropriate container, soak your poor feet in the iciest water you can stand for 10 minutes or so. It really hurts, but 1/2 an hour later you will feel so much better.
I love the story of you walking tour on your own. My first trip to Paris we were only a block away from le bon Marche and it became one of our favourite haunts, aren't those cakes fabulous!! I strolled through there one day, highly amused to watch my two very stylish (early 50's) girlfriends being followed by a security guard - I've no idea why, as they looked very respectable!!
Keep your report coming, it's a lovely read.
May 5th, 2009, 03:53 AM
#22
Thanks for the great report.
I understand what you mean about the crowds at the Galeries Lafayette. When I was in Paris in November, the crowds outside on the sidewalk were so bad that I didn't even get off the bus.
I understand what you mean about the crowds at the Galeries Lafayette. When I was in Paris in November, the crowds outside on the sidewalk were so bad that I didn't even get off the bus.
May 5th, 2009, 05:21 AM
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hi schnauzer,
thanks for posting live. i'm really enjoying your report! i've noted down the details of your walk through the 6th...we'll be staying in that area this fall and it sounds like something fun to do!
looking forward to the rest of your report...
enjoy your time there.
lilaki
thanks for posting live. i'm really enjoying your report! i've noted down the details of your walk through the 6th...we'll be staying in that area this fall and it sounds like something fun to do!
looking forward to the rest of your report...
enjoy your time there.
lilaki
May 5th, 2009, 11:48 AM
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Hi Everyone, Glad you are enjoying my report. Today I don't have too much to report. I had been fighting off a cold for days and this morning it decided to finally make a move! The day was very cloudy so feeling sorry for myself I stayed inside for most of the day. The luxury of having a whole month is that you don't feel obliged to rush out at every opportunity. After a lunch at the apartment, the smell of the cheeses we bought the other day are staying to take over the fridge, so we thought we needed to eat up, I had a little read and then we went out to meet a lady who I had met through corresponding about the apartment. They had signed the guest book and I emailed to get a reference from them. We have kept in touch and the wife is here by herself for the month of May also, we planned a rendezvous and met at Marriages Freres this afternoon. We sat and chatted for over two hours!! Certainly this travelling brings strangers together. We have arranged to meet again in a couple of days to walk the Bois du Boulogne together.
DH and I went out to Les Diables du Thyme for a lovely meal. The sun has set and now it is time to go to sleep. Bon nuit.
Schnauzer
DH and I went out to Les Diables du Thyme for a lovely meal. The sun has set and now it is time to go to sleep. Bon nuit.
Schnauzer
May 5th, 2009, 04:05 PM
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Whoa, a WHOLE month!! How did I miss that?? I am green with envy. (I just looked in the mirror and it's true!!) So I can't wait to see Paris in the springtime and turning into summer through your eyes. Sleep tight!
May 5th, 2009, 05:15 PM
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Hi schnauzer,
Another one from the sunny suburbs of Sydney here. And very jealous of your whole month in Paris.
I am reading everything I can in preparation for my 5 days at the end of June.
Keep up the great report. I feel like I right there with you. (well almost).
Another one from the sunny suburbs of Sydney here. And very jealous of your whole month in Paris.
I am reading everything I can in preparation for my 5 days at the end of June.
Keep up the great report. I feel like I right there with you. (well almost).
May 5th, 2009, 06:10 PM
#29
Hi Schnauzer,
I'm finding your updates from Paris so enjoyable. I believe I will be meeting you on the 23rd (unless I've got that all mixed up--very, very possible). If not, I will be following your adventures here.
Merci beauoup,
L
I'm finding your updates from Paris so enjoyable. I believe I will be meeting you on the 23rd (unless I've got that all mixed up--very, very possible). If not, I will be following your adventures here.
Merci beauoup,
L
May 5th, 2009, 11:00 PM
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Hi Everyone, thanks for keeping in touch. I like getting the feedback. Nice to hear from fellow Sydneysiders.
Leely2 I am going to both GTGs in Paris, the 9th and the 23rd, so yes I will see you then. Looking forward to meeting everyone very much.
off for an exercise walk now, those lunches, dinners and macarons are catching up already.
Schnauzer
Leely2 I am going to both GTGs in Paris, the 9th and the 23rd, so yes I will see you then. Looking forward to meeting everyone very much.
off for an exercise walk now, those lunches, dinners and macarons are catching up already.
Schnauzer
May 6th, 2009, 02:29 AM
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Hello, enjoying this very much. Sharing your month helps me last until I can start my month the end of September.
I always missed Paris and would thrive on trip reports. I wasn't sure when or how or if I would return after I had a fall down my Paris apartment stairs last year. I tried not to go onto Fodor's much and divert my interest. Very thankful all is well now. I have been working and diligently socking away my "Paris money". I try to tell myself it is different this time but my extra money always turns into "Paris money".
I had great GTG last year. Hope for another this year.
Thank you so much for the day by day. I love it!
I always missed Paris and would thrive on trip reports. I wasn't sure when or how or if I would return after I had a fall down my Paris apartment stairs last year. I tried not to go onto Fodor's much and divert my interest. Very thankful all is well now. I have been working and diligently socking away my "Paris money". I try to tell myself it is different this time but my extra money always turns into "Paris money".
I had great GTG last year. Hope for another this year.
Thank you so much for the day by day. I love it!
May 6th, 2009, 11:27 PM
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Wednesday 6th May
Went for a jogette in the morning where it was 13o, a bit nippy. We seemed to have a late start and didn’t get out of the apartment until 11.00. We followed another walk I had discovered around the Beaubourg area. We saw Paris’ oldest house twice!! Everyone wants to have this claim apparently. We saw from the outside the Georges Pompidou Centre, it really was most peculiar. We then made a wrong turn and got very confused with the walk, ending up back tracking and going all over the place. However I found a fabulous Indian hole in the wall café and bought a jellaby (not sure of spelling) which is an Indian sweet (emphasis on sweet) meat. It was divine, sweet, syrupy and crispy at the same time. A concoction of basically sugar and batter deep fried! Almost opposite was the BVH dog supply shop. A definite return visit required to stock up on gifts for the fuzzy babes at home. We had originally planned to go to the 7th for lunch but time was getting away from us as we had another walk organized with the Paris Greeter at 3.00pm in Montmatre. As it was now gone 1.30pm we just stopped at a crepe place. I ordered a galette with cheese, ham, egg and parsley which was really good. DH ordered a Caesar Salad which was nearly inedible. The staff didn’t seem perturbed that he had left most of it and even after we explained how bad it was they just shrugged and charged us anyway. Not a big success there.
We caught the metro back up to Blanche for our meeting with Roslyn. She was petite French lady who loved Australians having lived in Sydney 20 years ago and travelled back several times. She was very pleasant but not particularly informative. We had been to Montmatre ourselves last time and had seen a lot of the same stuff then, the other young American couple who came with us on the tour had never been to Paris before and I am not sure what they made of the whole thing. It was a very pleasant walk around the area but we didn’t really get an in depth look behind the scenes or pick up those extra tidbits of info.
Our feet were aching by this time and we went back to the apartment before we had to head out for dinner.
Now the dinner story was interesting. The 9th isn’t over endowed with restaurant options, at least not within the immediate vicinity of the apartment. I have both the Sandra Gustafson book and the Michelin red guide so we had a plan of action. There appeared to be a few good ones down rue St. George. The first was Japanese, (didn’t feel like Japanese) the second Italian, not bad, quite $$, the next was closed and shuttered, the next just closed, the next closed but with a sign saying they will be open on the 11th May. Hmm, is there something going on that we don’t know about? Okay, back to rue St. Lazare, the next one had turned from a restaurant into a cooking school, okay, the next one then, oh no this one was having a private function and had no bookings. The next one wanted $80 for a main course, I don’t think so. We were starting to get that Twilight Zone feeling. I had two more options, 6 and 8 rue Lamartine. Number 8 appeared to be a jewelry shop but ah ha, number 6 was actually a restaurant and guess what they were open and had food!!!! In we went, did we have a reservation? Gulp, no, a quick look at the book and a table appeared. It was called Carte Blanche. I had found this on a food reviewer’s web blog. The food was very unusual to say the least. Nice unusual though. Our waiter was a young friendly lad and after asking for some English explanations as the menu was so bizarre we couldn’t understand it. This perfectly sounding Frenchman then spoke in a very broad English accent. Absolutely bilingual.
I chose the macaron – yes sweet macaron with prawns and exotique onion relish. DH had the home made foie gras. Both were very good and fabulously presented. The entrée was very different but not inedible combination. For mains I had individually barbecued lamb brochettes with potatoes and beans (at last some greens) and a four spice paste like homous to go with it. It was served on its own tiny little hot plate on the tray, very cute. DH had a combination of squid and pigeon, he had to order this just to see what they would come up with. It came with a grain salad. The squid was nothing exciting but the poor pigeon was terrific. For desserts I had the chocolate meringue combination, and DH had Tonka and madelines. Hmm, Tonka, isn’t that a kids truck? It is also a South American grain. It was like a crème brulee consistency with a concentrated fruit paste concoction on top. Again very different but very good. We had a bottle of Viognier which was from the Rhone Valley, quite pleasant but quite light.
So after trawling through 8 other restaurants we finally found a super spot.
Today is destined to be lovely and sunny so Bois de Boulogne it is.
Schnauzer
Went for a jogette in the morning where it was 13o, a bit nippy. We seemed to have a late start and didn’t get out of the apartment until 11.00. We followed another walk I had discovered around the Beaubourg area. We saw Paris’ oldest house twice!! Everyone wants to have this claim apparently. We saw from the outside the Georges Pompidou Centre, it really was most peculiar. We then made a wrong turn and got very confused with the walk, ending up back tracking and going all over the place. However I found a fabulous Indian hole in the wall café and bought a jellaby (not sure of spelling) which is an Indian sweet (emphasis on sweet) meat. It was divine, sweet, syrupy and crispy at the same time. A concoction of basically sugar and batter deep fried! Almost opposite was the BVH dog supply shop. A definite return visit required to stock up on gifts for the fuzzy babes at home. We had originally planned to go to the 7th for lunch but time was getting away from us as we had another walk organized with the Paris Greeter at 3.00pm in Montmatre. As it was now gone 1.30pm we just stopped at a crepe place. I ordered a galette with cheese, ham, egg and parsley which was really good. DH ordered a Caesar Salad which was nearly inedible. The staff didn’t seem perturbed that he had left most of it and even after we explained how bad it was they just shrugged and charged us anyway. Not a big success there.
We caught the metro back up to Blanche for our meeting with Roslyn. She was petite French lady who loved Australians having lived in Sydney 20 years ago and travelled back several times. She was very pleasant but not particularly informative. We had been to Montmatre ourselves last time and had seen a lot of the same stuff then, the other young American couple who came with us on the tour had never been to Paris before and I am not sure what they made of the whole thing. It was a very pleasant walk around the area but we didn’t really get an in depth look behind the scenes or pick up those extra tidbits of info.
Our feet were aching by this time and we went back to the apartment before we had to head out for dinner.
Now the dinner story was interesting. The 9th isn’t over endowed with restaurant options, at least not within the immediate vicinity of the apartment. I have both the Sandra Gustafson book and the Michelin red guide so we had a plan of action. There appeared to be a few good ones down rue St. George. The first was Japanese, (didn’t feel like Japanese) the second Italian, not bad, quite $$, the next was closed and shuttered, the next just closed, the next closed but with a sign saying they will be open on the 11th May. Hmm, is there something going on that we don’t know about? Okay, back to rue St. Lazare, the next one had turned from a restaurant into a cooking school, okay, the next one then, oh no this one was having a private function and had no bookings. The next one wanted $80 for a main course, I don’t think so. We were starting to get that Twilight Zone feeling. I had two more options, 6 and 8 rue Lamartine. Number 8 appeared to be a jewelry shop but ah ha, number 6 was actually a restaurant and guess what they were open and had food!!!! In we went, did we have a reservation? Gulp, no, a quick look at the book and a table appeared. It was called Carte Blanche. I had found this on a food reviewer’s web blog. The food was very unusual to say the least. Nice unusual though. Our waiter was a young friendly lad and after asking for some English explanations as the menu was so bizarre we couldn’t understand it. This perfectly sounding Frenchman then spoke in a very broad English accent. Absolutely bilingual.
I chose the macaron – yes sweet macaron with prawns and exotique onion relish. DH had the home made foie gras. Both were very good and fabulously presented. The entrée was very different but not inedible combination. For mains I had individually barbecued lamb brochettes with potatoes and beans (at last some greens) and a four spice paste like homous to go with it. It was served on its own tiny little hot plate on the tray, very cute. DH had a combination of squid and pigeon, he had to order this just to see what they would come up with. It came with a grain salad. The squid was nothing exciting but the poor pigeon was terrific. For desserts I had the chocolate meringue combination, and DH had Tonka and madelines. Hmm, Tonka, isn’t that a kids truck? It is also a South American grain. It was like a crème brulee consistency with a concentrated fruit paste concoction on top. Again very different but very good. We had a bottle of Viognier which was from the Rhone Valley, quite pleasant but quite light.
So after trawling through 8 other restaurants we finally found a super spot.
Today is destined to be lovely and sunny so Bois de Boulogne it is.
Schnauzer
May 7th, 2009, 10:16 AM
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Dear Schnauzer,
I have been following your travels with interest as we have stayed in your apartment at the corner of Rochefoucauld and Aumale for probably a total of at least 6 months. The funniest thing is that we were at Carte Blanche last night also! We have been going to this restaurant since it opened and even taken a cooking class there. We had several dishes between the four of us----My son had the menu Carte Blanche and he had lamb instead of pigeon with calamari as his main. The white asparagus with strawberry entree was delicious. All had ravioli with foie gras with caramalized balsamic vinegar, not listed on the menu, a specialty of the chef that he knows is one of my favorites. Someone had the sot l'y laisse and crevettes tandoori style and another had the rouget. I had the gambas bouquet des fleurs. Desserts were ganache tendre with peach mousse and a madeline, melon and strawberry soup with pepper ice cream,strawberries in a wine sauce with caramel/ginger ice cream and a warm financier, and a cheesecake with huge fresh blueberries,blackberries and strawberries. You have several good restaurants near you----Casa Olympe, Dell Orto, Sizin, Romain and even the starred Jean----the 9th is not a dining desert. I have to agree with you about Deux Theatres. There are two very good bargain restaurants called Bistro Canaille and also Corneil known for its cote de boeuf for two. Carpe Diem is a good value as is Fontaine Fiacre. Have fun discovering the wonders of the your new neighborhood.
Ms Laidback
I have been following your travels with interest as we have stayed in your apartment at the corner of Rochefoucauld and Aumale for probably a total of at least 6 months. The funniest thing is that we were at Carte Blanche last night also! We have been going to this restaurant since it opened and even taken a cooking class there. We had several dishes between the four of us----My son had the menu Carte Blanche and he had lamb instead of pigeon with calamari as his main. The white asparagus with strawberry entree was delicious. All had ravioli with foie gras with caramalized balsamic vinegar, not listed on the menu, a specialty of the chef that he knows is one of my favorites. Someone had the sot l'y laisse and crevettes tandoori style and another had the rouget. I had the gambas bouquet des fleurs. Desserts were ganache tendre with peach mousse and a madeline, melon and strawberry soup with pepper ice cream,strawberries in a wine sauce with caramel/ginger ice cream and a warm financier, and a cheesecake with huge fresh blueberries,blackberries and strawberries. You have several good restaurants near you----Casa Olympe, Dell Orto, Sizin, Romain and even the starred Jean----the 9th is not a dining desert. I have to agree with you about Deux Theatres. There are two very good bargain restaurants called Bistro Canaille and also Corneil known for its cote de boeuf for two. Carpe Diem is a good value as is Fontaine Fiacre. Have fun discovering the wonders of the your new neighborhood.
Ms Laidback
May 8th, 2009, 08:44 AM
#38
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Hi Laidback,
That is an amazing coincidence!! I was the gorgeous tall slim blonde young thing..... oh hang on that is my alter ego!!! Where were you sitting? We were on the same side as the bar two tables up. I think we were the first to leave the restaurant. We really enjoyed the food. I knew about some of those other retaurants they were the ones that were closed, and the Jean was the $80aus for a main course.
Where are you staying this time? Are you still in the 9th?
Are you coming to the GTG tomorrow night? I would love to see you there.
More of my travels to come in my next post.
Schnauzer
That is an amazing coincidence!! I was the gorgeous tall slim blonde young thing..... oh hang on that is my alter ego!!! Where were you sitting? We were on the same side as the bar two tables up. I think we were the first to leave the restaurant. We really enjoyed the food. I knew about some of those other retaurants they were the ones that were closed, and the Jean was the $80aus for a main course.
Where are you staying this time? Are you still in the 9th?
Are you coming to the GTG tomorrow night? I would love to see you there.
More of my travels to come in my next post.
Schnauzer
May 8th, 2009, 10:59 PM
#39
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It is looking like a nice day today. I think we will go to St. Germain en Laye for a look around.
I will post my exursions for the last couple of days later. This post keeps sinking so if you are enjoying the read please comment and bring back to the top. merci.
Schnauzer
I will post my exursions for the last couple of days later. This post keeps sinking so if you are enjoying the read please comment and bring back to the top. merci.
Schnauzer
May 8th, 2009, 11:29 PM
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Schnauzer,
I know what you mean about things being closed.I think with the two Friday holidays that a lot of people just took the entire week in between off. We were at the very first table on the left hand side as you enter Carte Blanche. We are staying on rue St. Lazare now. Have spent April traveling around Burgundy and are now in Paris. We had a delicious meal last night at Cafe Qui Parle on rue Caulaincourt. No, we won't be attending the GTG as we have family in town. Have a great time in St Germain en Laye.
Ms.Laidback
I know what you mean about things being closed.I think with the two Friday holidays that a lot of people just took the entire week in between off. We were at the very first table on the left hand side as you enter Carte Blanche. We are staying on rue St. Lazare now. Have spent April traveling around Burgundy and are now in Paris. We had a delicious meal last night at Cafe Qui Parle on rue Caulaincourt. No, we won't be attending the GTG as we have family in town. Have a great time in St Germain en Laye.
Ms.Laidback
