Back from my trip: Vive la France!
Oct 4th, 2006, 02:27 PM
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Back from my trip: Vive la France!
Returned a week ago from my 10-day trip to Paris and Normandy with 2-day detour to Amsterdam. Many highlights, few low points. As always, I have written rambling travel notes for my file, but some of you were so helpful in my planning, I'd be glad to share them with you if interested. Just email me at [email protected].
Have to tell you now, though, that my best meal in France was not taken at a fancy Paris restaurant but in Bayeux, Normandy, at a place called Le Pommier (The Apple Tree?) Their 3-course menu composed of all fresh, home-grown Norman produce was out of this world--worth a detour, as Michelin likes to say. And dinner for one was less than 30 Euros excluding wine.
Merci beaucoup, tout le monde.
--Logan
Have to tell you now, though, that my best meal in France was not taken at a fancy Paris restaurant but in Bayeux, Normandy, at a place called Le Pommier (The Apple Tree?) Their 3-course menu composed of all fresh, home-grown Norman produce was out of this world--worth a detour, as Michelin likes to say. And dinner for one was less than 30 Euros excluding wine.
Merci beaucoup, tout le monde.
--Logan
Oct 5th, 2006, 07:00 AM
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so good you had a great trip. Your comment about the best meal you had being in Normandy reminds me of our trip a few years ago. We also ate incredibly well in Normandy. We spent several days there and thoroughly enjoyed the local restaurants where every meal was incredibly presented, incredibly tasty and incredibly reasonably priced!
Vive la France!!!!!!!!
Vive la France!!!!!!!!
Oct 5th, 2006, 12:16 PM
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At 2 1/2 printed pages, the notes are too long to post, and I don't know how to do a link to them. I'd like to already know how to do that, but I don't want to learn. 
As for hotels, let me try to copy & paste those sections of my notes, and see if the links come through. I did post reviews of them on TripAdvisor. The ill-advised part of the trip was dividing Paris into 2 stays: first 3 days and last 3 days, necessitating an extra move. There was no choice, though, as I had a traveling companion for the first half of the 10 days, and it was like putting pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together to make the segments fit. Couldn't work in 6 consecutive days in Paris, which would've been better.
I'm signing off now and will put the hotel info online shortly.
As for hotels, let me try to copy & paste those sections of my notes, and see if the links come through. I did post reviews of them on TripAdvisor. The ill-advised part of the trip was dividing Paris into 2 stays: first 3 days and last 3 days, necessitating an extra move. There was no choice, though, as I had a traveling companion for the first half of the 10 days, and it was like putting pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together to make the segments fit. Couldn't work in 6 consecutive days in Paris, which would've been better.
I'm signing off now and will put the hotel info online shortly.
Oct 5th, 2006, 12:20 PM
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<<At 2 1/2 printed pages, the notes are too long to post>>
Not so. There are reports that get copied to this board that are MUCH longer and are enjoyed by many. If by chance someone didn't want to read it all...
....they don't have to!
Not so. There are reports that get copied to this board that are MUCH longer and are enjoyed by many. If by chance someone didn't want to read it all...
....they don't have to!
Oct 5th, 2006, 12:32 PM
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Well, how'd you create those 2.5 pages? on a Word document? If so:
1. open this forum / thread, and click on "reply"
2. open the Word document
3. right-click on your text, choose "select all"
4. click on 'Copy'
5. go back to Fodors window, with your text box ready and click 'Paste'.
6. Choose "preview my reply" and see if it looks ok
7. If yes, click on "Post my reply"
If no, then click "Edit" and fix it.
If you wrote your report online, you can basically follow the same steps.
1. open this forum / thread, and click on "reply"
2. open the Word document
3. right-click on your text, choose "select all"
4. click on 'Copy'
5. go back to Fodors window, with your text box ready and click 'Paste'.
6. Choose "preview my reply" and see if it looks ok
7. If yes, click on "Post my reply"
If no, then click "Edit" and fix it.
If you wrote your report online, you can basically follow the same steps.
Oct 5th, 2006, 12:32 PM
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Oh, what the heck. Except for redacting some names, I'm printing the whole thing in two parts. Here's part I.
First 3 days: Arriving on Wed morning, Sept 13, we had rented a friend of a friend's studio flat at 7 Rue Charlot in the 3rd arr., almost in the 4th--edge of the Marais.
http://www.geocities.com/alaingourronc/
Security code pad to get into the courtyard, then key to enter the garden apt of the U-shaped 5-story bldg. Owner lived upstairs and was available for questions, calling cab on the last morning, etc. Ivy covered, 250-yr old bldg--a hotel particulier, one of many in the neighborhood. Lovely. Perfect for a single or a couple. No air conditioning, and it was unseasonably balmy in Paris, but nights were cool, and we weren't there much in the daytime. Great walking neighborhood 2 blocks from the Picasso Museum, which I found to be a disappointment--all his good stuff is in Chicago and NY. Most of the things in this museum are from his estate--his family gave them to France to avoid paying high inheritance taxes.
Train on Sat morning to Caen, picking up rental car, driving to Bayeux, where we stayed in a real find. If ever you go, try Hotel Tardif, a centuries old "town house" with 6 or 7 rooms to let:
http://www.hoteltardif.com. A woman and her son run it; the 2nd story bedrooms face a wooded park, and it's a block from the cathedral and 3 blocks from the tapestries. We had the 2-bedroom suite with one bath, which divided by two was very reasonable.
Anthony, the son, directed us to Le Pommier (The Apple Tree?), where I had my best meal in France at half the price I paid at a couple of places in Paris: http://www.restaurantlepommier.com/.
In fact it was so good, I went back the second night and dragged my friend, who'd claimed to be too tired the first night to go to a nice place. It was Heritage Weekend in France--most museums free, including the Tapestries, lots of patriotic programs, etc--and Le Pommier's 3-course menus featured all home-grown Norman products. Out of this world. Had the same salad both nights it was so good--can't tell you what was in it except it included a few slivers of apple, but it was topped by a little warm goat cheese souffle, all browned on top and warm and soft inside. One night's main course for me was fresh sea bass, and the other night, it was the owner's grandmere's veal stew, with leeks, carrots, potatoes. Dessert one night was blanc-mange, which I'd never had and that included a fresh fruit of the day, which my night was fresh warmed cherries. Second night I had the medley of 3 creme brulees: dark choc, vanilla, and pistachio. Good, but the blanc-mange was better.
At 8:30 that evening, there was a sold-out performance of Mozart's Requiem in the Cathedral, with massed choirs and orchestras. On the way back to the hotel around 9, I saw a group of obviously neighborhood citizens (some had brought their chairs) gathered around the back door of the cathedral listening. The accoustics were near-perfect, and leaning against the cathedral door for an hour in the nearly deserted dimly-lit square listening to the glorious music with a dozen Bayeux residents was a highlight.
The D-Day sites were as I had imagined them, and I loved being there. Went to the stark German cemetery first and was surprised to find so many of them were just kids--teenagers. The American cemetery was especially moving because of my locating the grave of a childhood friend of my mother's and her siblings from a tiny Arkansas farming community. There are no birth dates at the American cemetery, just dates of deaths, but I'd been told he was 23,probably making him one of the older ones (his rank was sgt.) Pointe de Hoc on the bluff above Omaha Beach was sobering, and the 360-degree theater experience at Arromanches was excellent, moving back and forth from original footage of the bombings, invasion, and devastated aftermath to the way it looks now.
Back to Paris where we split at Gare du Nord, companion going to London and I, with 2 days on the meter before my 2nd Paris hotel reservation, to Amsterdam. Had a good reunion with two Dutch friends on separate evenings. It was interesting to visit with them on their turf. Walked to a great seafood restaurant, Le Pecheur, where we enjoyed dinner on the terrace.
Second night in A'dam was reunion with a former exchange student and his family. Our "student" is now the father of 3 beautiful blonde, squirmy kids and husband of a delightful blonde wife. As is always the case with favorite former students, it was a marvel to see him as a grownup. We had dinner and good talk at a nice canalside restaurant, De Belhamel, on the edge of the Jordaan. I also took in the Van Gogh museum. Part of the great hotel package I had at the Dikker & Thijs Fenice Hotel (www.dtfh.com)-- (nice room with balcony overlooking the rooftops and canals of A'dam)--was buffet breakfast and a free ticket to either the Van Gogh or the Rijksmuseum, my choice. I'd been to both, but enjoyed the VanGogh again.
Last 3 days, back to Paris: The Hotel Royal St Michel on the Left Bank was more expensive than I'd planned or wanted to pay, but I had little choice. Fortunately it was excellent--like finding a small boutique hotel at 42nd St & Times Sq. Tiniest elevator you've ever seen, and my little non-smoking room on the 5th floor (really the 6th) was immaculate, air conditioned, AND soundproofed. From the small balcony looking west from Blvd St Michel & Rue St Sulpice, I could see the tip of the Eiffel Tower. If I leaned over it and looked right, I could see the spire of Ste Chapele next to Notre Dame. So I actually felt that I was in Paris even when in my hotel room. Found a nearby sidewalk cafe for my "petit dejuner francais" every morning: for 6.75 Euros, a hot cup of delicious coffee, small orange juice, a fresh croissant, and a narrow crusty baguette slathered in butter; jam on the side. It was Le Tabac Sorbonne, corner of Place Sorbonne & Blvd St Michel. Lots of locals on way to work and, later, students w/ book bags bound for the Sorbonne a block away.
(Part 2 to follow).
First 3 days: Arriving on Wed morning, Sept 13, we had rented a friend of a friend's studio flat at 7 Rue Charlot in the 3rd arr., almost in the 4th--edge of the Marais.
http://www.geocities.com/alaingourronc/
Security code pad to get into the courtyard, then key to enter the garden apt of the U-shaped 5-story bldg. Owner lived upstairs and was available for questions, calling cab on the last morning, etc. Ivy covered, 250-yr old bldg--a hotel particulier, one of many in the neighborhood. Lovely. Perfect for a single or a couple. No air conditioning, and it was unseasonably balmy in Paris, but nights were cool, and we weren't there much in the daytime. Great walking neighborhood 2 blocks from the Picasso Museum, which I found to be a disappointment--all his good stuff is in Chicago and NY. Most of the things in this museum are from his estate--his family gave them to France to avoid paying high inheritance taxes.
Train on Sat morning to Caen, picking up rental car, driving to Bayeux, where we stayed in a real find. If ever you go, try Hotel Tardif, a centuries old "town house" with 6 or 7 rooms to let:
http://www.hoteltardif.com. A woman and her son run it; the 2nd story bedrooms face a wooded park, and it's a block from the cathedral and 3 blocks from the tapestries. We had the 2-bedroom suite with one bath, which divided by two was very reasonable.
Anthony, the son, directed us to Le Pommier (The Apple Tree?), where I had my best meal in France at half the price I paid at a couple of places in Paris: http://www.restaurantlepommier.com/.
In fact it was so good, I went back the second night and dragged my friend, who'd claimed to be too tired the first night to go to a nice place. It was Heritage Weekend in France--most museums free, including the Tapestries, lots of patriotic programs, etc--and Le Pommier's 3-course menus featured all home-grown Norman products. Out of this world. Had the same salad both nights it was so good--can't tell you what was in it except it included a few slivers of apple, but it was topped by a little warm goat cheese souffle, all browned on top and warm and soft inside. One night's main course for me was fresh sea bass, and the other night, it was the owner's grandmere's veal stew, with leeks, carrots, potatoes. Dessert one night was blanc-mange, which I'd never had and that included a fresh fruit of the day, which my night was fresh warmed cherries. Second night I had the medley of 3 creme brulees: dark choc, vanilla, and pistachio. Good, but the blanc-mange was better.
At 8:30 that evening, there was a sold-out performance of Mozart's Requiem in the Cathedral, with massed choirs and orchestras. On the way back to the hotel around 9, I saw a group of obviously neighborhood citizens (some had brought their chairs) gathered around the back door of the cathedral listening. The accoustics were near-perfect, and leaning against the cathedral door for an hour in the nearly deserted dimly-lit square listening to the glorious music with a dozen Bayeux residents was a highlight.
The D-Day sites were as I had imagined them, and I loved being there. Went to the stark German cemetery first and was surprised to find so many of them were just kids--teenagers. The American cemetery was especially moving because of my locating the grave of a childhood friend of my mother's and her siblings from a tiny Arkansas farming community. There are no birth dates at the American cemetery, just dates of deaths, but I'd been told he was 23,probably making him one of the older ones (his rank was sgt.) Pointe de Hoc on the bluff above Omaha Beach was sobering, and the 360-degree theater experience at Arromanches was excellent, moving back and forth from original footage of the bombings, invasion, and devastated aftermath to the way it looks now.
Back to Paris where we split at Gare du Nord, companion going to London and I, with 2 days on the meter before my 2nd Paris hotel reservation, to Amsterdam. Had a good reunion with two Dutch friends on separate evenings. It was interesting to visit with them on their turf. Walked to a great seafood restaurant, Le Pecheur, where we enjoyed dinner on the terrace.
Second night in A'dam was reunion with a former exchange student and his family. Our "student" is now the father of 3 beautiful blonde, squirmy kids and husband of a delightful blonde wife. As is always the case with favorite former students, it was a marvel to see him as a grownup. We had dinner and good talk at a nice canalside restaurant, De Belhamel, on the edge of the Jordaan. I also took in the Van Gogh museum. Part of the great hotel package I had at the Dikker & Thijs Fenice Hotel (www.dtfh.com)-- (nice room with balcony overlooking the rooftops and canals of A'dam)--was buffet breakfast and a free ticket to either the Van Gogh or the Rijksmuseum, my choice. I'd been to both, but enjoyed the VanGogh again.
Last 3 days, back to Paris: The Hotel Royal St Michel on the Left Bank was more expensive than I'd planned or wanted to pay, but I had little choice. Fortunately it was excellent--like finding a small boutique hotel at 42nd St & Times Sq. Tiniest elevator you've ever seen, and my little non-smoking room on the 5th floor (really the 6th) was immaculate, air conditioned, AND soundproofed. From the small balcony looking west from Blvd St Michel & Rue St Sulpice, I could see the tip of the Eiffel Tower. If I leaned over it and looked right, I could see the spire of Ste Chapele next to Notre Dame. So I actually felt that I was in Paris even when in my hotel room. Found a nearby sidewalk cafe for my "petit dejuner francais" every morning: for 6.75 Euros, a hot cup of delicious coffee, small orange juice, a fresh croissant, and a narrow crusty baguette slathered in butter; jam on the side. It was Le Tabac Sorbonne, corner of Place Sorbonne & Blvd St Michel. Lots of locals on way to work and, later, students w/ book bags bound for the Sorbonne a block away.
(Part 2 to follow).
Oct 5th, 2006, 12:51 PM
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Part 2 (I warned you):
Took two Paris walking tours. Not as good as their London counterparts. For the 2-hr tour of the two islands, the knowledgable young Brit guide spent 1:45 on Ile St Louis (admittedly the more interesting of the two), then seemed startled that he had but 15 minutes left to do Ile de la Cite'. Typical right-brainer. At that point I excused myself from the 11-member group and walked, instead of to Notre Dame, down to the Holocaust memorial at the eastern tip of the island and went through it, as he had said the guardians of the place didn't like tours coming through. You had to go through security, but it was free and worth a quick detour.
I saved the Hemingway walk for my last day and had really looked forward to it, but it's inappropriately named. Less than half the walk involves H'way...More accurately, it was a walk through one of the 3 historical neighborhoods he'd lived in, including Rue Mouffetard, the market st, and around Le Pantheon. So on my own, I later re-traced his other haunts. Had re-read A Moveable Feast on the plane enroute, so I had addresses. Enjoyed tracking down his apt. over the sawmill on Rue Notre Dame des Champs, his cafes along Blvd Montparnasse (particularly the ivy-covered La Closerie des Lilas, which exasperatingly was closed in mid-morning--had to settle for a coffee at another Hemingway cafe, Le Select), and Most Especially finding Gertrude and Alice B's place at 27 rue de Fleurus just west of Luxembourg gardens. It's now a fancy apt house with a locked gate over the arched entryway leading to the courtyard off which one entered Gertrude's apt (I knew exactly where it would be but couldn't get in.) Then a nice 40ish French couple came, punched in the security code, and as I guess I looked harmless, the woman asked if I wanted to come in. I thanked her, and (as if she didn't already know) mumbled "Une Pilgrimage chez Gertrude Stein." She smiled and said in French-accented English, "Unfortunately not mine," and pointed me to the right side of the gardened courtyard to the 2-story annex of the 6-story bldg, almost a lean-to, which I'd have been certain was hers. (Have you guessed I'm a former high school American lit teacher?) She left and I stood and soaked it in for a time. Then couldn't get out of the gate and stood there for several minutes until a man came home and opened it and I scurried out. He didn't look as friendly as the couple.
Had afternoon coffee at old artiste hangout Cafe de Flore on Blvd St-Germain, and within 45 minutes the following happened: (1) Saw Emma Thompson come out of the cafe, embrace and air-kiss a male companion, and part in opposite directions; then (2) paid my check, crossed the street, and while waiting in front of Les Deux Magots for the light to change, heard "Logan Xxxx?" and turned to find an open-mouthed friend that I seldom see here in my hometown. His wife had hurt her knee and was sitting while hubby took pictures. This kind of thing happens to me all the time. Doesn't it you?
Paris restaurants: Enjoyed Brasserie Bofinger near Place Bastille (a strange and wonderful sauerkraut-and-seafood concoction that's one of their specialties) and somewhat regretted reserving in the non-smoking section upstairs, as I'd rather have been downstairs "under the dome," but we took a walk through and looked at it anyhow. Tried to get into Brasserie Balzar by the Sorbonne another night but w/o reservation was turned away. No loss, as I had an excellent bouillabaise at nearby La Mediterranee' on Rue Odeon. One evening joined host Alain of 7 Rue Charlot outside at Chez Marianne, a cafe on Rue des Rosiers (Rosebush street), a narrow twisty street in the heart of the Jewish section of the Marais...had many small dishes that were vaguely Middle-Eastern, all good except the one with liver. Good seafood soup late one evening at casual Les Marronieres in the Marais. Lunched at two 1-star Michelin restaurants while in Paris. Had been warned Rest. Jules Verne, on the second level of the Eiffel Tower, was touristy, as no doubt it was, but our long lunch with a killer view was a success: the food was excellent (and terribly rich), my request for a window table was granted, and the waitpersons were charming. We experienced no rudeness, much less hostility, anywhere in France, by the way. The French get a bad rap for that. They were never anything but kind and helpful to an aging American tourist trying to use his rusty college French. It's just Bush they find appalling.
For the other Michelin-starred lunch, met an American friend at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in the 7th (just off Rue de Bac). It's all no-smoking, and in a bit of reverse snobbery, everybody sits at the double U-shaped bar looking into the kitchen. There are no tables, and no reservations except for the earliest seating at lunch, which I'd reserved for 12:30. Very good, very expensive. Robuchon is opening a similar "Atelier" in Manhattan this fall--at the Four Seasons Hotel, I think.
Gave myself permission to skip the Louvre--too exhausting and time-consuming--but was bowled over by my first visit to the Musee d'Orsay. And really enjoyed pre-dinner drinks one evening at Bar Hemingway at the Ritz. (Has it always been in that spot at the back of the Ritz, I wonder? It looks authentic, but I'd imagined it as being off the front lobby.)
Toyed with idea of seeing the new Almodovar movie "Volver," but as it would have been in Spanish with French subtitles, decided to wait for it to come to our good little indie theater. Trekking the length of the Champs Elysees, riding the tram up Montmartre to gleaming Sacre Coeur and walking down, seeing sights from a bateau mouche on the Seine at dusk, and sampling a few nameless cafes for quick pick-me-ups rounded out the trip. Following up on a friend's rec to try Mariage Freres, a 150-yr old tea shop with three branches, I chose the one on quiet Rue des Grands-Augustins in the 6th, where on a hot afternoon, having a glass of freshly brewed Marco Polo iced tea served on a silver tray by a waiter in white tie treading quietly over hardwood plank floors seemed, well, quite colonial.
That's pretty much it, except for the saga of getting home. Left Paris late because the Continental crew was 1 1/2 hrs late arriving at the airport, then arrived Houston late and had to race from the SE end of the airport to the NW corner for my connection, the last of the day to my hometown. Made it panting as they were closing the door--then sat at the gate for 2 hrs because storms were raging around Houston to the north and every plane had to take off to the SE. Our number came up almost 2 hrs later. Pilot said we would be taking a circuitous route home, and indeed we did--flying over the bright lights of N'Orleans, easily recognizable to anybody who's ever seen a map of the city. Turned left over Lake Pontchartrain and followed the Miss River most of the way home to avoid storms. Arrived home at 11 pm--exactly 24 hrs after getting up in Paris at 6 a.m.
Just about recovered now, ready to go again.
Took two Paris walking tours. Not as good as their London counterparts. For the 2-hr tour of the two islands, the knowledgable young Brit guide spent 1:45 on Ile St Louis (admittedly the more interesting of the two), then seemed startled that he had but 15 minutes left to do Ile de la Cite'. Typical right-brainer. At that point I excused myself from the 11-member group and walked, instead of to Notre Dame, down to the Holocaust memorial at the eastern tip of the island and went through it, as he had said the guardians of the place didn't like tours coming through. You had to go through security, but it was free and worth a quick detour.
I saved the Hemingway walk for my last day and had really looked forward to it, but it's inappropriately named. Less than half the walk involves H'way...More accurately, it was a walk through one of the 3 historical neighborhoods he'd lived in, including Rue Mouffetard, the market st, and around Le Pantheon. So on my own, I later re-traced his other haunts. Had re-read A Moveable Feast on the plane enroute, so I had addresses. Enjoyed tracking down his apt. over the sawmill on Rue Notre Dame des Champs, his cafes along Blvd Montparnasse (particularly the ivy-covered La Closerie des Lilas, which exasperatingly was closed in mid-morning--had to settle for a coffee at another Hemingway cafe, Le Select), and Most Especially finding Gertrude and Alice B's place at 27 rue de Fleurus just west of Luxembourg gardens. It's now a fancy apt house with a locked gate over the arched entryway leading to the courtyard off which one entered Gertrude's apt (I knew exactly where it would be but couldn't get in.) Then a nice 40ish French couple came, punched in the security code, and as I guess I looked harmless, the woman asked if I wanted to come in. I thanked her, and (as if she didn't already know) mumbled "Une Pilgrimage chez Gertrude Stein." She smiled and said in French-accented English, "Unfortunately not mine," and pointed me to the right side of the gardened courtyard to the 2-story annex of the 6-story bldg, almost a lean-to, which I'd have been certain was hers. (Have you guessed I'm a former high school American lit teacher?) She left and I stood and soaked it in for a time. Then couldn't get out of the gate and stood there for several minutes until a man came home and opened it and I scurried out. He didn't look as friendly as the couple.
Had afternoon coffee at old artiste hangout Cafe de Flore on Blvd St-Germain, and within 45 minutes the following happened: (1) Saw Emma Thompson come out of the cafe, embrace and air-kiss a male companion, and part in opposite directions; then (2) paid my check, crossed the street, and while waiting in front of Les Deux Magots for the light to change, heard "Logan Xxxx?" and turned to find an open-mouthed friend that I seldom see here in my hometown. His wife had hurt her knee and was sitting while hubby took pictures. This kind of thing happens to me all the time. Doesn't it you?
Paris restaurants: Enjoyed Brasserie Bofinger near Place Bastille (a strange and wonderful sauerkraut-and-seafood concoction that's one of their specialties) and somewhat regretted reserving in the non-smoking section upstairs, as I'd rather have been downstairs "under the dome," but we took a walk through and looked at it anyhow. Tried to get into Brasserie Balzar by the Sorbonne another night but w/o reservation was turned away. No loss, as I had an excellent bouillabaise at nearby La Mediterranee' on Rue Odeon. One evening joined host Alain of 7 Rue Charlot outside at Chez Marianne, a cafe on Rue des Rosiers (Rosebush street), a narrow twisty street in the heart of the Jewish section of the Marais...had many small dishes that were vaguely Middle-Eastern, all good except the one with liver. Good seafood soup late one evening at casual Les Marronieres in the Marais. Lunched at two 1-star Michelin restaurants while in Paris. Had been warned Rest. Jules Verne, on the second level of the Eiffel Tower, was touristy, as no doubt it was, but our long lunch with a killer view was a success: the food was excellent (and terribly rich), my request for a window table was granted, and the waitpersons were charming. We experienced no rudeness, much less hostility, anywhere in France, by the way. The French get a bad rap for that. They were never anything but kind and helpful to an aging American tourist trying to use his rusty college French. It's just Bush they find appalling.
For the other Michelin-starred lunch, met an American friend at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in the 7th (just off Rue de Bac). It's all no-smoking, and in a bit of reverse snobbery, everybody sits at the double U-shaped bar looking into the kitchen. There are no tables, and no reservations except for the earliest seating at lunch, which I'd reserved for 12:30. Very good, very expensive. Robuchon is opening a similar "Atelier" in Manhattan this fall--at the Four Seasons Hotel, I think.
Gave myself permission to skip the Louvre--too exhausting and time-consuming--but was bowled over by my first visit to the Musee d'Orsay. And really enjoyed pre-dinner drinks one evening at Bar Hemingway at the Ritz. (Has it always been in that spot at the back of the Ritz, I wonder? It looks authentic, but I'd imagined it as being off the front lobby.)
Toyed with idea of seeing the new Almodovar movie "Volver," but as it would have been in Spanish with French subtitles, decided to wait for it to come to our good little indie theater. Trekking the length of the Champs Elysees, riding the tram up Montmartre to gleaming Sacre Coeur and walking down, seeing sights from a bateau mouche on the Seine at dusk, and sampling a few nameless cafes for quick pick-me-ups rounded out the trip. Following up on a friend's rec to try Mariage Freres, a 150-yr old tea shop with three branches, I chose the one on quiet Rue des Grands-Augustins in the 6th, where on a hot afternoon, having a glass of freshly brewed Marco Polo iced tea served on a silver tray by a waiter in white tie treading quietly over hardwood plank floors seemed, well, quite colonial.
That's pretty much it, except for the saga of getting home. Left Paris late because the Continental crew was 1 1/2 hrs late arriving at the airport, then arrived Houston late and had to race from the SE end of the airport to the NW corner for my connection, the last of the day to my hometown. Made it panting as they were closing the door--then sat at the gate for 2 hrs because storms were raging around Houston to the north and every plane had to take off to the SE. Our number came up almost 2 hrs later. Pilot said we would be taking a circuitous route home, and indeed we did--flying over the bright lights of N'Orleans, easily recognizable to anybody who's ever seen a map of the city. Turned left over Lake Pontchartrain and followed the Miss River most of the way home to avoid storms. Arrived home at 11 pm--exactly 24 hrs after getting up in Paris at 6 a.m.
Just about recovered now, ready to go again.
Oct 5th, 2006, 02:23 PM
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Thanks for the report Logan - I really enjoyed it.
I loved the bit about people taking lawn chairs to the back of the cathedral to hear the Mozart requiem. As teens, We used sit at a loading dock door in a DC alley to listen to internationally famous jazz acts (the stage backs up to the door) since there was no way we could afford the outrageous cover charges (not to mention being underage).
I loved the bit about people taking lawn chairs to the back of the cathedral to hear the Mozart requiem. As teens, We used sit at a loading dock door in a DC alley to listen to internationally famous jazz acts (the stage backs up to the door) since there was no way we could afford the outrageous cover charges (not to mention being underage).
Oct 6th, 2006, 04:36 AM
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When I read your saying "un pilgrimage chez Gertrude Stein" in such a context, I almost thought you were giving a code word/phrase, out of some romantic WWII resistance movie.
Thank you very, very much for the hotel tips, and I loved the report.
Thank you very, very much for the hotel tips, and I loved the report.
Oct 6th, 2006, 12:46 PM
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What a wonderful post. Sorry to hear about your flight home. Long ago I swore to never fly Continental for similar reasons!
Your Paris stops seem to correspond pretty closely with my loose itinerary next week. Would you mind some questions (anyone)?
1. Dress code @ various places-are Hotel Ritz Bar & Robuchon places for swank dressing or can I get away with business casual-nice pants suit? Would I be comfortable in jeans @ Closerie @ Mariage Freres?
2. Is Paris really "walkable" in a couple of hours? I am a good walker, but I have plenty I want to see but also time to explore. I can't imagine walking Manhattan or even my home town in a couple of hours! Is this true? Is it possible for me to explore Pere Lachais in the morning, lunch in the 19e, quick explore Sacre Couer and then L'Eglise St. Germain l'Auxerois, do a 2 hr Louvre (I plan to do this every day while in Paris), dinner and concert? Mostly by metro?
Thanks in advance!
Your Paris stops seem to correspond pretty closely with my loose itinerary next week. Would you mind some questions (anyone)?
1. Dress code @ various places-are Hotel Ritz Bar & Robuchon places for swank dressing or can I get away with business casual-nice pants suit? Would I be comfortable in jeans @ Closerie @ Mariage Freres?
2. Is Paris really "walkable" in a couple of hours? I am a good walker, but I have plenty I want to see but also time to explore. I can't imagine walking Manhattan or even my home town in a couple of hours! Is this true? Is it possible for me to explore Pere Lachais in the morning, lunch in the 19e, quick explore Sacre Couer and then L'Eglise St. Germain l'Auxerois, do a 2 hr Louvre (I plan to do this every day while in Paris), dinner and concert? Mostly by metro?
Thanks in advance!
Oct 6th, 2006, 02:18 PM
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MommaDi: Definitely dress casual would be fine for Bar Hemingway and Robuchon. I saw jeans with a blazer at Bar Hem. It's easy for men to fudge on dress code by wearing a jacket over a dark cotton mock turtle with slacks, which is what I usually did...and never felt out of place. I would probably not wear jeans to Mariage unless I dressed them up a bit with a jacket or something...unless you were there for weekend brunch, which I imagine is very casual. I didn't get to go to La Closerie des Lilas; can't speak to it.
And my answer to your last question is NO...that's too much for one day. I'd say drop something, or you'll drop before sundown. Bon vogage!
Logan
And my answer to your last question is NO...that's too much for one day. I'd say drop something, or you'll drop before sundown. Bon vogage!
Logan
