Great report Ruby!
I was just in Paris at the beginning of October with my Mom and we stayed in a hotel right near your apartment. I also remember all those "wholesale only" stores and I was so disappointed we could not shop in them!

I discovered Amorino by accident
& was amazed...so addictive!!!

<b> Paris, day 3: October 29th (continued) </b>

It is now late afternoon and all we've had to eat was our usual breakfast and the glaces from Amorino. We decide to head towards Ladur&eacute;e (http://www.laduree.fr/public_en/mais...ps_accueil.htm) We'd heard fantastic things about it from our cousin who was there in March, and really all the reviews were great.

There is a 20 minute wait or so to get seated in the tea-room, but we decide to wait. The downstairs part doesn't seem as nice (tables too crowded), so we're glad to be seated upstairs in the library section. We ask if we can still order lunch and the waitress says yes, until closing. So we both order club sandwiches: a normal turkey/bacon one for my sister and I get the smoked salmon club. It arrives with green salad and about 4 beefsteak fries on the side. We're not tea drinkers, so we just get une carafe d'eau.

We savor the food and the atmosphere, it is great here. We're asked if we want dessert and when we say we're too full, she suggests a take-away box of macarons. That would have been great (no waiting in line) but you can't choose flavors that way. So we pay (21&euro; for mine) and I get in the queue at the comptoir des p&acirc;tisseries. The line moves fast enough, but it is still about 15 minutes before I get my turn. I order 4 macarons @ 1.80&euro; each (pistachio, citron, framboise et chocolat). Mmmmm. <i> Did I really stand in line for 15 minutes to get 4 macarons though?? Only in Paris! </i>

We then cross over on the other side of l'avenue and go into Sephora, FNAC and a few other stores. Then I see my first Monoprix in this city and go browsing inside. I don't think a similar store at home would excite me like this, but I love Monoprix here!!!

We then decide it's time to get back to the apartment and start walking to the metro George V (line 1 still... this will bring us right to Hotel de Ville). It's now dark and crowded and for some reason I trip on the sidewalk and go down in the middle of a side street !!! My hands hit the pavement first, I'm soooo lucky I was wearing gloves cuz it was a hard fall and my hands slid a bit... I could easily have broken one or both wrists. My sister asked what I was doing there!!!??? and a very kind lady crossed the street to see if I was OK. I'm lucky I wasn't hit because a car had to slam on the brakes when I fell in front of it. Not good.

Very luckily, that was the only incident on the trip. We always have travel insurance, but it would have sucked to make a trip to the ER.

<b> Day 3, Paris, October 29th, evening </b>

Finally that evening we just went back to the apartment for a bit (checking email, calling home) and we took off by foot towards rue des Archives and our beloved Starbucks. We just buy a wrap and a salad to share and a couple coffees (6&euro;30 each) Not very parisian, (actually the place is packed with Parisians!!) but it suits our needs. After we eat we start walking sans mappe and end up in the 11th arrondissement, making notes of a few things to visit during the day.

All in all, I'd say we walked for 6 to 8 hours!! It really would have been cool to have a pedometer!

Tomorrow: Le Panth&eacute;on, Jardin de Luxembourg, the left bank, Edward Scissorhands!!

I'm in the process of getting my photos uploaded so I can share. It's such a lengthy process (as they all have to be scaled down) that they should be ready by year 2010!!!

I now understand why others said it took so long to put their pictures up...

We had over 1,600... I will probably share 300-400.

Ruby,

I'm glad your fall wasn't as bad as it could have been, especially since you were near the road.

I'm also from a small area(although not as small as yours!)and I had to laugh at your metro experience since we had a similar one on our first trip...except we were so intimidated that we left the station! At least you didn't get stuck in the metro doors as I did.

By the way, thanks for answering all my questions about the apt. I'm not familiar with the different areas in the Marais, and safety is almost always my top concern. I've always been hesitant to rent an apt. that requires you to pay before you get there, but I did check the site, and all the people(yourself included) seemed to have positive results.

I'm really amazed at all the walking you have done on your trip. When you mentioned that something 20 minutes away was close by, I felt like a wimp - that would be a &quot;far&quot; walk in my book :)

It's funny because our very first Monoprix was also the one on Champs-Elysees...isn't it great! What is it about foreign supermarkets that seem so spectacular? I'm not trying to be sarcastic, but was it really 21 euros for a salmon sandwich at Laudree?

I loved hearing about the Montorgueil market - I've only been the the one in the Bastille, but I would love to get to that market one day.

Anna, we really did walk that much yeah. The one thing I wish the apartment had was a tub so we could have soaked the aches away at night... but a hot shower was ok too.

Yeah, now that you point it out, 21&euro; for a sandwich was pretty expensive *blush*

<b> Day 4, Paris, October 30th, 2008 </b>

Every morning so far, my sister's gotten up before me (as I said I like to take my time in the morning) and gone to see how long the line is to climb to the top of Notre-Dame. This morning again, she decided it was too long and when I met up with her at our designated time, she asked if we could go to the Panth&eacute;on.

<i> Since this is her first time, I'm letting her decide what she wants to see most. We aren't big museum fans, but she definitely wants to see some of the top ten structures </i>.

Off we go, direction 5th arrondissement, by foot. It's a nice morning, but the forecast calls for rain in the afternoon. We probably walk for a good half hour, uphill in a lot of cases!, in front of l'universit&eacute; de Paris, La Sorbonne and a few other colleges.

We arrive at Le Panth&eacute;on mid-morning and there is no queue at all... we pay the 7&euro; fee to go in and start exploring. What a huge building!! We probably spend 30 minutes exploring the main level then we go direction les cryptes. Signs and security guards remind us it is a solemn place and to keep quiet please!

I will say I really enjoyed it here. There were large posters with all the names, important dates (birth, death, achievements) and a few of the most renouned had flowers on the crypts. I especially enjoyed seeing Victor Hugo, Pierre &amp; Marie Currie (as I took a lot of chemistry), Louis Braille and Alexandre Dumas.

After about 1.5 hours, we set take off direction les Jardins du Luxembourg, but we take a few moments outside the Panth&eacute;on to take a few pictures next to the humongous columns and also to admire the pieces of art in front (I forget what they are called exactly, but they are really big mummy-like sculptures outside).

We find peace and quiet in les Jardins du Luxembourg. It's probably a bit after lunch now and there are only a handful of people. We watch a couple kids with little boats on the pond, and stroll leisurely through the gardens. A must see!

We then walk until we get to &Eacute;glise St-Sulpice. Again, this is pretty empty so we can explore in peace. It's the 2nd largest church in Paris and definitely impressive!

I do tend to exaggerate at times, and I'm sure some distances felt like they were much much longer, but I swear today we walked several miles. We walked along the lovely boulevard St-Germain, window shopped only, and somehow we ended up at the Louvre!! By now it had started drizzling and we were famished (it's probably close to 3 pm) so we just take a few pictures of the glass pyramid and hop on the m&eacute;tro direction l'h&ocirc;tel de ville.

When we get out of the m&eacute;tro it is pouring rain so we stop at a restaurant called Le Relais de l'H&ocirc;tel de Ville, really close to the BHV, corner rue Rivoli and rue des Archives.

I'm craving steak-frites so I order mine bien cuit (well done). I usually like it medium-well, but I know they have a tendency to undercook things here. My sister orders the same. After about a 20-25 minute wait (the restaurant is tr&egrave;s busy!), we are rewarded with a huge plate of fries, salad and a well done steak with a delicious pepper sauce on the side. Yum Yum for 13,90&euro;.

<b> Paris, Day 4 continued... October 30th </b>

As we walk back to the apartment, we make the required stop at Pain de Sucre to see what great desserts they have in their display cases. The guy remembers us from Monday! I'm always amazed at the line ups there, even with the higher prices for their sweets. While we just finished lunch, we are planning for after the show tonight and get dinner &amp; dessert:

A goat cheese &amp; tomato calzone-like pastry, a strawberry tart for me, a big sugar cookie for my sister and a verrine to share!! I don't remember exactly but I think this is about 14&euro; total.

Then it's off to the apartment to call home, check/send emails, research a few things on the ratp.fr site (it has a great interactive map where you can enter your starting point and then you enter your destination and it shows you exactly which metro line to take).

We walk to the Th&eacute;&acirc;tre Ch&acirc;telet, in the pouring rain, unfortunately. We get there around 7:30 (the show is at 8) and it is packed! Thank goodness we bought the tickets before hand.

One thing that surprises me here is how they divide the sections. I am in seat 13 and my sister seat 11 and the ticketseller assured us we were seated together. What happened to seat 12? Well they put all the odd numbers and all the even numbers together, separate sections! Neat.

The theater is huge, several balcony sections, but we'd splurged on 3rd row seats! The orchestra is below the stage, right in front of us.

The Edward Scissorhands ballet is absolutely awesome! This evening is definitely one of the highlights on this trip!!! It has nothing to do with Paris and history, I know, but we still enjoy it immensely!

Back to the apartment after the show (10ish), finally the rain has stopped. We make our way behind the Centre Pompidou, again a 20 or so minute walk. I feel safe walking here too, even after dark. We get back and eat a very late dinner, our savory cheese/tomato calzones and then the yummy desserts.

Tomorrow: Market, Notre-Dame (inside), Ile-St-Louis and miles of walking!

I'm exhausted, but please keep going!

Can't wait to read your &quot;take&quot; on Pompidou! Hope you got up to the roof.
=D&gt;

Ruby, such a fun report and how wonderful to be in Paris with your sister. I will be going with my three sisters in October, 2009, (hopefully). I have been once before, but they have never been. We will have only a week, but that is four days longer than I had on my previous trip.

I love reading about your wanderings. Please continue.

hi ruby,

i'm loving your trip report!

we were in paris at the end of september ... i want to go back NOW ... it's nice to be able to live vicariously through you! :)

please continue!

Ruby,

Thanks for another post - I really want to go to Pain de Sucre...you make everything sound wonderful. Always nice to have another patisserie on the list.

Sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel guilty for your sandwich at Laudree - you're basically paying for the ambiance as well. I just didn't know what the prices were like since we were never able to get there.

I'm looking forward to hearing what you thought about the Ile Saint Louis in your next post.

<b> Paris, Day 5: October 31st 2008 </b>

We wake up to some rain again, and leave the apartment to see if we can find le march&eacute; des enfants rouges, the oldest in Paris. It is on rue Bretagne, in the 3rd. I guess we got there around 10ish or so... and we appear to be the only ones there and very few merchants are at their booths. We just walk around quickly and leave within 10 minutes or so. What a disappointment :-( I think it's definitely bad timing, as I'd heard some really good things about this market. Too bad.

We then follow rue de Reaumur, rue de Turbigo and along Blvd S&eacute;bastopol in the 2nd. We shop and stroll along, by now we can put the umbrellas away.

Really, that's all we do in the afternoon, just window shop and make a few purchases as we get back near the apartment (a lovely alarm clock... we forgot to bring one and will need it to catch our early morning train next week!). I also find some nice cards and writing paper and stock up on some nice stickers too.

We go back to the apartment for a late lunch and stop at a Monop' (from the Monoprix chain but they sell mostly food and wine)... we pick up an extra bottle of sauce for the rest of the box of pasta and some wine and juice. Close to the apartment on rue Rambuteau we go into a shop called Berko (I think! I can't find them online...) that specializes in tarts (savory and sweet). I buy my favorite, a raspberry tart, and my sister gets a gooey caramel and hazelnut sensation.

After this late lunch, we go to Notre-Dame, finally. There's no line so we go in... it's my 3rd time inside but it never fails to impress me by its size. A magical place! We buy some lampions to bring back to the religious ones in the family but guard our wallets very very closely. It's always kind of dark in the cathedral and one never knows who's standing by waiting for the tourists to get careless.

It's now Friday night around 6 pm and my sister suggests going to Ile St-Louis. I agree, thinking Berthillon ice cream would rock right now! I checked their website to go over the long list of glace flavors and the different sorbet perfumes. It's going to be hard to decide but I'm up to the challenge!!! I enjoy the walk from Notre-Dame to the other island... it looks far on the map but it's really not too bad.

The crowds are very reasonable and luckily, a lot of shops on rue St-Louis en l'Ile are still open. There are some very unique ones and we enjoy a lot. I check my watch often but no worries, we still have lots of time before Berthillon's 8 pm closing.

I warned my sister it could be a bit crowded in there as it is the best ice cream in Paris, after all! We make our way down the street... no lineups, no one walking with cornets de glace. Hmmm. Doesn't anyone eat ice cream when it's cold in Paris??

And then I see it:

&quot;Nous serons ferm&eacute;s (CLOSED) du 27 octobre au 6 novembre inclusivement&quot;. :-(:-(

This sucks more than if the Eiffel Tower had been closed! I sulk all the way off the island.

That night we just keep walking, walking and walking. Around 9pm we start to get hungry and look for a restaurant that isn't too packed. It seems Parisians only start to eat dinner at 9 or 10... way later than our usual 6 pm here. We end up at a place really close to Pompidou called Le Cavalier Bleu (143 rue Saint Martin, 4e arrondissement). It is packed outside under the heated lamps but inside it's nice and cozy. We each order une soupe &agrave; l'oignon, and we are served the biggest bowl of soup in our lives! It really is bottomless! I think it cost 6&euro; but it is worth it!

For our main courses I want more steak, medium this time, and it comes with awesome mashed potatoes. My sister just gets a cheeseburger and fries. It comes loaded with lettuce, large onion slices, tomatoes, 2 slices of cheese... it's really big and tall. Yum! For the soup and the steak, it was around 22&euro;.

Friday was really uneventful, but was still an enjoyable day.

Friends we are communicating with via email can't believe we've been in Paris 5 days and have yet to go to the Eiffel Tower!!! I tell them there's much more to Paris than la Tour Eiffel...

Tomorrow: A very rainy Saturday, le Centre Pompidou and les Vedettes du Pont-Neuf

I forgot to mention Halloween... it is NOT celebrated much here. We did go by a costume shop that had long lines outside (they were only letting in a certain number of customers in at a time) but we never saw anyone in costume on the streets. The only decorations we saw were some chocolate pumpkins at Jadis et Gourmande, a chocolate shop on rue des Archives and a pumpkin at a fruit and vegetable shop that had a face drawn on with a black marker.

Oh how terrible! Too bad Berthillion was closed. We were able to rent an apartment on Ile Saint Louis, and on the day they aren't open(Monday)we went to a shop right across(rue des due ponts) that also served Berthillion ice cream - did you notice them? The shop was dark green, and they had an illuminated menu for ice cream flavors at night...but I'm guessing they must have been closed since I'm sure you would have seen it.

Great report...looking forward to more.

Thanks everyone for still reading!

Anna, I wanted the ice cream but more importantly the atmosphere at Berthillon's, so I didn't go anywhere else :-(

It must have been great to stay on l'Ile-St-Louis!