Can recommend Paris by Mouth for cheese tour. We did one in December that I would do again in a heartbeat. Agree with the St Denis suggestion. Musee Marmottan, if you have not been. Glass of Champagne at Tour Montparnasse?

this could be two days of exploring, so much to see http://www.france.fr/en/museums/nati...l-history.html

I also highly recommend the Paris By Mouth food tour. It would be a great way for your mom to see the side streets of Paris.

I third the Musee de Jacque-Mart Andre`--truly lovely with excellent lunch. Get there just before it opens for lunch to avoid LINES.

We were in Paris last May, went to the Louvre at 7 pm on a rainy Wednesday night and it was EMpTY!! We had so much fun, it was like dancing or the movie about the Museum of Natural History. There was no one at all around Michelangelo's slaves, not more than 20 people around the Mona Lisa, around 4 by the Venus de Milo. It was amazing. I would also recommend the Orsay at night, as late as possible.

Oh wow! Thank you so much to everyone who's posted! I'm amazed by the number of responses in just one day

I have been to the Cluny before, so I think we will pass on that. I have not, however, been to the Musee de Jacque-Mart Andre, and with the many people who suggest it, I think I might squeeze it in! I think my mom would love that's it's in such a beautiful mansion as well.

I may actually switch my day at bois de vincennes to when my friend is there... we love to go biking together, so renting bikes there would make for a fun afternoon. Or I could just do it two times

I forgot to mention that we are staying at the parmentier metro area. I knot it a little since I lived one metro down when I studied there, but I was on such budget I didn't get to eat out much! So if anyone has good restaurant picks for that area, I'd love hear them!

Fishnlines29, here are some links for the photography tours we are thinking about. They aren't cheap, which is unfortunate, but it would be awesome to come out with some really great photos!
http://www.paris-photo-tours.com
http://www.bettertravelphotos.com/paris-photo-tours

Thanks again!!!

TisforTraveler - you mention Passage Jouffroy. We came across this on our Oct. trip. I highly recommend Le Valentin in Passage Jouffroy. We loved the pastry selection (the dessert I had was called the Jouffroy -- may have been more to the name than that -- and was delicious. They have a great selection of tea. Also serve lunch and I believe breakfast. There's a second dining space upstairs. We're definitely going back the next trip.

I don't see the Rodin mentioned and maybe it has been done in previous trips--I always love a refresher of Rodin's wife's art.
The Institut du Monde Arabian--the irises of the windows are worth the trip, let alone the contents.

Thanks for the links!

You have more than enough to do for two weeks. However, you might want to explore this link for a few quirky ideas: http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com/board/46/paris

Spent two months in Paris; went to Bercy village and found it to be a waste of time.
I enjoyed Parc des Buttes Chaumont very much. Also thought cemetery Montparnesse was very interestng. Took a few Paris walks eg French revolution walk was interesting.
Shoah museum was moving.
Enjoy

If you have even the slightest interest in WWII, there are two excellent, small, free museums located atop the Montparnasse station.

LeClerc Museum and Liberation Museum.

http://parismusees.paris.fr/en/museu...-moulin-museum

SS

You said you have been to Belleville, but have you been there during the Open Studios event? It's always in May and nearly 200 artists of all media open their studios to the public.

http://ateliers-artistes-belleville.fr/en/

Note that this websit is notriously out of date regarding the dates and the map, so you should keep in contact with them by email to get the correct info.

We've done it three times, and it is a great day of walking, visiting and meeting the artists.

SS

How about this:

http://www.mam.paris.fr/en/home

Museum of Modern Art of the City of Paris...another free gem. This is a wonderful little museum that we have visited several times.

One warning: This past May, several of the best rooms were closed -- I think for renovation -- but since it is free, no harm, no foul. Maybe all will be back to normal this May.

SS

One thing I always suggest is to try and find a Parisian with the same hobby, job, special interest as you. There are global groups, Internet forums. It's almost guaranteed that whatever your hobby, job or passion is, somebody in Paris has the same.

Some years ago, I was a reporter covering the medical imaging field. I met a French reporter covering the same, correspondence exchanged, and it ended up that I was able to spend three days in the science labs under the Louvre, meeting with the radiologist who works there and seeing how they examine paintings and sculptures.

A friend of mine is a dog groomer and through an international pet forum, she made an acquaintance with a Parisian dog groomer with a salon in the 16th arrond and on her visit to Paris, she spent a few hours with the groomer and then everybody who worked there took my friend out for dinner and drinks.

Here's a really esoteric one:

http://www.museedesplansreliefs.culture.fr/

Musée des Plans-reliefs...3-dimensional models of various towns and fortifications.

SS

Oh yes...

I <strong>definitely</strong> agree with the folks who suggested basilica of St Denis.

http://saint-denis.monuments-nationaux.fr/en/

IMHO it gives you a more mystical feeling than either Chapelle or Notre Dame...and--at least on our two visits, both in May--had practically no other people there.

Metro #13 stops about a block away from it.

SS

Has Fondation Cartier had a mention yet? It's a bit out of the way, on Blvd Raspail, but a metro ride fixes that. Always worth the go, intelligently curated. The Nuits Nomades are always interesting, but you need to book ahead: they're popular.

And instead of MAM: Palais de Tokyo, opposite. Quirky, cutting edge curating. A bit hit and miss, you can be lucky or be completely perplexed, but it's never uninteresting.

Jeu de Paume (Photography) has several shows that feature classic photographers, and MEP in the Marais usually has thematic photography shows.

And do have a wander around Village St Paul, but it may haven been mentioned already.

Thanks for posting this question. We are going at the end of March so are thinking of things to do.

When we were in Paris last March we took this street art walking tour. It was a lot of fun. Now we keep our eyes peeled for street art- saw some in the 5th and in Barcelona!!

http://undergroundparis.org/street-art-tours-paris

Gretchen, yes I have been to musee rodin several times, but my mom hasn't (and I love it) so depending on how things go we might end up there

I've actually been wanting to see the Palais de Tokyo but never seem to make it there.

mytravelove, St Ouen market and le marche des enfants rouges both sound pretty fun, too! I think we will probably try to squeeze those in somehow! Especially since we might not actually have enough $$ to do the photo tour AND a cheese tasting tour.

Thanks again everyone for the continued comments! I really appreciate it. I'm getting SO EXCITED! I just love this city no matter how many times I visit.

If you're feeling carnivorous, we loved Sunday brunch at Les Provinces, a butcher shop in the Aligre market. They don't take reservations and it's a small place so try to arrive early if you decide to go. We sat at the table next to the freezer and got a nice glimpse of the frozen meat hanging inside. Tiny but great wine list. If all else fails, ask for Christophe the owner and he might hook you up with a table pronto.

Enjoy!

20 Rue d'Aligre, 75012 Paris, France
+33 1 43 43 91 64

Has anyone suggested Paris Greeters? When signing up, you can select for something that interests you and about 2 or 3 weeks before the scheduled date, they put you in touch with one of their volunteers. I did it last fall and had a wonderful walk with a very informative gentleman who showed me things I would never have noticed. It is free but I did make a donation afterwards.

www.greeters.paris/?lang=eng