Kait's Here!

My cousin is here for a visit! She got in on Tuesday night and we’ve been having some pretty fun girl time ever since. Only boys have visited me up until now (with the exception of my Mom) so its nice to share all things fashion/art/pastry-related.

It was really nice outside yesterday (well, still freezing but sunny) so we went for a walk. We went to the Arts Decoratifs museum (mostly just to warm up my ears) and then came across the ferris wheel, which was set up right in the Concorde. I felt like someone was playing a trick on me because I’ve heard about it before but have never seen it, and I pass the Concorde all the time... So, obviously, I had to go. We’re both not very into heights, so it was a bit sketchy at parts but totally worth the view.

Afterwards we walked up to the Palais Garnier and Lafayette. We stopped for lunch and some shopping, and came across two stores packed with Lanvin for H&M! I had stopped by a few H&Ms on Monday to check it out because there’s been so much hype about this collaboration, but there was nothing to be seen. I figured it was all sold out until yesterday when we found all the tulle, ribbon and unfinished edges you could ever want. I wasn’t really a huge fan of the clothes or shoes (unbelievably painful for just a few seconds!) but ended up getting a necklace and some tights.

Anyway, we’re not entirely sure what we’re doing today - maybe Centre Pompidou - but we’re going to the Two Door Cinema Club concert tonight and I’m super excited about it!

Here are some pictures from yesterday, as well as a few I took of the St. Eustache Church before Kait came...







Lanvin for H&M at the store right across from Lafayette...




My head and the Christmas lights at Printemps...


St. Eustache, which was way bigger, more colorful and cooler than I expected...

Another Day, Another Falafel

I'm officially (and somewhat embarrassingly) addicted to Maoz falafels. I'm trying my hardest to limit my intake, not for the sake of my waistline because they seem pretty healthy, but because I don't want to be known as the crazy falafel girl in my neighbourhood. I've been lucky enough to go mostly under the radar of the obnoxious, multi-lingual (at least for cat calls) men who try to lure tourists into restaurants on my street - but I fear the frequency of my falafel trips may encourage them to start talking to me more. There are worse things, I suppose (like fewer falafels), but its still annoying.

And, just a side note, another huge plus about this new appreciation/addiction is that I've learned to love hot sauce, like the actually hot stuff! I can only imagine my Dad's rejoicing as he reads this since he's been pushing cayenne pepper my way for as long as I remember.

Besides eating falafels and hot sauce, I've actually had some pretty eventful days. Well, kind of... its definitely been balanced with a lot of sleep ins, hours of blissful uninterrupted reading, and almost a whole season of The Tudors. And, possibly the best part, I don't even feel guilty about any of it - I have less than a month! I'm just trying to do what I want when I want because I appreciate that is a very limited and unique period in my life...

OK, so besides eating falafels and despite being lazy, I've seen some amazing things lately. I went to the Musee Carnavalet, which is a converted mansion dedicated to the history of Paris. I honestly skipped most of the permanent collection because there was a Louis Vuitton exhibit and it was really cool! It mostly ignored the commercialization of the modern brand (although there were a few clever nods to the persistence of fakes) and focused on its super interesting history. I liked seeing the original sketches and inspiration of the monogram and damier canvas, and there were amazing examples of earlier luggage. My favorites were a trunk that turned into a desk and a trunk dedicated to shoes with a specific labelled drawer for every pair...








A room in the main part of the museum...



The following day I went to the Vampire Weekend concert! It was awesome and just so much better than I expected! I generally really enjoy doing stuff alone but I was a little hesitant going to a concert by myself. But it was a chance to finally wear my bright blue Chloe blouse (I hate the word 'blouse' but it is what it is) and I got a sweet solo seat beside the sound booth. And I love their music, so it was totally fun. I took a few photos with my blackberry but I'm not tech savvy enough to get them on my computer...

I also did a bit of early Christmas shopping for myself, thanks to my brother! I'm pretty picky when it comes to scents but I fell in love with Diptyque's new perfume, Eau Duelle, when I walked by their counter at Lafayette a few months ago. I've since stocked up on samples and confirmed that it really is as delicious as I first thought, so I made an investment in a big bottle! It was fun going to their first ever boutique, which turns out to be super close to where I live, and they're really friendly. I know there's really strong ties between memory and smell, so I'm grateful that I'll have such an amazing scent to remember Paris by. (Although, admittedly, the most persistent smell on the streets here is a combo of urine and restaurant vents, but that's not worth remembering!)

Today I checked a few things off my to-do list (which is sadly dwindling) and revisited some old favorites. It was incredibly sunny today (so welcome after a few days of pure gray) so I went to the Jardin du Luxembourg. Most of the flowers are gone and the leaves have fallen but its still so pretty - the fountains are still going and the grass is green and the people watching is just as good. My cousin, Kait, is coming pretty soon so I made a list of things we need to do. Even though the sun was out, it was still pretty cold, so I had to keep moving and walked up rue Bonaparte.

I've walked by the St. Sulpice Church countless times, but I've never stopped in. It looks pretty unwelcoming because they're restoring the outside so its covered in scaffolding, but it is amazing inside. Firstly, Delacroix has done a lot of the decoration of the side rooms so there are incredible huge paintings of biblical scenes. Secondly, the main windows aren't stained glass so there's much so light, especially on such a sunny day. Thirdly, it has a super famous organ that happened to be being played when I was there. Organ music is so interesting to me - it can be really soft and nice and then, out of nowhere, it sounds like God himself is shouting at you. I like imagining what people must have thought of it before recorded music and speakers existed - it had to have had an effect on people.






I went to Pierre Herme afterwards and indulged in an Ispahan - the unbeatable pastry of rose flavored cream, fresh raspberries and lychees sandwiched in a macaron. Unbelievable every time. I also went to the Delacroix museum, being inspired by my visit to St. Sulpice. It was pretty small but worth going to. The most memorable thing, besides the collection of paintings and engravings, was a palette that was actually used by Fantin-Latour but given to him by Delacroix. I love seeing the palettes of other people - they're like little haphazard paintings themselves. Except this one was entirely too neat (or I'm just jealous because mine never look like this!)

Les Invalides, Lauduree, and Canal St. Martin (these titles are getting pathetically unoriginal)

Daniel left on Saturday and made it home safe and sound. It was a ton of fun having him here and I managed to check off quite a few things on my to-do list...

For Remembrance Day we went to the war museum at Les Invalides, despite the most awful weather - my brother’s newly purchased umbrella barely lasted a few seconds before flipping inside out and breaking! Mine, thankfully, stayed intact and I should give sole credit to Matt because he convinced me to get the good one when he was here - totally worth it!

Even though we were both seriously windblown, the exhibit was really great. We only had the stamina for the WWI and WWII portion of the museum but it was so interesting to see the European perspective of those events. Everything seemed so immediate and personal. The most memorable thing for me was seeing a soldier’s coat that was still caked with mud from the trenches, and the display of identity cards of Jewish Parisians. Its pretty haunting to think of how those people suffered, but it definitely makes me more than grateful for what I have.

I didn’t take any pictures in the museum, but we also went to Napoleon’s tomb. It is huge! The building is pretty impressive too, especially the dome.







On Daniel's last day we mostly just walked around and did some last minute shopping - and eating! We went to Lauduree for a late lunch and it was unbelievable! I started with chestnut soup, had the lamb and finished with a violet cream filled puff pastry and a sampling of their famous macarons. The chestnut soup was the best - I could live in its smell! Unfortunately, none of the pictures I took turned out very well, but here's the macarons at least...


On our way back home, I had a close encounter with a pick-pocketer! It was totally my fault (although I'm sure some of it could be blamed on a Lauduree-induced coma) - my bag wasn't zippered all the way and we were by the Louvre, which is notorious for tourist theft. Luckily I was paying some attention though... I was just walking along and felt something shift in my bag, so I looked back and caught a young girl with her hand in my purse! I was so shocked I didn't even have anything to say, I just checked that all my things were there and continued on. It was a good reminder to be careful though!

Daniel left Saturday morning and I went to the ballet that afternoon - the Hamburg Ballet was at the Palais Garnier. I don't know where I got this, but I was expecting a traditional ballet and it was anything but. It was like a strange space age melodrama with a lot of gold lamé, cone shaped hats and PVC pants. It was still amazing to be there, obviously, but this was definitely not a favorite. Afterwards, I went for a walk around the grand magasins, which are starting to light up their Christmas displays! Printemps had a window for Alexander McQueen's latest and I love how they staged it.






This afternoon I went to Canal St. Martin. It was Monday so a lot of places were closed, but it was fun just to window shop. The canal itself is really pretty and is basically just a long park. The leaves were bright yellow and there was finally some sun! I walked from where it started in the north all the way down to place de la bastille. There wasn't a lot to see around there, just a big monument.




For dinner I had my new favorite falafel. I had basically written off any food that comes from the area where I live (there's just too many tourists) but there's a hidden gem just a few doors down from my apartment! David Leibowitz was kind enough to write about this place in his blog and I'm now addicted. Its called Maoz and it is serious competition for L'as du Falafel. They make the falafel balls fresh and toast the pita when you order, so everything is crispy and warm, and the best part is their salad/condiment bar. They have cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage, beets, carrots and four different kinds of hot sauce. Its pretty much impossible to eat it on the go and not make a mess, but my place is so close I can go home and use utensils! So perfect!

Catacombs and Mont Saint Michel!

Sorry for the lack of updates! We were super busy this weekend and then I came down with a bad case of food poisoning (or something like it) - totally gross but at least a legitimate excuse for not posting anything! I’m feeling a bit better now and think by tomorrow I’ll be 100% again (Although I did also say that yesterday, but fingers crossed!)

Anyway, I’ll pick up from where I left off - the creepy, crawly catacombs! I generally get pretty squeamish with anything remotely scary but I’m actually really glad I went... It wasn’t nearly as terrifying as I thought it would be! I mean, seeing the bones of six million dead people in crowded underground tunnels causes a certain kind of reflection, but it wasn’t morbid at all. It seemed more artful than anything as the bones were all arranged and clearly cared after. I was a little apprehensive of taking pictures (I don’t think I’d want my skeleton to be photographed!) but I did anyway...









After the catacombs we went for lunch at a cafe, walked around the Luxembourg Gardens, and stopped at the Gerard Mulot patisserie! Lemon tarts are quickly becoming a new favorite...






On Saturday we went to Mont Saint Michel. We went with a tour group, which was mostly great just because it was so easy but was also a little too 'touristy' at times (as expected). We left really early in the morning and made the four hour drive to the coast. Lunch was arranged for us and was entirely awful (uncooked omelette, overcooked fish and a desert not worth the calories) but the restaurant was saved with an amazing view. We spent most of the afternoon on a guided tour of the monastery and learned some very interesting French history. The building itself is amazing - the architecture combined with the views and location is incredible! It was a really fun place to take pictures...