Paris

Recommendations from 8 Months in Paris

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Hello readers,

You know how the tagline of this blog identifies me as “an aspiring expat”? I’ve finally managed to make that a reality. After spending eight months in Paris, I’m back home in the US for a few months before I move to London in September… for an indefinite duration. (Given the size of my law school loans, I’ll be there for at least three years doing big law, but I have no intention of coming back even if I leave that job.)

I kept a separate blog about my life in Paris (kenfrancais.blogspot.com), but I’d be remiss if I didn’t post something here!

Here’s a list of my favorites. It should be noted that I am in the minority among Parisians in the first four, but trust me, they’re the best!

  • MONUMENT: Parisians are totally jaded about it, but for me, there’s no question: the Eiffel Tower is my favorite thing in Paris. I love it at any time from any vantage point, but the best is watching it sparkle (for the first five minutes of every hour once it’s dark, until 1:00) from Trocadéro. I still haven’t been to the very top, but I took the stairs to the second level.
  • MUSEUM: For me, this is a no-brainer. The best museum in Paris is the Orangerie, located in the Jardin des Tuileries. Monet’s famous water lily paintings are here, and I never tire of seeing them. The museum also has a small but potent collection of other Impressionist works, including pieces by Renoir, Manet, Cezanne, Picasso, and others by Monet. It’s the perfect size and lacks the crowds of the Louvre.
  • PARK: Paris turned me into a garden lover, and I’ve already been to two parks since returning to my hometown five days ago. My favorite in Paris is the Jardin des Tuileries. Yes, it’s busy and filled with tourists in the summer, but it’s filled with beautiful flowers; has views of the Eiffel Tower, the Champs-Élysées, and the Louvre; includes four fountains surrounded by chairs to lounge in; and couldn’t be more centrally located. I could truly stay there all day.
  • SQUARE: It’s a tie between Place de la Concorde (which just has such an amazing view; you get the Eiffel Tower, the Champs-Elysées, the Arc de Triomphe, and the skyscrapers at La Défense) and the Place des Vosges (in the Marais, which is a great little park if you want a smaller place to chill).
  • CHURCH: Sacré Coeur is my favorite on the inside (it’s brighter than its older peers), but Notre Dame can’t be beat on the outside. The view from its south tower is the best in Paris. My favorite time to go to Notre Dame is at night, when the plaza is almost empty – you feel a real sense of peace and history.
  • COCKTAILS: Hands-down the best bar in Paris is Le Calbar at 82 rue de Charenton in the 12th arrondisement, about 10 minutes’ walk east of Bastille. Its three bartenders Thierry, Christophe, and William are personal friends of mine and are truly great people in addition to being legitimate artists when it comes to mixology. My dad, a connoisseur of martinis who was convinced it was impossible to find decent ones in Europe, says that William made him the best martini he’s ever had. Their menu is helpfully organized according to base liquor, but they regularly concoct things for you that aren’t on the menu. Of the regular drinks, my favorite is the 1980’s, which is vodka-based. The best part is that these drinks are significantly cheaper than those on offer at more famous bars, where €13 is the standard price. At Le Calbar, some are as low as €9, and most are under €12. Go and tell them Kendra sent you! Great atmosphere too.
  • CRÊPES: The best I’ve had are at Café Breizh at 109 rue Vieille du Temple in the Marais. I love the complète oignon, which comes with onions marinated in cider, and the simple yet delectable salted caramel for dessert. (Note that others claim that Crêperie Josselin in Montparnasse has the best crêpes, but I’ve been there a few times and was never as impressed.)
  • RESTAURANT: The site of my first ever meal in Paris (back in July 2012) and what is still the best meal of my life, Autour d’un verre at 21 rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondisement remains my favorite restaurant. Everything they make is amazing; I’ve had duck, steak, sea bass, and lamb that all brought me to tears. Try the pears soaked in red wine for dessert, if you can save room! This is also a great deal – a starter, main course, and dessert is only €31.
  • MEAL(S) OF CHOICE: You can definitely find fancy food in Paris, but my go-tos are simple: salade de chèvre chaud (warm goat cheese salad) and croque madame (essentially, grilled cheese with ham inside and a sunny-side-up egg on top). They’re available pretty much anywhere and never fail to satisfy. Oh, and I can’t forget the falafel at L’As du Falafel in the Marais. It’s a classic.
  • WINE: I’m still no expert by any means; I will just say that, on the whole, wines from Bordeaux have been the most consistently pleasing.
  • PICNIC LOCATION: The western tip of Île de la Cité (at the Square du Vert Galant) is the place to see and be seen in the afternoon and evening on a warm and sunny day. Bring a bottle of wine and dangle your feet over the Seine while watching the boats of tourists pass by.
  • METRO LINES AND STATIONS: I lived on line 4 and remain partial to it because it’s fast and goes to so many useful places. That said, the single best stretch of the metro is on line 6 between Bir-Hakeim and Passy because you go over the Seine with an incredible view of the Eiffel Tower. My favorite metro stations (or more accurately, platforms) are: Concorde, line 12 (because it has the Declaration of the Rights of Man written in tile on the walls); Bastille, line 1 (because it has a mural of the history of Paris); Bastille, line 5 (because it marks the original foundations of the Bastille prison on the platform); and Saint-Germain-des-Près (because it projects literary quotes on the walls).

 

Sunday in Paris

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We woke up on Sunday morning about five hours after  going to bed but no less energetic or excited for the day. We were getting ready to leave the hotel when Kelsey got a text from our friend saying “we didn’t know this, but the Tour de France is ending today in Paris”. I had NO idea that the Tour was anywhere near over, so this was an awesome surprise! We immediately reworked our “plans” to include watching the racers come in on the Champs-Élysées.

In the meantime, we took the metro over to the Jewish area of the city, the Marais, home to cool shops and the world’s best falafel. We joined a queue outside and watched eagerly as men behind a window stuffed pitas with delicious falafel, veggies, and sauces. Once we had ours, we walked about ten minutes to the Place des Vosges where we ate on a bench under a tree while watching others sunbathing in the grass and listening to a true Parisian band of strings and accordion who had set up just across the street. We ultimately ended up joining the people on the grass and could easily have stayed there all day. It was the perfect way to spend a Sunday.

However, we had other pressing items on our agenda, like buying éclairs and macarons at a specific bakery several blocks away. On the way we stopped in a bookstore and ended up buying some poster of old French ads, which will go well with my Eiffel Tower paintings. The éclairs were nothing like the ones I’ve seen in the US. I sadly neglected to take a picture of them, but we got them with both dark and white chocolate, and each was delicious. I also bought a variety box of macarons, which despite being squashed in my purse tasted glorious and brought me back to Paris with each bite I took in the days following our return to the Hague. Here’s a poster with all the ones I got:

From the Marais we rode the metro to the Champs-Élysées to see what was going on with the Tour de France. Hundreds of people lined the street, and we walked past official souvenir and snack stands. We soon learned from a friendly British man and his young son that the riders probably wouldn’t arrive for another two hours or so but that the winner was a British guy, which explained why were seeing the Union Jack everywhere we turned. (It’s quite strange to be in Paris but surrounded by British flags.)

We decided to wait out the riders by visiting the last place on Kelsey’s “agenda” for the weekend: the Rodin museum. We bought tickets just for the garden, which is where you can see “the Thinker” and several other statues. The garden is appropriately picturesque; roses of all colors bloomed along the pathways leading to each of the statues. I’ve always loved “the Thinker” and was glad to see it in person:

We got back to the Champs-Élysées with about 25 minutes to go before the riders arrived. We joined the throng alongside the rode, and I got mildly harassed by a sketchy old man who pretend to be oblivious to the fact that he was deliberately pressing up against my back. Still, the energy of the crowd was infectious, and we started cheering loudly with the rest as we watched the riders approaching on the jumbotron.

I don’t think I had fully appreciated before just how fast these men can go on the bikes. We didn’t stay for all of the laps they had to do, but they went past us about eight times, and each time they were a total blur – I got closer to the front each time and was amazed that my camera could capture individual people. I suppose I saw the winner, but I certainly wasn’t aware of it at the time! Here is one of the better shots I got while standing in the crowd.

Alas, it was time for us to head back to our hotel and make our way to the airport. We had time for one final crêpe before getting on the train, and I savored every bite while watching the people stroll by.

My only complaint about Paris is the public transportation. The metro trains are narrow and hold maybe 1/3 of the people that the cars on the DC Metro can hold, plus most of that space is taken up by seats rather than standing room. Even worse is the train station, where Kelsey and I first had trouble getting tickets (the machine just wouldn’t accept our credit cards and wouldn’t take cash) and then followed the misleading signage on a wild goosechase in search of the train to Charles de Gaulle. We ended up on the one we wanted but had to stand most of the way in the vestibule with no air. As a result of all of this, we were significantly worried about missing our flight back. With luck, our gate was quite near the terminal where we arrived, and we were able to breeze through security (where, comfortingly, the men checked US out rather than our bags). We got to our gate just as boarding had begun.

Anyway, that aside: Paris deserves every accolade I’ve heard. It is truly a magical city. I’m so glad that I got a taste of it this summer. I know that I’ll go back and do more of the touristy things (like see the underwhelming Mona Lisa), but I think Paris is more a city of experiencing than doing or seeing. It is a city of tasting, of moving to the beats of the bands on the street, of strolling through the parks and playing with children. I loved everything about it except the transportation – and even then, in a city so beautiful, why spend so much time underground? When I go back, I’ll do more walking.

Saturday in Paris

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Sent into an epic food coma after our incredible dinner on Friday night, Kelsey and I slept well and long. Kelsey woke up before me and woke me up in the best possible way: by calling my name and then pulling back the curtain so I could see the beautiful, perfectly Parisian building across the street… complete with the black iron balconies with flowers on them. I squealed with glee and got ready as quickly as possible.

We stepped out into the 75-degree, sunny morning and walked north towards Sacré Cœur. Along the way we passed several lovely little parks where parents relaxed on benches while their adorable kids played, which seems like the perfect way to pass a Saturday morning at either age. Thinking “I could do this all day” and/or “this is the perfect way to spend time” was a running theme of my time in Paris.

Also en route to Sacré Cœur, we stopped in a boulangerie-pâtisserie to pick up the first snack of the day. Thank God for Kelsey’s decision-making because I was completely overwhelmed by all of the enticing options. We settled for a pain au suisse, which is filled with a sort of cream and little pieces of chocolate. It was, obviously, delicious.

We also popped into a famous chocolate and sweets shop where I walked around open-mouthed gazing at the piles of macarons, cookies, chocolates, and other things, all surrounded by brightly colored boxes.

There were also numerous souvenir shops offering postcards of Paris old and new, scarves, bags, t-shirts, tourist guides, etc. I saw much that I wanted to buy but knew I had to wait!

Finally we arrived at the base of the hill on which Sacré Cœur sits in its splendor. From the top, you can see the whole city, including the Eiffel Tower (which made me scream). We joined the stream of tourists queuing to go inside, passed the scrutiny for appropriate dress, and entered the grand basilica. A good number of people were actually watching the Mass that was going on while we walked the loop around the interior. I paid 2 euros to light a candle for my Croatian grandfather (as I usually try to do when in churches abroad) and realized how much I miss just being in big churches like this.


After Sacré Cœur we walked to the nearby square where a bunch of artists had set up to sell their paintings (and in the case of many, paint while selling). Move over Eastern Market; you’ve got nothing on this place! I ended up buying two small paintings of the Eiffel Tower. Both purchases followed prolonged conversations, in French, with the artists, one of whom asked if I was an artist because apparently I asked arty questions. (Cool! And I was very pleased at how quickly my French returned here – I managed to make comments about background color and technique!)

We descended the hill and stopped along the way to pick up another snack, this time in the form of a rosemary and honey milkshake. (it’s a very interesting flavor combination!) we popped into a few cute shops on our way back to the main street and then walked several blocks to find the Moulin Rouge, which is indeed a red mill amidst a sea of sex shops. Otherwise, it’s pretty underwhelming without Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman singing about love. I also ate my first crêpe in this area; we split one with ham and cheese that immediately put sandwiches made with bread to shame.


We hopped onto the metro to meet up with two other ICTY interns in the Tuileries, a big park near the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées. People of all nationalities were strolling through the park, sitting around some of its grand fountains (which I recognized from a video in some long-ago French class), or lounging in reclining chairs in the shade of the trees.

 

 

After meeting up with the girls, we walked to see the Louvre and its pyramid before turning to walk past shops of fashion, low and high, on our way to Angelina, a place famous for its hot chocolate. It did not disappoint – the four of us ordered enough for only two, but the richness of the drink – which was practically just melted chocolate to which we added whipped cream – more than satisfied each of us. We also ate some lovely pastries. (just to review what I’d eaten up to this point in the afternoon: pain au Suisse, rosemary and honey milkshake, ham and cheese crêpe, hot chocolate, brioche, and apple turnover. Win.)


From Angelina’s, three of us walked back towards the Tuileries to view Monet’s amazing water lily murals at the Musée de l’Orangerie.  The eight huge paintings are split across two ovular rooms and mostly cover the walls of both. We spent some time sitting on the benches in the center just gazing at the scenes and Monet’s incredibly innovative and imaginative use of color.

Kelsey’s friend Vincent met us at the museum and led us down the Champs-Élysées (past the newly opened Abercrombie and Fitch where some two hundred people had queued to shop inside) to the Arc de Triomphe and then to an amazing view of the Eiffel Tower. We sat on a hill overlooking it and could have sat there just looking at it forever! Instead, we opted for a quick return to our hotel to freshen up and drop off our purchases before meeting up with Vincent and some of his friends for wine and cheese just off the Pont Neuf on the banks of the Seine.


This was pretty much the ultimate French activity – we sat on the wall of this island with a bunch of other Parisians our age, and all of us had similar arrays of wine, bread, cheese, and sausage. I quickly came to love Vincent and his friends, who spoke perfect English but were very willing to listen to me in French. I explained (in French) that I am a bit self-conscious about speaking French now because I think I have a Spanish accent. They said “yes you do, but it’s cute!” and at the end of the day, I’d much rather have a Spanish accent than an American one while speaking another language!


After pushing back our dinner reservations three times, we finally bid adieu to the rest of the group and set off a a brisk pace with Vincent to a restaurant about half an hour’s walk away. They served us the drink version of an amuse-bouche, which was white wine with some strawberry liqueur. Vincent and the waitress consulted about the wine and menu (both of which were again presented to us on large chalk boards), and we ended up with another delicious meal: red wine, mozzarella and tomato, salad with foie gras, pork with figs, and monkfish.

 

 

Kelsey and I passed the remainder of the evening and a good part of the very early morning with Vincent and his friend Pierre, who took us to multiple bars and showed us a very, very good time. 🙂

Friday night in Paris: the best meal of my life

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After navigating our way from Charles de Gaulle into the city, Kelsey and I stepped off the metro onto a street saturated with delicious smells coming from every restaurant. I’ve truly never smelled so many different and wonderful things at the same time. I knew before taking a bite that the stories about French food were true and suddenly understood the significance of Julia Child’s efforts to bring French cooking back to America.

Our hotel, located about a 15-minute walk south of Montmartre, sat on a quiet little private street (without cars). Our room, which was literally just off the main entrance, boasted throw pillows with sequins on them, which I took to be yet another sign of an awesome 48 hours ahead. Fancy.

After quickly freshening off, we decided to turn left coming out of the hotel and walk down the first street on the right. We passed a number of restaurants, but none of them felt quite right. About two blocks down we found a winner: Autour d’un Verre, 21 rue de Trévise, 75009 Paris. Its warm lighting, small dining room, and chic neighborhood feel pulled us both in immediately.

We sat down next to a couple around our age who were clearly on an intimate date, and soon a waiter brought over the menu. I do literally mean THE menu – it was just a chalkboard!

We could read most of it but weren’t entirely sure what everything was, plus we needed some help with wine recommendations. (I mean, when you look at this, you’ll see why we had no idea:)

Fortunately, the waiter/cook came back and was more than happy to give us a recommendation. “We’ll just open a bottle, and if you don’t like it, we’ll try another one.” We assumed this meant he’d probably choose one of the 60 euro bottles, but instead the one he chose – which was a delicious, spicy Spanish red – was at the lower end of the scale!

 

We also took the waiter’s food recommendations (which he gave in perfect English because he knew it was easier for us, and with no attitude whatsoever). The menu was prix-fixe and included an entrée (aka appetizer) and main plate. We got a total of four dishes.

Entrée 1: Bone Marrow

Neither of us had eaten this before, but we figured we couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Served in the bone and soaked in butter and garlic, the marrow was cooked to melt-in-your-mouth perfection, and every bite was a joy.

 

Entrée 2: Burrata

Burrata was not something with which I was previously familiar despite the fact that mozzarella is one of my all-time favorite foods. Burrata is essentially fresh mozzarella except that the inside also contains cream, so it’s got a much softer texture on the inside. Ours came with stunningly delicious tomatoes, olive oil, and basil.

 

Main Plate 1: Rare Duck Breast

You pretty much can’t ever go wrong with duck, and this was no exception. Tender, moist, and very pink, this duck, served with mashed potatoes and spinach, gives Peking Duck a run for its money.

 

Main Plate 2: Rare Steak

Sometimes in life, you just need a good steak, and I’m not nearly as squeamish about bloody steak as I am about any other type of rare meat. I’m not sure that this was better than what I once had at Ruth’s Chris, but it was out-of-this-world tender and, like everything else, oozing butter, garlic, and other simple pleasures. It is also worth showing the plate after we ate.

Dessert: Banana Chocolate Cheesecake

Now, after these previous four dishes, we knew it was both essential and dangerous to order dessert. Essential because when food is THIS good, you take advantage of every opportunity, but dangerous because when food is THIS good, you’re afraid the last course will let you down (as so often seems to happen on Top Chef finales when they make the contestants do a dessert). We once again took the recommendation of our waiter and ended up with an absolutely amazing piece of cake. “Cheesecake” seems to be the wrong translation. It was almost more like a mousse that tasted like banana bread topped with melted and hardened chocolate. It did not let us down, but this picture doesn’t do it justice.

 

At times throughout this meal, Kelsey and I said things like “this is a religious experience” and “my heart is actually beating faster because I am in love with this food”. We felt so full of happiness after dinner that we just couldn’t stop smiling… until of course we got back to the room, suddenly felt the full effect of all the wine and food, and fell asleep almost instantly. 🙂

 

 

 

Paris: An Introduction

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Paris. How does anyone find sufficient words to describe it? Never has a place made me feel so adjective deficient.

If anything, I’d been set up to be disappointed rather than impressed by Paris. I spent six years in French classes reading and learning about Paris, which, now that it’s been 14 years since I first started learning French, was a perfect recipe for inflated expectations. Having been to other wonderful cities (see the sidebar listing my favorites), I know what great cities look and feel like. How could I have known that Paris stands in an entirely new class of perfection?

Let’s also not forget how much Americans like to hate the French, which I always thought was due at least in part to the sense that they don’t like us much either. Aren’t the French, and especially the Parisians, famous for being snobby and superior? I’ve heard countless times that Paris is the only place where the locals will judge rather than thank you for speaking their language if you speak it poorly.

I also think that as far as my own perspective is concerned, when I chose to major in Hispanic Studies rather than French, I made a conscious decision to shift my allegiance from francophone to Spanish-speaking countries. That’s influenced everything from travel priorities to which football team I support during international tournaments. For some reason I’ve been thinking that French and Spanish are almost mutually exclusive… I could only truly love one or the other.

No longer! After 48 hours in Paris, I’m now on a mission to reacquaint myself with French and the people who speak it. Paris lived up to all of the positive hype and absolutely refuted all of the negative stereotypes. It may be cliché, but Paris is now my favorite city. I will struggle in the posts that follow to do it justice.