Monet

Dylan and I had a peaceful yet exciting experience at the Musée de l'Orangerie. At the museum there were two oval shaped rooms that displayed eight very large pieces from Monet's collection of Water Lilies.  It was easy to stay in each room for an hour rotating between the four pieces in each room, to be sure we saw every detail and difference between them.

A few days after the Musée de l'Orangerie we decided to take the thirty minute train to Giverny to see the actual water lilies that inspired the paintings that we had seen at the Musée de l'Orangerie. There was a long line right away, since everyone had arrived on the same train together from Paris. Dylan and I wanted to wait for the line to die down before we went in, so we found a quaint little garden cáfe to drink an espresso and relax. After our caffeine we ventured back to Monet's home and garden.

We fell in love with the grounds and the home. We would love to someday have a similar kitchen to Monet's with blue tile work throughout, wood block counter tops and a big farm basin sink.  We were not allowed to take photos in the home, so we will have to visit again before designing our dream kitchen one day.

The garden, the water lilies, the home etc were so beautiful and it is hard to describe in words, so we will let the photos do the talking.

Hemingway Tour

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you for Paris is a moveable feast." -Ernest Hemingway

All of the men in my life love Ernest Hemingway. Dylan is no exception, so when we decided to head to Paris, he was so excited to see the Paris that Hemingway spent so much of his writing career exploring. I read The Paris Wife and had a glimpse into the lifestyle Hemingway and his first wife had while living in Paris in the roaring 1920's.  I too was excited to see the almost one century old buildings that Hemingway had written so many novels, drank so many drinks, and smoked so many cigarettes.

I did most of the planning during our trip to Paris, but this portion of our Parisian escape was Dylan's own. He researched the best path from one location to the next.

Stop One: Les Deux Magots: 
Review: There were a surprising amount of local Parisians enjoying the sunny weather at Les Deux Magots. Most Parisians ordered a Perrier, a Coke with lemon, café or Cremè de Menthe on ice. We ordered café and it came with a small chocolate candy that complimented the espresso very well.

Stop Two: Brasserie Lipp
Review: There were not any local patrons at the Brasserie Lipp, our guess was that it was too expensive. There is a nice indoor patio that would be ideal on a rainy day. Dylan ordered the Ricard and I ordered the Kir (white wine or sparkling wine with a berry liqueur). Dylan's Ricard shot came in a large glass with a glass of water and an entire bucket of ice. Usually Ricard is served with a few ice cubes and a couple of splashes of water which makes it a more mellow drink.

Stop Three: Le Select 
Review: Just like with the Brasserie Lipp, our third stop also seemed to be too overpriced for locals to stop in and spend time here. We ordered asparagus with cheese shavings and some drinks for our first course, but could not afford to stay for the second.










Stop Four: La Rotonde
Review: Finally! A place we could enjoy and afford! If Hemingway was still running around Paris today, we are certain he might skip the first three spots, but would certainly come to La Rotonde. Here we were able to afford a full bottle of wine, escargot, and a goat cheese plate and the waiter made sure we felt special and enjoyed our meal and experience.

Parisian Specialty Shops: La Maison de la Truffe (Truffles)

WE LOVE TRUFFLES! Dylan and I had read in an article (http://www.fodors.com/news/story_2159.html) that a must see location in Paris was La Maison de la Tuffe. It is a boutique truffle shop with a restaurant attached. This shop is located near the beautiful Greek temple looking church the Église de la Madeleine.

As soon as we took one step into La Maison de la Truffe on Madeleine the scent of truffles hit us like a brick wall. We have to admit, we were very nervous and intimidated  when we walked into the shop, because we knew next to nothing about truffles and this was the 'it' truffle shop of Paris. The shop employees must have sensed this, because they were immediately welcoming us into the shop to explore and ask as many questions as we needed. They also showed us to the sample area where we were able to try truffle infused olive oils, truffle honey, and other delicious truffle based items. We toyed around with buying a truffle and cooking something fabulous in our Parisian apartment, but were nervous to use this mysterious item that would cost a lot if we were to accidentally cook it the wrong way. We had heard that most truffle oil was synthetic, and we didn't know how to ask if it was actually truffle oil, or the typical synthetic oil so we did not purchase that either. So, we ended up picking the mayo with small pieces of real truffle mixed in, since we always love dipping homemade pommes frites into different mayo concoctions. We brought it home to Naperville, IL as a gift for my parents and we all agreed that it was incredible.

Parisian Specialty Shops: Barthélémy (Cheese)

When we opened the door to go into Barthélémy we felt like we opened the door into Paris many years ago. It appeared that they did not change one item since their opening.  We were immediately greeted by a helpful cheese connoisseur that brought us inside the shop and asked what type of cheese we would need. There were so many choices and everything was labeled in French, so we were glad we came prepared with a slip of paper with the word 'Mimolette.' My uncle, Bobby Carlsen, had given us advice on cheeses to try and this was his favorite cheese in France that is not available in the United States.  Mimolette is a popular selection in Paris and Barthélémy had a large section dedicated to Mimolette. After we had purchased the cheese block, our connoisseur led us quickly out the door. It is a very small store, so we assumed they needed to get customers in and out very fast. If there are more than three customers, it is already crowded!

The Mimolette's vibrant color matched its flavor. It had the texture of a Parmesan block, but the taste had a more exotic nutty flavor. We asked several Parisian patrons if they ate the rind of the cheese, and most responded that if you like the taste the rind is there for you to eat, but if you do not like the taste or texture than don't eat it. Much like everything in Paris, they said to do whatever makes you happy. I did not eat the rind, Dylan did and it was very rich!

Parisian Specialty Shops: E. Dehillerin (Kitchenware)

When we walked up to E. Dehillerin, we were nervous to enter the doors of the famous cookware shop. Our friends had given us 100€ to spend on a special gift, and we knew we wanted to pick up an amazing souvenir here at E. Dehillerin. Once we entered the doors our nerves immediately disappeared after the greeter spoke with us in English and let us know we should make ourselves comfortable. We had so many lovely family members fulfill our registry gifts after our wedding, so we had almost everything we needed for the kitchen. We of course fell in love with everything copper, but everything copper was well out of our price range.

E. Dehillerin had everything from cast iron pots to copper utensils to cookie molds to chose from, so it was a difficult task. After walking both upstairs and down about three times, we finally decided on a Champagne bucket in stainless steel. It represented Paris to us and we knew we would be able to enjoy this with our friends and family when we had them over in the future.

Le Marais (3rd)

Since our apartment was farther east than most of the sites, we loved when there were exciting things to do within close walking distance to the 11th. To the west of the 11th is the 3rd arrondissement, Le Marais. In the 3rd there are many hidden treasures including the open air market Marché des Enfants Rouges, Musée Picasso (reopening October 25, 2014), and amazing boutiques and restaurants. 

Moules grâtinèes a la provençale
Salad d' écrevisses, avocat, pamplemousse

My aunt, Susan Carlsen, is an international flight attendant with American Airlines and is often in Paris for a 24 hour layover. She has eaten at Chez Janou several times before and she suggested this to us as an affordable lunch spot filled with local patrons. Almost every Parisian was either drinking a Coke with a lemon or rosé with their meal, so we went with the rosé wine of course. 

We would definitely recommend Chez Janou for the price, quality, ambiance and local flare. While writing this piece, I wish I could teleport there for lunch right now! 

Above photo from www.chezjanou.com

 

Our Pied-à-terre

Our little pied-à-terre from VRBO

Dylan and I arrived at the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris around 8 am. The two of us boarded the thirty minute train from the airport to the city center, with four pieces of luggage and a metro map.  A local Parisian that spoke beautiful English helped us find our metro stop first metro stop Châlete Les Halles and we transferred to the yellow line towards the Bastille.  Luckily we kept our tickets in our pockets, because we needed to use them again when we changed from the first metro to the second metro, so if you take the metro be sure to hang onto your ticket at all times!

When we walked through the exit of the metro we could not tell North from South, but luckily there were several maps on the streets of the city that assisted us in finding our way. (Later on in our trip we learned that the maps on our cell phones worked in airplane mode, which would have also helped us out a lot in the beginning.)

Our little apartment was on Rue Popincourt just off the main road of Rue de la Roquette. When we arrived to the address provided by VRBO.com and were greeted by our landlord. The landlord did not speak one word of English and we were very limited on our French, so we used a  lot of hand gestures and smiles to help us communicate. It is amazing how much information one can communicate with a genuine smile.

We had a studio style pied-à-terre with a small kitchen with all of the essentials, a modern bathroom, and a couch that turned into our bed. It was the perfect space for the two of us to drink wine, make Parisian meals, and rest our feet after long days of walking.

            Dylan cooking our first meal on 6/10/2014

Renting the apartment was an amazing part of our trip and I would recommend everyone interested in staying in Paris to stay in the 11th district. The 11th had everything we needed from trendy boutiques with local flair to grocery stores like the Monoprix and our favorite the Carrefour to hole in the wall restaurants and bars.

Our Parisian Escape

View from Montparnasse Tower, Restaurant Ciel de Paris

Dylan and I spent our first date at a South American restaurant, La Parrilla, and after watched the timeless movie Casablanca.  I had never seen the movie before, but it was one of Dylan's all time favorites. Everyone knows the line "we'll always have Paris," but after I saw Casablanca,  I knew I NEEDED to get to Paris with someone I loved. 

Four years later Dylan and I were engaged and we did not have a desire to have a traditional wedding, but rather saw this as the perfect opportunity to pretend to live in Paris for several weeks.

Everything fell into place and it truly felt meant to be. The flight cost was 50% less for the days that worked in our schedule than all of the other days, the vrbo.com rental apartment was available for the full sixteen day block, and Dylan had the entire time off of medical school.

Spending three weeks in Paris was the best possible vacation for two newlyweds because we never felt restricted on time. We were free to spend each day as we felt and were not rushed around. 

We hope this travel journal inspires others to jet off to the one and only, Paris, France.