Days in Paris: Two
Hours slept: seven
Amount of exercise done: 14,794 steps
Before I begin discussing Paris, I wanted to expand more on the hostel experience. To be quite honest, before doing this I was not the biggest fan of hostels. Up until this trip I’ve never stayed in one but the reputation of hostels just didn’t appeal to me. It wasn’t until my roommate told me about her stay, that I began seeing that as a great alternative. For under 40 dollars each, we stayed in a private double bedroom with a private bath. Although a bit cold, everything was clean upon our arrival. I was a tad cold throughout the night and I’m sure I could have asked for more blankets but honestly that was my only complaint. The staff was absolutely amazing and the location was great. You can’t beat that price!! I would definitely recommend Le Village Hostel in Montmartre.
Checkout for us that day was at 11 am. Our plans had us in the Latin quarter so it wasn’t going to be possible. However, we checked out when we left on our adventures and they were very kind to hold our bags.
With that off we went to sacre couer which was a 3 minute walk from our hostel. We walked up those stairs and were immediately rewarded with magnificent views of Paris. The sun was rising and that only added to its beauty. After snapping a few pictures and admiring the view, off we went to grab breakfast with a friend from college at Les Deux Magots.
Les Deux Magots is the place where Hemingway and Satre would spend their days writing. Skylar and I both ordered the Hemingway breakfast which came with an omelette. It was delicious! While enjoying this breakfast, I was fortunate to catch-up with a sorority sister, Daniela. Daniela is studying in Paris and is living her dream. It was so amazing to hear about her life in Paris and her perspective of the lifestyle and culture here.
Following breakfast, the three of us walked along Rue Saint Germaine and headed to la fromagerie Laurent Dubois. Now, a fromagerie is basically a cheese shop. In specific, this cheese shop was an MOF. The highest honor that can be given. Oh my gosh y’all, I understand why it’s an MOF.
First of all, let me begin by saying that the staff was so helpful. When I began to order in French, my cheese assistant knew I was not French but clearly told me, I will speak in French but if you want me to slow down just let me know. Off we went and had discussions about cheese, where I learned french, the fact that I wanted to take cheese back with me, and so on. It was amazing! As a french minor and lover of a french things, this moment, ordering cheese and discussing things in french, was my highlight. I loved it! Not to mention, I left with delicious cheese.
We parted ways with Daniella and off we went to our next stop, Pierre Hermes, what many would say is up the ranks with Laduree and maybe even better since it isn’t as commercialized. Pierre Hermes had some very interesting flavors. I ended up getting a dozen to take back home to the states. I’ll be sure to report back and let you know how they taste!
Up next, we went to chocolatier Patrick Roger. This was something Skylar was looking forward to as she loves chocolate! The only downside was that she had to get euros since they had a credit card minimum.
The last stop was L’Avant Comptoir, a wine and tapas bar. It was there that we tried some delicious wine. The bartender simply asked you what you liked and he provided. Mine was a dry, white, minimal fruity white wine from Bordeaux. It was exactly what I needed. I then ordered a banana and Nutella crepe to go, since obviously you have to have crepes while in Paris!!
Unfortunately, that marked the end of our Paris time. We took the metro back to the hostel were we grabbed our bags and walked toward Gare Du Nord.
Within 2.5 hours we were back home in London! I was sad to see Paris go, but so thankful for the opportunity to be there and to experience her beauty.
Once we arrived back at our flat, Jaana was in full preparation mode for a dinner party… for the four of us.
It was Brian’s and Virginia’s last night and in their honor Jaana made a delicious baked fish dish with potatoes, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and lemon. We began dinner with a cheese appetizer with a french cheese I brought back, English and Italian cheese Jaana had. After eating our appetizer and main course we moved onto dessert, which was a delicious vanilla ice cream, dark chocolate drizzle with pears. Virginia and Brian also brought cupcakes which means we had double dessert.
While dinner was filled with amazing food, the conversation was even better! It was cool to learn more about Jaana and the UK/ European perspective (More on Jaana to come). Overall though, it was an amazing way to end Paris and our second to last day in London.
One more day in London and my goal is to do as a Londoner would do and just take in the sights!
The Unnatural Packer 