The most romantic city in the world

My favorite moments in Paris were the quiet ones: walking down La Tour Mabourg at night on our way to dinner; window shopping down little side streets, eating our picnic of wine and cheese facing the immense and beautiful gardens of Versaille.

We managed a couple of the usual suspects: The Lourve (oh how I wish I had another day to visit again), the Orsay (can be done comfortably in one try), Napolean's tomb (wow, that's a lot of granite), Saint Chapple (stunning), Notre Dame (huge), the Deportation memorial (not to be missed).

The best thing about Paris is just being there, so please, make time in your schedule to enjoy your vacation as the French do: sitting at an outdoor cafe drinking wine and watching the world spin (and, if you're really french, SMOKING!)

Quick Tips:

I heartily recommend flying into Paris before 8pm, as that is when all the shuttles stop running. A door to door shuttle will run you about 17 EUR/pp. A taxi from Roissy/Charles de Gaulle to the center of Paris will cost you from 70-90 EUR depending on traffic and the amount of luggage you have. Taxi drivers charge an additional amount for fares after 8 pm and for each piece of luggage. If you're worried about getting swindled in Paris, that's the first place to look.

Not enough can be said about the importance of comfortable walking shoes. The streets and sidewalks of Paris, and most of Europe, are made of cut stone and unevenly put together. You will find yourself walking on parts of your foot unaccustomed to such activity. Be sure to bring a good pair of thick soled, well broken in walking shoes. Also, I would recommend not having too many little crevices in the soles of your shoes as there is more dog droppings on the sidewalks than westerners are used to. Otherwise, pack an old spare toothbrush to clean your shoes with.

Best Way To Get Around:

Paris has an amazing underground light rail system: the Metro. I was terrified of it for two days, having been bombarded before departure with stories of gypsies, pickpockets, and theives. Not to mention the 16 squiggily lines that covered Paris on the Metro maps. Let me be the first to admit my fears were totally unfounded! The Metro was wonderful. We never had to wait more than five minutes for a train and were able to take trains to within two blocks of wherever we wanted to go. The trains are clean and well lit. And if you take a few simple precautions you won't have to worry about pickpockets.

Paris is supposedly a walkable city. I took that to mean you could walk everywhere. You can't. Paris is a BIG city. Please, for my sake if not your own, take the Metro. If you want to explore, take the Metro to the area you want to explore and then walk around. Otherwise you'll find yourself hobbling over the cobblestone streets, like my darling boyfriend.

The Hotel de L'Empereur is a charming two star hotel in the heart of the Seventh. The lobby/breakfast room is well furnished with arm chairs, small tables, and a pay internet station. Our room was on the fourth floor, and from other rooms we saw seemed fairly representative. It was tiny with a double bed, two nightstands, a small armoire, and a desk. A TV with cable was mounted to the wall and a large window overlooked the interior courtyard. The bathroom, however, was enoumous. We had full soaking tub and a hand held shower with shower curtain as well as the usual plumbing. The water pressure was excellent and the hot water was HOT and consistent; always a plus.

Since we were facing the courtyard, our room was very quiet at night, even with the windows open. I would expect rooms facing the street to be considerably noiser. A major negative to our room was our mattress. Both my partner and I are below average height, yet our feet dangled off the edge. Also, our mattress was decidedly concave, with little to no middle support. It was also free of padding and was like sleeping directly on springs. We decided to sleep on top of the blankets, and use the spare to cover ourselves. Not ideal, by any means, but passable.

A breakfast buffet is served in the lobby from 7am - 11am. They have an assortment of breads, yogurt, sliced meats, cheese, cereal, coffee, juice, fruit, and jam. It's an additional 7 EUR. Get there early or the good stuff will be gone and you would be better off going to a cafe for breakfast. We saw several around the hotel for 6 - 7 EUR. The location is what makes this hotel so great. The Seventh is a wonderful neighborhood, and has a glut of great shops, restaurants, and bars within easy walking distance. It's safe, clean, and close to the Metro station.

We dined our first night at 7eme Sud, a hip, dark and smoky Italian restaurant a few blocks from our Hotel. The maroon velvet curtain across the doorway let us know that we had arrived. Inside, we could see couples and small groups of 20 and 30something Parisians sitting at small round tables with generous plates of what looked like very fresh pasta in front of them. We took a small table outside, under a potted olive tree and ordered Crostini, gnocci pomodoro (gnocci stuffed with tomotoes and garlic with a light cream sauce) and Penne with red pesto (sun dried tomatoes and kalamata olives). We don't speak a lick of French, but our young and ultra cool waiter tried his best to explain the menu to us in English. The service was slow, but not inattentive. Our food was perfection. The gnocci were very well prepared, not overdone and the cream sauce was light and savory. The penne were al dente and the tomatoes and olives were fresh and pleantyful. We skipped wine and dessert, as we were still a little jet lagged and our appitites had not yet returned to normal. Our bill came to 32 EUR, including tip and service.

One note: some restaurnats will bring you a bottle of tap water in a clean, but previously used wine bottle. When one of these appeared on our table, we tried to send it back thinking it was a bottle of wine we hadn't ordered!! We were soon set straight, and noticed the practice at other restaurants as well.

We passed this place several times before stopping in for dinner on Saturday night. It was what I imagined a French neighborhood restaurant should be: yellow walls with sleek black moulding and counters, dark wood beams running across the ceiling, small intimate tables filled with people lingering over delicate food. And the price was right; a three course prix fix menu for 16 EUR with several options for each course. We tried to get there early to avoid the crowd, but without success. When we stopped in the front door at 8pm, the waiter asked us if we had a reservation. No, we didn't. So he asked us to come back at 9. And we did. Our table was ready, as promised and we sat down to order. I got the foie gras (fatted prepared duck liver with toasts) to start, the duck confit main dish (leg and thigh braised in its own fat) and creme brulee for dessert. My darling wanted to start with Escargot, then have the Salmon with bernaise sauce main dish. My foie gras came rather quickly and my sweetie watched me eat with just a hit of revulsion. (It was my first foie gras, and while I'm not sure I liked it, the velvety texture and the rich earthy flavor keep coming back to me. The toast is essential for keeping the gamey flavors from becoming overpowering. I'll have to try it again to know if I like it, but I figured, hey, I'm in Paris after all...) For 20 minutes he watched me and the waiter, waiting for his escargot. My plate was cleared and moments later, our main dishes arrived. No escargot. When we pointed out the error the waiter said he would bring it following dinner, but that was not what we wanted. The order was canceled without apology. Bummer. The escargot looked good, too. The food we did get was excellent. The salmon was light and flaky, fresh, and not overcooked. It came with some delightful fingerling potatoes which have a dense buttery flavor and seem less starchy than I'm used to. My confit was a little tough and frankly was too rich a main dish after the foie gras. But I got some of those yummy potatoes. Our Creme brulee was delicious; creamy vanilla with a throughly caramalized sugar top. We almost couldn't finish it.

We got a half bottle of wine, and since the escargot were MIA, our bill was 32. A complete steal in my opintion.

Versaille is a Temple to France, with Louis XIV as its God. Louis, and soon everyone else, referred to himself as the Sun King illuminating France with prosperity, majesty and, well, virillity. Versaille is amazing. Its grandeur is impressinve for its scope as well as for the great and painstaking detail that was given every surface. The Chateau and gardens are open every day except Mondays and the hours vary by season. The Chateau is covered by the Paris Museum pass, but the Gardens are an additional 4 EUR per person. Guided tours are available in English and French for an additional 7.50 EUR and cover some of the King and Queens private rooms. Covered in the cost of Admission are the Chappel, the King and Queens State Apartments, a couple of grand salons and the Hall of Mirrors (wow).

We went to Versaille on a Sunday, and arrived around 1 pm. The place was packed. The self guided tour through the State apartments was so full of people as to impede movement. I don't usually mind crowds, but in this case, all the people detracted from my enjoyment of the space. No time to soak up the atmosphere here. So, note to self (and to you): Don't go to Versaille on the Weekends.

And now the exception to that note: The fountains. They run every Sunday, and on Sundays only it seems. Versaille once had more than 1500 fountains. Of that, only 300 remain. I hear they are difficult and expensive to maintain, but, boy, they are really something. Especially considering that this was constructed before electric pumps. They turned on the fountains around 3 pm, and had classical music piped into speakers hung throughout the garden. It was magic.

Be sure to bring your own water, other than the decorations, fountains are hard to find. we also packed a picnic which we enjoyed just behind the Chateau before entering the garden. Picnicking in the gardens is forbidden, in an attempt to preserve the lawns and surrounding areas.