Picking thru Paris

After we checked into our hotel, located in the Latin Quarter, we went to visit the park of Luxemburgh. How many times I passed by park without really strolling by and sitting by the fountain watching the children play with their wooden sailboats. From there the Soborne University is just a few blocks away. How interesting it was for us to walk through the halls of this university where so many famous people have been educated here. Walking down Rue St. Michel and crossing "Le pont Saint-Michel". I enjoyed noticing that this bridge was contructed in 1378 and updated in 1857 has 3 archs and is decorated with the Imperial "N". If we would have had more time to visit the more than 10 bridges crossing the Siene River we would have had plenty of history to find in each one of them. From there we went to the store called "La Samaritane" where we got a beautiful panoramic view of Paris from the the top floor...and at no charge! This was the beginning of the first day. More experiences waited for us in the following days of touring and dining.

Quick Tips:

Paris Walking Tours are run in English by Peter and Oriel Caine to different areas of the city. Some of the most popular are: The French Revolution, The Village of Montmartre, The Historic Marais etc.. They go every day rain or shine, 60Francs for two hours. Phone:011-331-480-921-40. www.paris-walks.com. We went for half a day by train to Auvers sur Oise the town where Van Gogh spent his last years. We enjoyed visiting the Museum, his home, and the town where he lived. Get info from the train schedules at: www.eurorail.com We spent an afternoon visiting Pere Lachaise Cemetery where some celebraties including Chopin, Balzac, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf and Jim Morrison are buried. Not for everybody but the memorials are different.

Best Way To Get Around:

Get yourself on the day of your arrival a 3 day or a 5 day visitor pass where you can go by metro, bus or RER as many times and places as you want. Walking is my preferred way of getting around. Trains to the outskirts of Paris are frequent, fast, and not too expensive. Driving for me in Paris is out.

Whenever I visit Paris I try to find a hotel in the Latin Quarters. They are not expensive and people at the desk are always pleasant. I found this hotel through the Internet and was pleased with it. Rooms are extra small but all with private bath. We had a room with air condition, TV, cable etc.

Metro Luxemburg.
Closed Saturday and Sunday and lunch on Monday. For us, it was one of the best buy Bistros in the Latin Quarter. We enjoyed the leg roast leg of lamb with potatoes, for dessert apple tarte. All the other plates in the menu looked very appealing. They have the plate de jour.

This is a very well known Bistro in the Montmatre area. We found a long line waiting for tables to be seated, but the place is so big that in 10 minutes we were inside. This is a restaurant where we found the food to be very home type cooking and with lots of ambiance. Not only tourists but locals as well.

This is a lovely place located on the 6th. floor on the Primptens store--ideal for lunch with a very diverse menu. What we enjoyed the best was the glass dome in blue that gives you an effect of dining outside.

Metro Pont Marie
This restaurant is open for dinner only and is closed on Sundays. They offered a fix price menu including wine with several plates, wine and dessert included. The food was delicious and the service excellent. We were offered as apperitif pate and a basket full of sausages. I had for duck, which was well prepared, as was the salmon my wife had.

As we left our visit to Sacred Cour in Montmatre we walked from the base of the Funiculaire to the right toward the Abeeesses Metro Station and found this lovely Salon de The, where we had a delicious lunch of a nicely prepared plate of quiche (salmon, chicken, spinach,etc.) with salad and a delicious cup of hot tea. The food was so excellent and to be found just out of pure chance is what made our lunch so unique. We will return to this place any time.

Elegant restaurant where we had dinner at the terrace. We found the food to be delicious but the service was very slow although there were not that many customers at the place since it was Sunday evening. The house wine was not expensive and was very good.

This old establishment is very popular because of the delicious food and in particular the soups located in the heart of the Latin Quarters. I will recommended to arrive before 8:00 p.m. when the place gets too crowded. Service is excellent and the waiters go out of their way to help you out with your choice.

Metro: Mabillon
We had their famous Green Bean Salad, along with the rabbit (lappin), also they have a delicious lamb. This is the perfect place for a quiet dinner before a night out. For dessert, we recommend the chocolate cake. One order is enough for 2.

We took three walking tours and enjoyed all of them for the vast information that we obtained about the areas that we visited. We went with the The French Revolution Tour, The Village of Montmatre Tour and the Saint Germain-des-Pres and there were so many diffeterent aspects of Paris we did not know. If you have a chance, take the Marais Tours we took that tour in the past and was great.

On the first sunday of each month any of the big museums, Louvre, Orsay, Rodin etc. will not charge an entrance fee.

If you happen to be in Paris at this time, get there early to avoid long lines (although they go fast) and you will save a few Francs.

If you are as addicted to chocolate as I am there are quite a few places to visit in Paris. Here you have a few addresses: La Maison du Chocolate. 225 Rue F.-St. Honore.Metro Termes 52 Rue Francois- 1 er., Metro F. D. Roosevelt 8 Boulevard de la Madeleine Metro Madeleine.