The hour had finally arrived, after a great deal of prior planning, when I was to go collect Mr. and Mrs. Murphy at their hotel on the Champs Elysee and begin to seek out all the trouble we could potentially get into…imagine the possibilities for Anna and I in Paris! I hopped on the metro at a fairly early hour for me over here (8ish…) I’ve turned a new leaf in Paris where my body absolutely refusing to wake up before 9. I end up cruising the Champs Elysee around 8:30 after the streets and sidewalks have been washed so not only am I have to concentrate on not falling and breaking an ankle, but I’m looking for the Marriot that is hidden under a fair amount of scaffolding. I am also completely oblivious to the world as I have my ipod blasting beats in my ears. I preface with all of this because at the moment when I am thinking I should turn around and make a second pass down the street, I feel a sharp tug at my purse over my right shoulder. ‘Are you serious?!! Is someone really trying to rob me at 8:30 in the morning on the Champs Elysee!!?’ One can imagine the overwhelming since of confusion and relief when I turned around to see a tall blond American in the form of Ryan standing there laughing at me! Apparently he’d been shadowing me for a whole minute! Good lesson learned on being slightly more aware when walking around cities…
From there we headed down Avenue Georges V to the train station for a trip out to Versailles. Getting there in the morning was an absolute prime idea as we bypassed all the crowds and lines. We strolled through the chambers of good old Louis and Marie before lounging around in the gardens behind the chateau (which are just as impressive, if not more so than the actual palace). And yes, I finally got to see the Hall of Mirrors as it was not under renovation this time!! Everything I could have hoped for and more (huge nerd that I am). We made it back to Paris for a nice glass of wine accompanied by some lunch before I left the Murphys to settle into their hotel and nap.
Using Notre Dame as our meeting place that evening, I introduced Anna and Ryan to my ‘hood,’ the Latin Quarter and Saint Germain. We enjoyed some wine and people watching before heading off to dinner on the Il de la Cite at a gem of a restaurant hidden from the busy streets of Paris (best duck breast in the country!) After dinner, I forced the Murphys to take a stroll along to the Seine to visit the Louvre at night. I have done this many, many times since being here. The courtyard and glass pyramid provide the perfect backdrop for splitting a bottle of wine in the bar that’s actually in the palace. It was a very pleasant end to the day!
The next night I didn’t meet the Murphys until around 10ish as I had spent the day touring the DDay landing beaches in Normandy. I was absolutely exhausted and had to be coaxed into going out with them. Leave it to Ryan to find one of the only bars in Paris that plays American football games on tv…and only 2 blocks from my apartment!! With a very suiting atmosphere, the Murhpys and I christened the WO Bar as my neighborhood bar! We made good friends with a dashing young bar tended oh-so-fittingly named Pierre (I definitely foresee many an evening more to spent in the bar….) We watched Michigan play…read about the beyond poor showing of the wahoos and before we knew it, it was 4am when we were stumbling out! After an extremely long meal and a stroll through Luxembourg Gardens the next day, bid the Murphy’s farewell and sent them on their way to Scotland! It was a fantastic visit, and yes, Anna and I left Paris still standing!
love,
peep
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