Tag: Paris
Good Bye South Of France!
It is 6 am, Marseille time and midnight New York time and we are getting ready to go to the airport to head home! I love going back home… no matter how exotic and fun the vacation destination has been..I think that is one of the reasons I love to travel- I get to come home!! One really appreciates ones home when one is away… for me, I am usually ready to come home after about 10 days.. after which, no matter how good the food is, I miss cooking in my kitchen… I miss just simple, home cooked food….
That being said, I really enjoyed this vacation. My husband works such long hours, we don’t really get to spend much time together as a family. A vacation is a great way to spend quality time together. I always love going to Paris- it is a great city to just walk around and look for interesting places to eat- so I will definitely be back! As for the rest, it was beautiful and the people were friendly and food was quite good- but I think next time I will do either the Burgundy or Bordeaux region- in face it may have to be an adult only trip… even though my daughter is a pretty good eater and not too picky.. eating around France was a bit of a challenge for her.. she wasn’t as open as she is normally to try different foods … but that will surely change as she gets older. I loved Nice, Monaco and Aix-en-Provence. I find myself having a soft corner for Marseille as it is the forgotten city in France and it reminds me of Rome.. well, kind of.. Speaking of which, my husband thinks I am biased but my heart remains in Italy… nothing like going to there and experiencing the most delicious food, wine and the friendly people. I love the way they speak and how the language sounds… In my head I am already planning next spring- Southern Italy!! I can’t wait. For me, the best part of a vacation is planning it way in advance and anticipating it… but for now I get to look forward to Greece in June, stay tuned!!
A Few Days In Paris…
Club Sandwich
So here we are in Paris for a few days… I love, love coming here and just walking around and popping into any cafe or eatery and having an amazing meal. We landed mid-morning and by the time we made our way to the Latin Quarter, it was well after noon. We dropped our luggage off as our room was not ready and walked around and found a restaurant for lunch. We ordered a carafe of Rose wine and I ordered a club sandwich- I haven’t had that in years! It was good with egg and ham… My daughter on the other hand had already indulged in a sugar crepe and was looking for her next fix!
After getting back to the hotel and unpacking we went out again to explore. My favorite thing to do in any foreign city is to go to a super market. I love looking at what the locals eat and what the fresh produce looks like. I am always impressed with the yogurt selection in Europe… so yummy! And of course who can beat the wine selection. I found myself standing in front of the wall of wine and turning green with envy… the wine is so good and SO cheap..
We walked around some more and found ourselves in the Marais where we found a corner restaurant to have some yummy duck confit and red wine.
Duck Confit
Raspberry Pistachio Tart
Madeleines
Raspberry Pastry
Chicken Liver
Pomegranate Chicken
Appetizer Platter
The confit was absolutely delicious- it was one of the things I was looking forward to… especially with the potatoes! The wine made everything good! After a bit more walking around, we stopped for a quick raspberry pistachio tart- yum!! A perfect end to our first day…
So, day two started early for me- I woke up local time 7 AM, which is 1 AM New York time!! I felt I had rested enough.. so I got up and did my 10 minute trainer- yes, I workout for 10 minutes every morning when on vacation- it gives me permission to eat whatever I want through the day. I got ready and went out to get some breakfast. A croissant and coffee later we ventured out to the Eiffel tower. We did not go to the top last time so we thought we would do that today… but I guess everyone had the same idea and the whole world was there. After walking around a bit, we ended up at Fauchon– which was our favorite place for a yummy lunch and of course their famous madeleines…we indulged in the plain, toffee, blackberry and raspberry! Absolutely delicious!! We also had some yummy sandwiches, wine and an unbelievable raspberry pastry…
After lunch we walked over to walked for several hours and stopped at a small bar to indulge in some wine. Dinner brought us to Cafe Savannah serving an eclectic Mediterranean cuisine. We started with a delicious sampler platter that included hummus, baba ganoush, pita stuffed with feta cheese, etc.. it was all delicious!!
The very welcoming and friendly owner told us about the specials that included a dish of chicken liver and a chicken cooked in spices and pomegranate juice. We decided on that as we sipped a delicious Cote de Rhone…
After some delicious dessert we happily walked back to our hotel while enjoying the crowds in the Latin quarter. The next day will be some more walking, maybe going to see the Easter service at the Notre Dam and then catching a flight to Nice…
Paris & Southern France, Here I Come!!
So, I am off to do my favorite thing- travel to another country! We are going to be in Paris, Nice and Marseilles! I have never been to Southern France and am very excited to eat lots of seafood and drink lots of delicious wine. We will be in Paris for three days- it is nice to go back there and just eat the yummiest things including crusty bread, cheese and of course snails!! We will then fly down to Nice for three nights and go over to Marseilles for another three nights. I am really excited about Marseilles as it is the new, up and coming destination in Souther France. I remember reading lots of articles about it last year and how the cuisine is supposed to a delightful mix of French and Tunisian… It is not as popular with the tourists as the rest of Provence.. so I am really looking forward to it. Bouillabaisse is a specialty there.. yum!
Of course Nice will be fantastic- I do hope to hop over to Italy since we will be right there but I am not sure if we will have time. Italy has my heart and I would go there three times a year if I could… but I think Southern France will be a lot of fun. Stay tuned next week to hear about how much I can eat and drink my way through Paris and Southern France!!!!