Paris--Day 6

Yesterday, I sent out a call for help on this blog as well as the Paris forum that I'm a member of. I got some great suggestions!

I started off the day with a pain aux raisin of course and headed to the Metro. Thank goodness I was on the line I was because at one of the major stops, a couple got on and were talking in English about where they needed to get off. As I listened, I realized they were going the wrong direction! I quickly asked to double check, then let them know how to get off and go the correct direction. They would have ended up in the middle of the suburbs otherwise.

I changed to a smaller Metro line and got off at Butte-Chaumont and proceeded to climb the 140 stairs to get out of the station! It was worth it, however, as the park is wonderful! It's built on a site which used to be a lime quarry so it has rolling hills, secret passageways, a waterfall and a lake with an island. The place is absolutely gorgeous! I would consider staying in the 19th arrondissement just to be able to walk here every morning. There was a host of joggers including a day camp for kids who was making all the kiddos jog laps around the lake. It's not a tourist attraction so it's mostly locals out meeting friends, groups doing tai chi and young moms with strollers.

After an hour there, I went down to the Bastille for the market. I guess I'm a bit jaded since I enjoy Augburg's Stadt Markt so this wasn't anything special. I took the regional train down to Luxembourg garden. Unfortunately for me, today was landscaping day and they were digging up all the annuals, even the ones still in bloom. It was sad watching little kids trying to pick out the squashed flowers from the heaps of compost. Even looking at the palace and the pond it was difficult to enjoy myself with the Bobcat rolling in front of me with a trough full of dead plants. It soon turned cold so I took the regional trains to the 7th to go to Cafe Constant.

I had passed it several times and always wanted to try it. Chef Christian Constant is a bit of a legend in France (think Bobby Flay, Emeril, Rachael Ray, etc.) so I made sure I got there right when it opened to get a table. Oh the choices! I was planning originally on having the set menu, but the main dish of the day was beef with potatoes. I had come too far for beef and potatoes! Now I started looking at the menu. Here where my top three:

1. Velvety pumpkin soup with truffle oil and chestnut chips
2. Guinea fowl with Parmesan polenta two ways: creamy and fried
3. Duo of duck (duck leg and shredded duck in mashed potatoes) with candied fig sauce and Parmesan chips

It was a tough decision, but I went with the guinea fowl since it was something new(guinea fowl) with something familiar (polenta). It was wonderful! I could have eaten a vat of that creamy polenta! The guinea fowl was perfectly done with a buttery, crunchy skin. While I was there, I sat next to two super cute French grandmas having lunch. Halfway through my meal, an older American couple from No Cal sat on the other side of me. We chatted a bit and they will be staying in Paris for 3 weeks! Aaaa, jealous! She had the velvety pumpkin soup and said it was delicious...next time, next time.

I made my way back to the apartment to rest then decided to spend the late afternoon/evening in the Opera district. Shops there are open later and I still had some chocolate I needed to buy. By this time I had figured out that one factor in my foot pain was my shoe. The sole hit my foot a certain way when I walked and it made things worse. I switched to my finally dry shoes and I had no problem walking all night! I stopped at Pierre Herme's and got chocolate for a friend as well as some for myself. Galeria Lafayette was having a big sale to rival Printemps so I browsed through everything. I was looking specifically for a new wallet (mine is almost dead), but couldn't find anything even on sale under 35 euros ($50+). I went up to the deck to see the view of the city just as the sun had almost gone down. The Eiffel Tower was lit up and the rain had stopped. It was lovely. I later went and found the Amorino gelato shop and got myself a cup with three flavors: dark chocolate, amarena(candied cherry with vanilla) and chocolate hazelnut. It was good stuff, but not the best I've had(going to Italy spoils you that way).

I was standing at the entrance to the Opera Metro station, but realized I just didn't want to end the night yet. I wandered around the 9th, looking at shops and following crowds of people. Suddenly, I found myself next to the Louvre! I finally found a good Metro station to take back to Republique (I try to avoid Chatelet as much as possible as it is extremely large and very crowded).

So now, I just have to clean up my apartment and pack for tomorrow. Hard to believe my Paris adventure is almost over.