Paris does not require a proper introduction. Considered by many the most romantic city in the world, it is a city that has grown on me over time. I think I must have visited a good 6 times, but Mr. O and I hadn’t ventured over the Channel for around 5 years, so it was great to go back for a weekend in Paris.
For the second consecutive time, we stayed at Le Meridien Etoile (Starwood had somehow a limited choice in Paris, but of course that now changed with the recent opening of the W – just the excuse I needed to go back). It’s located not too far from Etoile – Place Charles de Gaulle, possibly a 5 minute walk – and a quite pleasant one, I may add.
For our weekend routine, well, you know the drill. Walk down the Champs Elysées – not one of my favourite places in Paris as it is way too busy, say a little hello to Monsieur Vuitton (if there is no queue, which is pretty standard and ridiculous) and have a nice and pleasant walk down Avenue Montaigne.
This is where you see the impossibly chic Parisien ladies who lunch – and shop of course!
From there, we get to the river.. the Seine, of course, and start playing “Spot the Tower”. Have you noticed how in movies, the Eiffel Tower is always within sight? I love playing that game – we are in Paris, after all – and I have no intention of getting any closer to it. It’s Saturday, it is sunny.. and that means queues, which Mrs. O doesn’t care too much for.
It’s approaching noon and I haven’t bought anything yet… so time to catch a taxi and get to my favourite department store in France – Le Bon Marché in the Rive Gauche. It is not a touristic destination, which makes it way more appealing and obviously not so crowded, like Printemps or Galleries Laffayette.
I love the theatrical displays and having a good look at all the best things money can buy, my favourite part being the homewares section. Paris is the home of Frette bed linen and it is really wonderful to see so much of it. Shame it isn’t much cheaper than at home! Oh.. and the shoes aren’t bad either 😉
From there, we walked down Rue des Sévres, a wonderful surprise on quite a few levels! I found one of my favourite shops in the world – Natura, a Brazilian beauty brand, Princesse Tam Tam (ladies, take note), Repetto (shoes!!) and the most beautiful Hermès store I have ever seen. It is so special, it has a flower shop inside. Sadly, I was too embarrased to take photos.
From there, we kept on walking, all the way to St. Germain. I love getting lost in the side streets and finding a lovely bistro for lunch. We managed to find the place we went to last time, but I couldn’t tell you where it was, even if I tried. I know it is not too far from.. Ladurée!
We certainly needed to digest the stunning macaroons (coconut are still my favourites), and isn’t a walk by the River Seine the perfect place to do so?
We crossed a different bridge and loved seeing the love locks – almost gave in to temptation, but didn’t at the end – possibly the street sellers selling them by the kilo may have possibly put me off. But still sweet and a nice kodak moment.
And of course, we couldn’t not walk around the Louvre, could we? And yes.. I did it.. just for Mrs. O’s blog…
Writing about it makes really takes me back to very happy weekends. I always fantasized about spending a couple of weeks in the summer in this city, and get lost everyday.. hum.. that idea seems better and better… let’s see what Mr. O thinks.
Love Paris. Love travel. Love shoes.
xx
Mrs. O
PS. I went to Paris again in January 2013 – read about my latest trip here!