Paris in the Springtime

Saturday was a beautiful spring day in Paris!  We decided to use public transportation, which included the bus and the metro (subway).  The bus, while slower, is actually more interesting, as you can see the city.  Before we headed out though, John went out in search of breakfast goodies, and returned with lattes, a bagette with raspberry jam, and croissants!  Quite the (un)healthy meal!

Our exploration of the city began with a ride on the #69 bus.  Rick Steves recommends this bus ride as an excellent way to get a general tour of the city.  We started at the Eiffel tower, passing Les Invalides, the Louvre, Notre Dame and the Bastille monument.  Getting off at Place Bastille, we walked to Place des Vosges, the first planned square in France--a beautiful park surrounded with classic buildings, including the home of Victor Hugo.  We continued to wander through the Le Marais neighborhood, past the Holocaust Memorial, noting the presence of police security.  After a delicious lunch at a lovely street cafe, we walked to Notre Dame and its surrounds before catching the #69 bus back to our hotel.

John and I like to get up early even on vacation, and we have discovered on this trip that there is nothing better than an afternoon nap!  Then we are refreshed and ready for a late dinner and an evening of fun.  Well, "fun" by our standards is still pretty conservative!  On this particular evening we took the Metro subway to the Latin Quarter, which was close to the restaurant John wanted to try.  I liked the Latin Quarter more than John did, although I agree with him that it was perhaps a little too crowded with tourists and tourist traps.  Here is an excerpt from John's journal:  "Blvd. St. Germain was crowded, tacky, filled with overly touristy bars ('happy hour', 'margaritas', hot dog').  Man, it sucked."  So we wandered to the beautiful Luxembourg Park, and then attempted to find the little restaurant John had read about and so wanted to try.  It took a little searching, but soon we found the street, at which point I became a little apprehensive.   The street was a little sketchy, but Le Bistro du Perigord was one of the best restaurants I have ever visited.  Run by two very personable brothers, the atmosphere and food were excellent.  We ended the meal with an apple pastry with caramel sauce!  The owner called us a cab, and we returned to our hotel full and happy.

All in all, it was a busy but wonderful spring day in Paris!!  How I love this city!!!