Kate's Birthday and Our Last Day in Paris

Today is Kate's birthday and our last day in Paris so we told her we would do anything she wanted for the day.  First she wanted a croissant from our boulangerie.  That was easy and like any other morning in Paris.  Our first stop was St. Sulpice.

Kelly and Kate

Kate and the Gnomen

Kate was interested in the gnomen and the rose line inside.  I had blogged about this back in January and she wanted a good look after reading the Da Vinci Code while in Paris.  There is a small hole in the church and when the sun is at the equinoxes, it shines on the rose line and on the top of the ball.
We decided to walk to Angelina's on rue de Rivoli for lunch.  We only got as far as St. Germain-des-Prés when the rain started so we went to Plan B and jumped on the Métro. 

Kelly and Kate at St. Germain-des-Prés

The Sun Returns at Angelina's

Angelina's is known for its intense hot chocolate so of course we had to try some of that for lunch.  We ate upstairs and had a view down below.

Ordering at Angelin's

View from Upstairs at Angelina's

Then we headed off for Kate's next stop--Ile Saint Louis.

We walked past the back of Notre Dame.  By now, Andrew's energy was flagging.  He had a stomach virus earlier this week and he is still not up to speed.

Andrew and Notre Dame

Then we walked over the bridge to Ile Saint Louis.  It is the island next to Ile de la Cité that has very expensive apartments and nice shops.

Kate at Ile St. Louis

We saw this street sign that had been altered that we thought was pretty funny.

Ile St. Louis

We headed back over the lock bridge we had visited on Monday to the Latin Quarter.  Kate showed Kelly her lock ("I left my heart in Paris") and thought it had faded a bit so she touched it up.

Kate on the Lock Bridge

Kelly and Andrew went home on the Métro while Kate and I decided to go on to see the Panthéon.  This is near the Sorbonne and where many famous people, such as Victor Hugo and Jean Jacques-Rousseau, are buried.  On the way we also passed St. Etienne-du-Mont, but Kate informed me that going inside this beautiful church was not on her birthday itinerary.

St. Etienne-du-Mont

The Panthéon

Kate at the Panthéon

View of the Eiffel Tower from the Panthéon

After shopping for scarves, Kate and I went home to meet up with the guys and go to Amorino on the rue Cler for gelato.  Kate loves how they make the cones look like a rose.

Kelly and Kate

Kelly's Salted Caramel Gelato

It was almost 5 pm but Kate was still not finished with her Paris birthday adventure.  Her next destination was Ladurée for our last macarons.  By now it was raining hard again.

Kate at Ladurée

We had a little break back at the apartment before we went out for Kate's birthday dinner.  Unfortunately, Andrew was still not feeling well so we had to leave him behind on the couch.  Kate chose the Bistro St. Dominique that we went to earlier this week.  She was a bit adventurous and tried the duck this time.

Kate at the Bistro

Jeanene and Kate at the Fontaine de Mars

After dinner we walked over to the Eiffel Tower to say our goodbyes.

Kate and Kelly Walking to La Tour Eiffel

Kate Taking her Last Pictures of Li'l Eiffie

Kelly and Kate Ecole Militaire

We walked home towards Ecole Militaire and our corner of the quartier.  Kate said it was her best birthday ever and one she will not forget.  It was a great way to spend our last day in Paris.

Crossing the Corner to our Apartment

At our Apartment Door

Our Boulangerie

I went to our Boulangerie this morning for out last croissants and pains au chocolats before we fly home.  As I left, I noticed men carry huge bags of flour into the Boulangerie from a big truck parked on the street.  Kelly was getting ready for his last Paris run so I told him to take his iPhone and see if the truck was still there.

Flour Truck

Kelly stopped and watched the two men carry in the flour.  He told them he was from the US and that he found this very interesting.  The men were surprised and happy to talk to him.  They told him there are flour mills all along the Seine.  They move the flour up and down the Seine on barges.  Then they load up the delivery trucks with the flour and deliver it either in bags, like at our boulangerie because it is a small one, or they pipe the flour directly into the boulangerie.

Man Carrying the Flour into the Boulangerie

Our Boulangerie is definitely at the top of my list of things I will miss in Paris.  We learned the croissants taste so much better here because of the high fat content of the butter in France.  Everything just tastes better in Paris.

World War I Museum in Meaux

Andrew and Kelly left Thursday morning from Gare de l'Est for the town of Meaux.  Meaux is known for its brie cheese (Brie de Meaux) but that wasn't the reason for their trip.  They were headed to the new World War I Museum on the outskirts of Meaux.  The museum has over 50,000 objects and documents that were all collected by one man beginning in the 1960s.  The two Battles of the Marne were fought in the countryside around Meaux.  The area is full of World War I cemeteries.
Andrew found a little Renault tank in the musuem.  He and his friend Jackson put together models of this tank when they were kids.  It was one of the first tanks built and used near the end of World War I.

Andrew and Renault Tank

The museum shows how rapidly life and conditions changed between the first Battle of the Marne in 1914, which was fought more like the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, and the second Battle of the Marne four years later, when technical advances had changed warfare out of all recognition.  It was the end of the old order and the beginning of the world as we know it today.  There were French and German trenches built in the museum that even had the smells of the war.  Kelly and Andrew also walked in barracks and looked at trenches down below.

Andrew in the Trenches

Machine Gun in the Trenches

The museum is in front of the American monument Liberty in Distress, erected in memory of the soldiers who fell at the two battles of the Marne. It was presented to France by the United States in 1932.

Liberty in Distress

Kelly and Andrew said they would love to go back and do more exploring.  It is only a 25 minute train ride and then a little bus ride from Paris.  Another great adventure for the guys in France.

Neighborhood Stroll

Our friend, Shannon, who was on our Study Abroad program in Paris in 1980, came to Paris today with her daughter, Rachel.  They stopped by the apartment this evening for a bite to eat and a little visit.  Then we walked them to the Eiffel Tower so they could go to the top before it started raining again.

Kelly, Jeanene and Shannon

Kelly and I took a few pictures on the way back to the apartment.

Eiffel Tower Evening

Kelly at Ecole Militaire

And suddenly we stumbled upon an exercise class going on by the Eiffel Tower.

 

We called Andrew to see if he wanted to join them lifting weights.  He politely declined.  When we got to avenue de la Motte Picquet, we found two Monoprix grocery delivery men on bikes.  One pulled over with mechanical problems and the other came to help. 

"Monoprix Home Delivery"

"Nothing in the Hands, Everything in the Cyclo"

My groceries were always in my hands--or I was pulling them in my little shopping cart.  I will miss grocery shopping in Paris.  Here's Kelly at the Market last Saturday with our shopping cart.  It went everywhere with us.

Kelly with the Cart at the Marché Avenue Saxe

Sande can tell you that the cart also comes in handy shopping at the Paris flea markets.  You may also notice that Kelly is still wearing his winter wool coat and a scarf.  It has been so wet, windy and stormy the last couple of weeks that we have to be prepared for any kind of weather.  Sande was still using hand warmers when she left this week!  It is also a good excuse to duck into a café for hot chocolate to warm up.

Kelly Crossing to our Corner.

And then we found ourselves home.  Our students have left and we go home on Saturday.  We really miss our students!  The apartment is much too quiet.

Last Week In Paris

This is our last week in Paris.  After the marathon our friends, the Kriegers, had one more day in Paris.  We were so sad to see them go.  On their last evening in Paris, they picked us up to go to dinner at the Bistro Saint Dominique near the Fontaine de Mars on rue Saint Dominique.

The Bistro

Fontaine de Mars

Our tradition is to take pictures at the front door to the apartment at 41, avenue de la Motte Picquet, as we arrive in Paris and when we are saying goodbye to Paris. We wished the Kriegers didn't have to say goodbye.

Pattersons

The Girls--Sande, Jeanene and Kate

Kriegers and Pattersons

The Guys--Kelly, Andrew and Mike

The kids and I hope to return to Paris soon.  We just need to convince Kelly.