During this trip with Kate and Carter we returned to some of our favorite spots and also did some new things, including those Carter hadn't had time to do before. We went to the apartment of Victor Hugo in the Place des Vosges. When Claire was here, I discovered a "secret" entrance into Place des Vosges. It is now our favorite way to enter. The Hôtel de Sully is on Boulevard Saint Antoine and has a large garden in the back. In the back corner of the garden is a doorway that empties into the covered walkway of Place des Vosges. We can't wait for leaves to appear on the trees. Winter has lasted way too long!
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| Kate and Carter at Place des Vosges |
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| Garden of Hôtel de Sully |
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Covered walkway at Place des Vosges
Near Entrance from Hôtel de Sully |
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| Victor Hugo's Home |
We wandered through the Marais after seeing the Victor Hugo home. We walked by our Paris Ward on rue Saint Merri and over to rue Nicolas Flamel for a picture for Carter's mom, Michelle. We all love Harry Potter and it was cool to discover that Nicolas Flamel was a real person-a French alchemist and writer who lived from 1330 to 1418.
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| Entrance to Paris Ward Chapel |
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| Rue Nicolas Flamel |
Kate can't be in Paris too many days before we make the pilgrimage to Ladurée. Kate and I love macarons so much! They are really a treat and at 2.10 euros each, we have to make them last.
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| Kate and Carter at Ladurée |
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| Kate and our Macarons. |
Behind our apartment and up the hill is the beautiful church Saint-Etienne-du-Mont. It is right by the Panthéon. It is one of our favorite spots to visit since it is so close to the apartment.
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| Saint-Etienne-du-Mont |
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Kate and Carter in Front of the
Beautiful Rood Screen |
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| Kate and Carter at the Panthéon |
We walked down rue Sufflot from the Panthéon to Luxemburg Gardens right before closing time.
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Looking Towards the Panthéon from
Luxemburg Gardens |
It wasn't too far a walk from there to our favorite crêpe place on boulevard Saint Germain at Odéon. They make them fresh and don't skimp on the fillings. They put a whole banana in a Nutella-banana crêpe!
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| Waiting for Crêpes |
Carter did not have time to go to the Louvre when he came to Paris for a few days in July 2014. An artist was copying the famous Ucello painting while we were there. So interesting to watch the process. We walked up rue de Rivoli after seeing the highlights at the Louvre. I have the Louvre tour for visitors down pat now. There is the shorter version and the longer version, both with homemade baguette sandwiches half way through for a much needed break. Museums are exhausting!
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| Louvre |
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| Artist at the Louve |
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| Italian Gallery at the Louvre |
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| Joan of Arc Statue on rue de Rivoli |
A trip to Paris would not be complete for Kate without going to the original Angelina's on rue de Rivoli. It's not exactly Carter's "cup of hot chocolate" but he was a good sport about it. Angelina's hot chocolate is intense! We tried their macarons with our hot chocolate and both agreed Ladurée macarons are definitely superior.
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| Counter at Angelina's |
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| Getting that last bit of hot chocolate |
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| Kate at Angelina's |
Another day we went to the Orangerie to see Monet's water lilies and the other impressionist paintings. Then walked across the river to the Musée d'Orsay for more art.
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| Monet's Water Lilies |
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| Kate's Favorite Water Lily Painting at the Orangerie |
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| Kate and Carter at the Orangerie |
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| Church at Auvers-sur-Oise by Van Gogh |
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| Bedroom in Arles by Van Gogh |
Carter took Kelly to a Paris Saint Germain-Metz soccer match on Saturday so Kate and I had some shopping time. We went to Au Printemps, one of our favorite department stores. As a bonus, it has a Ladurée boutique so of course we had to pick up a few more. Printemps has new floors with food and restaurants to compete with Le Bon Marché. We went out on the rooftop and had a beautiful view of Paris.
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| Paris and la Tour Eiffel |
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| Garnier Opera House |
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| Kate on the Roof of Printemps |
We took in the view of Paris from our balcony Saturday night and again Sunday morning. We are so lucky to be able to see the Eiffel Tower and Nôtre Dame off our balcony.
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| Nôtre Dame |
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| Sparkling Tour Eiffel |
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| Love this blue sky! |
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| Perfect Paris day |
The week with Kate and Carter went by way too quickly. At least we were able to take things at a bit of a slower pace than Carter's last trip. Their last morning we went to our favorite boulangerie at la Tour d'Argent and took in one last view of Nôtre Dame from the bridge. This back side of Nôtre Dame has become our favorite side.
It was hard to say goodbye to Kate and Carter but at least we knew we would see Kate in Paris one more time during her spring break from preschool. Kelly and I both had a little tear (okay, maybe big tears for Kelly) as we sent them to the airport Sunday morning.
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| Kate with her Baguette |
We have had many guests and I am a bit behind on my blog posts. As I write this, Kate is arriving at the airport to fly back to us in Paris. We can't wait to see her and look forward to more adventures. We just wish Carter were able to be here, too.
Hello from Moscow - love your blog. Surprise, this is Amy Bice's Dad. After we are released from our mission, June 1 - we are flying to Paris to meet up with Amy & family, Molly & family. After 2 weeks together at a large home near Bordeaux, Nancy and I return to Paris for a week on our own. Any suggestions on what to see, where to stay, what to eat (I will continue studing your blog) - would be appreciated. My email is: rustybice@hotmail.com - What a wonderful apartment you have there in the City of Lights. Thank you for your continued friendship with Amy. We love her dearly. Hope you have time for a few Paris suggestions. Kindest regards - Russell Bice
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