Les Grands Magasins

What do you do on Kate's first full day in Paris?  Why you go shopping, of course. We used our Navigos for the first time today and braved the crowded buses.  It actually went better than I thought it would. We squeezed onto a bus and went up to Boulevard Haussmann to Au Printemps, one of our favorite department stores. We admired the Christmas windows, but they didn't photograph very well with the reflection.

Kate outside Printemps

Inside Printemps we went straight up to have hot chocolate and croissants under the dome. It is one of our favorite spots in Paris.

Kate enjoying a glass of hot chocolate

Under the Printemps Dome

We walked down Boulevard Haussmann to Galeries Lafayette on the next block. We loved the beautiful giant Christmas Tree under the large dome. The tree was amazing but their dome is not as pretty as the one at Printemps!

Galeries Lafayette

We braved another overcrowded bus to return to the Left Bank to go to Bon Marché. The bus was so packed, we stood most of the way next to the driver and had a great view out the front window as we drove past the Opéra Garnier, the Comédie Française and the Louvre.

Kate at Bon Marché

Inside Bon Marché Rive Gauche 

We checked out their Christmas windows and headed across the street to our favorite gourmet food store-La Grande Epicerie at Bon Marché. We came home with spices and chocolate mousse and other goodies. We seriously debated about whether to buy the microwave popcorn in the American food section.  But then we looked more closely and saw that it was ShopRite brand and cost almost $8 for a package of three.  ShopRite brand in Paris? And that expensive? We didn't want popcorn that bad.

We decided that with all our packages and the crowded buses, it made more sense to walk the 20 minutes home.

Kate at La Grande Epicerie

ShopRite Microwave Popcorn

After our go-to dinner of baguette sandwiches with Kelly, we walked up by la Tour Eiffel to a Marché de Noel near the Seine. It was definitely less foggy today and we had a nice view of Li'l Eiffie.

We love having Kate in Paris with us. We realized tonight as we walked home that it has been 40 years this month since Kelly and I met in Paris. How can that be? We never imagined then that we would be returning so often with our children.