Musée d'Orsay

We stopped by the Musée d'Orsay during our last week in Paris.  This museum is in a former train station and the space is really fun to explore.  We both highly enjoyed an exhibition on the Second French Empire in addition to the permanent collection.  We had a late lunch at a nearby tapas bar I've always wanted to try before walking over to the Jardin des Tuileries to soak in a little afternoon sunshine.

Château de Vincennes

We've spent a lot of time on this trip revisiting old favorites (our market, our bakery, etc.), but we've tried to check out a few new places as well.  One thing I always meant to do when we were living in Paris was to go out to the Bois de Vincennes, located just east of the city.  The Bois de Vincennes is a former royal hunting ground turned park that is three times the size of Central Park in New York.  It has a botanical garden, some sports facilities, lakes, walking and riding paths, forest, and a zoo, among other things.

We started our day with the Château de Vincennes.  The château grounds encompass a 14th century keep and the surrounding fortifications, as well as 17th century pavilions built for Louis XIV.

After exploring the château and the contemporary art installation currently occupying its spaces, we took a walk through the forests of the park, stopping at one of the lakes to enjoy a crêpe while people watching.

La Tour Eiffel

I'll never forget the first time I saw the Eiffel Tower.  I had arrived in Paris, checked into my hotel and set off walking across town in the general direction of the tower.  I remember getting my first peek of the tower between a few buildings and snapping a quick picture (which is up on the wall in our home) before continuing on to my goal.  We've visited the tower or spotted it from other points in the city countless times at this point, but I still love seeing it.  My favorite view is from the Place du Trocadéro and we took a quick trip over to that side of town last week to check it out.

Musée du Louvre

One of my recommendations for people visiting Paris is to walk around the courtyards of the Louvre and the Tuileries gardens just west of the museum.  Whether one is interested in tackling the collections in the giant museum or not, the building itself is spectacular.  

L'Arc de Triomphe

We went over to the Avenue des Champs-Élysées to revisit the Arc de Triomphe last week.  It was a beautiful day, and when we saw that there was no line for tickets to the terrace on top we decided to do it.  The lovely views were definitely worth climbing up 284 steps!  

Reims

One of the day trips we wanted to take while in Paris was to go back to Reims, a city in the Champagne region of France.  We booked a tour of a Champagne house we had not been to before and enjoyed walking around in warm, sunny weather (quite a contrast to our previous visit).  I was pleasantly surprised at what an easy day trip this was - the train ride is only 45 minutes long - and it was a lot of fun to have a mini-getaway while still being home by dinner.

Reims Cathedral

Champagne aging in Roman chalk pits

Sediment collecting in the neck of a bottle of champagne after the second fermentation

Champagne aging in a cellar set in the ruins of a 14th century abbey

Musée Picasso

J and I went to the Picasso museum in 2009 on our vacation together.  I remember consulting our map to locate it while wending our way through the Marais neighborhood.  The streets seemed so confusing.  Though we have not been back to the museum until this trip (it was closed for renovations the entire time we lived in Paris), we both knew the way to the museum like the back of our hands.  It has been an interesting vacation because in some ways it feels like we never left Paris and are just resuming our life here.

Biarritz

After spending a morning shopping in the covered market in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, we drove up the coast to Biarritz.  We drove the length of the road that follows the water's edge through town before parking and having a fun tapas lunch in a bustling café across the street from Biarritz's market.  While the day started out cool and overcast, it was so warm and sunny after lunch that we spent the afternoon exploring a coastal walking path and sitting on the beach watching surfers (Biarritz is a popular surfing destination).

Espelette

I was very eager to visit Espelette while we were in French Basque country.  Espelette is a small town near the French-Spanish border that is known for growing a variety of mildly spicy red pepper, the Piment d'Espelette.  We love the flavor of the peppers, whether dried and ground into a powder or cooked, and I couldn't resist visiting their source.

Espelette was a pretty town with traditional Basque buildings covered in strings of drying peppers.  The main street through town does feel a little touristy, though as J pointed out, a touristy shopping street lined with bakeries, butcher shops, and shops filled with pepper products is pretty great.  There are several hiking paths that start and end in the center of town and we followed a short one that took us through the village and the rolling hills on the outskirts of Espelette before having lunch and heading back to Saint-Jean-de-Luz.

Saint-Jean-de-Luz

We stayed in Saint-Jean-de-Luz while visiting French Basque country.  It is a cute seaside town with a large sand beach and a working port.  The weather wasn't quite warm enough for swimming (though that didn't stop the windsurfers pictured below) but we loved walking on the beach, climbing the hills surrounding the town, and eating fresh seafood.

Bordeaux & Bayonne

We took the train from Paris to Bordeaux to start a trip to French Basque country.  We stopped in Bordeaux because it was easier to rent an automatic transmission car there and because J had dreams of visiting a restaurant in Bordeaux with a cheese cave in the basement.  One of the dinner options was to get a big green salad, fresh bread, and unlimited trips to the cheese cave to sample from the 100+ cheeses.  It was amazing!

On our way south from Bordeaux, we stopped in the city of Bayonne for lunch.  Bayonne used to be a walled city and the walls still circle the older, most central part of town.  We parked just outside the wall and walked through one of the gates to explore the riverfront and narrow lanes inside.  We had a fun lunch sitting outside in the beautiful weather and sampled both the ham and the chocolate for which the city is known.

Canal Saint-Martin

J was working a half-day one day this week, so we went for a morning walk along the Canal Saint-Martin and the Bassin de la Villette.  We stopped at a favorite bakery near the canal for some bread for our dinner that night and enjoyed people-watching before heading back home so he could get to work.

Paris by night

This past weekend we took a fun evening walk down to the Île St-Louis to get some Berthillon ice cream to eat while sitting by the river.  We were coming from dinner at a restaurant rather than our apartment, so we got to pass by the Hôtel de Ville (city hall) and Notre Dame on our way.  I love the way Paris looks at night and never get tired of watching boats on the river.  And as a little bonus we spotted Wes Anderson (the director of several movies J and I like) on our walk!

Le Marché aux Puces de la Porte de Vanves

Paris has a few flea markets located just outside of the city limits.  When J's aunt saw an article in the paper about the Marché aux Puces de Vanves and mentioned it to him, we decided to take a trip down to the Porte de Vanves to explore this particular market.  We spent a fun morning inspecting tables filled with an interesting mix of old books, silver, dishes, art, and a variety of other objects.

Basilique du Sacré-Cœur

We spent our first month in Paris back in 2011 living in a temporary apartment in the Montmartre neighborhood.  We took a walk through the charming streets of this neighborhood that started by going up the hill in front of the Sacré-Cœur basilica.  The view of the city from the terrace in front of the basilica is spectacular but I always like to walk down a side street to where you can see the Eiffel Tower from afar.

Place des Vosges

The Place des Vosges is a square in the Marais neighborhood of Paris that dates back to the early 1600s.  We have walked through it countless times because it's a short walk from the apartment where we are staying now and where we used to live.  As you can tell from the cloudless blue sky and sunbathing Parisians, we are enjoying some fantastic weather on this trip.

Arènes du Lutèce

While walking through the Latin Quarter I made a detour to see the Arènes du Lutèce.  I've been to Rome and seen Roman ruins in a number of places, but it was interesting to see a relic of Roman culture in Paris that has been so thoroughly incorporated into modern life.  I sat and watched children playing soccer and men playing pétanque in an arena once used by gladiators.

Sainte-Chapelle

We decided to take advantage of a gorgeous, sunny day to visit Sainte-Chapelle.  This church was built in the 13th century and is known for the dazzling stained glass panels that line the walls of the second level.