The next morning, Sunday, I again dragged Tom out of bed early to go check out the marche aux puces [translates to flea market] at porte de vanves. We are becoming old people and love to go antiquing so I had done some online research to find out the best antique market. There was definitely a ton of treasures to look through, most of them unmarked so I would try my best “combien?” Unfortunately the answer was usually €80, €100, or €200 so I did not buy as much as I would have wanted. We ended up with an old map, a cheese knife with a vintage handle, a souvenir ashtray (that I’m going to use to hold rings), a nautical glass float (for our future pirate bar patio), and a really tasty breakfast of croque-monsieurs from a food truck.
On our way out Tom got a first-hand view of a girl getting arrested for pick pocketing while he was waiting in line. We saw more than one pick pocketing arrest, so I give it to the French police for at least trying to contain the problem (our hyper-vigilance paid off and we didn’t lose anything the whole trip except for a book left on an airplane). In the afternoon we headed to the Arc de Triomphe. We had to climb quite a few stairs to get to the top but the view was beautiful from up there. The sculptures and reliefs on the Arch itself were interesting too, but I’ll admit I just wanted to sit on the bench for a while at that point.
After checking that out we headed down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées (click the video to listen to the song that was playing in my head the whole time):
It was beautiful, but man was it packed! Trying to get a rest and hide from the crowds we stopped at a café for a late lunch and had vin blanc, frommage, baguette, and a carafe de l'eau. They say it’s the most expensive place to eat in Paris, but since we really just had an appetizer cheese plate it wasn’t bad at all.
That night we ate dinner at the hotel, but in the more upscale restaurant portion. The food was AMAZING, but at that point of the trip I realized I was coming down with a cold so I was probably not the most gracious diner. It was fun to watch the slideshow of the photo booth at the hotel which they played on a screen near our table. So every room in the hotel can use their iMac TV as a camera and so there are lots of crazy pictures with people wearing masks (they leave a couple in your room) and also some risqué business.
The next day was Disneyland Paris and despite the rain and being sick I still had a good time. On our way there we stopped at a pharmacy and I was lucky the pharmacist could understand my English request for cold medicine since that wasn’t covered in my French class.
As Tom and I are both a bit of Disney enthusiasts we had fun comparing the park to Disneyland and Disneyworld. Some parts were way better: Sleeping Beauty’s castle, the waterfall outside of Pirates of the Caribbean, Space Mountain 2, and Crash’s Coaster. The overall park was a bit smaller and the Indiana Jones ride which is one of my favorites in Disneyland was really just a small rollercoaster there.
this is how we do Disneyland Paris-like hoodrats
I couldn’t get over how fun it was to see rides where you know all the sayings being done in French. I taped quite a few on my phone and only got told “no pictures” once ;). I posted the videos on FaceBook (they're long), click below:
“If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.” ― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast
“That Paris exists and anyone could choose to live anywhere else in the world will always be a mystery to me.” -Marion Cotillard as Adriana in Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris
“You can’t escape the past in Paris, and yet what’s so wonderful about it is that the past and present intermingle so intangibly that it doesn’t seem to burden. “-Allen Ginsberg
A few years ago we had made some plans (the kind of plans that are like “someday in the future when we have money”) to go to Paris with our friends Chris & Lori. I really wanted to see the city, Tom really wanted to visit Disneyland Paris, and Lori said she could speak French fairly well to help us along. The years went by and Chris & Lori now live in Pennsylvania with two adorable kids so I’m sure going to Europe is not high on their wish list, but with me turning 30 this year I thought it would be a great excuse to take the trip just the two of us. After about six months of planning and one very beginner French course (watch this video to see my level of French) we were off.
We flew Air Canada because a few years back when we went to London we thought the Air Canada leg of the trip was most enjoyable, and it did not disappoint. Free movies, free drinks, lots of meals & snacks, and $90 a person to upgrade to the exit rows for lots of leg room for my 6’4” husband.
With all of the time difference we got to Paris in the morning on Friday. It took a bit of walking, confusion at the RNCF ticket machines, a train, and a bus to get to the hotel. I was pretty proud though as it was about €22 total to get there versus the €40-70 a taxi costs. We got to our hotel early but they were kind enough to speed clean our corner room and let us check in early. This was just one of the many things I loved about our hotel the Mama Shelter. Seriously, I probably posted so much love about the hotel on InstaGram and FaceBook everyone probably thinks I work for them (my trip advisor review can be read here).
After some unpacking and a quick nap we headed out to try and check out the modern art museum the Centre Pompidou because they were supposed to be open late. Notice I said “try?” Well, turns out the museum is open late but the ticket booths and even the ticket machines close at 8pm. Why? I have no idea. But we still had fun checking out the gift shop, walking around the neighborhood, eating dinner an outdoor café call Le Parvis, and watching a crazy street performer levitating. Dinner was pretty good and I was very relieved to see it wasn’t as hard to order as everyone had been telling us. All of the cafes we went to had English or pictures on the carte [menu] and the waiters were very fast. It was also nice to not have to worry about a tip (it’s included there) but we ended up leaving a euro everywhere we ate just to be nice.
The next morning I woke up at 5am, this seems to be a pattern as whenever I travel my body wakes up super early. It’s the weirdest form of jet lag, but I won’t complain since it’s better than being tired. I took a couple hours to get ready, unpack some more, wander around the hotel, but eventually I had to wake Tom up because I wanted to get out and about! We had breakfast at the hotel and were the first ones there (I told you I was up early!). The dining room there is really cool, the whole hotel was designed by Philippe Starck. Breakfast definitely lived up to French standards with crepes, a long counter full of croissants, pain au chocolat, a make-your-own softboiled egg station, teeny tiny coffee cups (the Parisians all like the strong but only 4 oz cups it seems), and tons more.
After breakfast the first spot we headed to was the Catacombs, we had quite a few friends who recommended it and I’d heard the line to get in can get crazy. We were lucky and got there right as it opened so the wait was just about an hour. I highly recommend the audio guide as it was nice to have a British professor explain why in the world millions of bones are just piled up under the city streets like that. It was a little creepy though when they had whispery sound effects and organ music playing.
Next stop was to go and see the Eiffel Tower. A little side note, I am highly entertained by the Parisian street performers I guess because on the way there a guy on the metro was singing Dust in the Wind for tips and another guy we saw had a rabbit dressed up with a French flag collar eating carrots. We saw more than one homeless person with a rabbit, but Tom was reluctant to tip them because it’s probably not very safe for the rabbits to be in busy metros and streets (which I have to agree with, but they are so CUTE). We lounged around the Eiffel Tower and walked around the parks and over the bridge but didn’t go up. The line was hours long and I thought I’d rather see a view that included the landmark rather than one from it. I would have liked to see the museum they have up there though.
By that point we had picked up some Paris Museum passes good for 6 days so we walked over to check out the Musée du quai Branly. We learned much too late that we didn’t really need the 6 day passes. Everywhere we went we just flashed them and no one scanned or marked them at all till the next to the last day. We probably could have gotten away with the 2 day pass but we’ll hope the money goes to preserving the museums. The MQB had really beautiful gardens and architecture, but the exhibits seemed a bit small. Upstairs was a fun exhibit on art centering on hair and hairstyles.
After walking the museum for a while we were pretty tired, we had known all the walking would be tough on us lazy kids, but man were my feet not prepared! We decided to go back to the hotel and eat at the pizzeria there which was a good choice. Part of the pizzeria has vintage school desks that were set together so dinner was casual but the wood fired pizza was tasty. You can see our table with the checkerboard desks in the left corner:
Later that night it turned out it was Nuit des Musées, the one night a year that most of the museums are free and open past midnight. We figured this time we would definitely get in to the Centre Pompidou and we wandered around there. My favorite part of the museum may be the crazy escalator tubes where you can see the night view of the city.
I can’t wait for The Great Gatsby movie coming out tomorrow. I, like everyone else in America, read the book in high school and also love most everything Baz Luhrman and Leonardo DiCaprio do. I re-read some passages from the book today in a hunt for the scene where they go to the hotel to drink mint juleps. The way F. Scott Fitzgerald describes how they were driving around trying to figure out something to do in the heat always stuck out in my memory. If you don’t remember I’ll set it up quickly, Gatsby, Daisy, Tom, Jordan, and Nick were all having lunch (which pretty much means just drinking and smoking cigarettes) and they’re bored. They decide to go in to “town” (NYC), taking two cars and packing a bottle of whiskey. Once they get downtown they’re not sure what to do and are talking about seeing a movie:
"It's so hot," she complained. "You go. We'll ride around and meet you after." With an effort her wit rose faintly, "We'll meet you on some corner. I'll be the man smoking two cigarettes."
"We can't argue about it here," Tom said impatiently, as a truck gave out a cursing whistle behind us. "You follow me to the south side of Central Park, in front of the Plaza."
Several times he turned his head and looked back for their car, and if the traffic delayed them he slowed up until they came into sight. I think he was afraid they would dart down a side street and out of his life forever.
But they didn't. And we all took the less explicable step of engaging the parlor of a suite in the Plaza Hotel.
The prolonged and tumultuous argument that ended by herding us into that room eludes me, though I have a sharp physical memory that, in the course of it, my underwear kept climbing like a damp snake around my legs and intermittent beads of sweat raced cool across my back. The notion originated with Daisy's suggestion that we hire five bath-rooms and take cold baths, and then assumed more tangible form as "a place to have a mint julep." Each of us said over and over that it was a "crazy idea"-we all talked at once to a baffled clerk and thought, or pretended to think, that we were being very funny . . .
They head to the room, open all the windows, and have someone “bring up the ice” (oh the joys of being rich, I always have to go get my own ice at hotels). Shortly after Tom is trying to embarrass Gatsby about not actually going to Oxford:
Daisy rose, smiling faintly, and went to the table.
"Open the whiskey, Tom," she ordered, "and I'll make you a mint julep. Then you won't seem so stupid to yourself. . . . look at the mint!"
Well, if you’ve read the book you know that sadly no one actually gets to drinking any of the mint juleps as everyone starts arguing and telling their secrets and heads back. I know this afternoon will be a big scene in the movie and I’m excited to see it come to life.
If you want to have a drink for poor Gatsby below is the classic recipe from Wikipedia, cheers!
Put mint, sugar, and a small amount of bourbon into the bottom of a mixing glass. Gently muddle the mint and sugar, then let stand for a bit to allow the muddled leaves to release their flavor. Strain and pour into a julep cup (or similar vessel), rotating to coat the sides. Fill with ice, then add the rest of the bourbon whiskey. Garnish with a lightly slapped small mint sprig.
So after work Tom & I went to Arizona Mills to look for some clothes for my upcoming trips. I'm usually pretty pleased with the selection at the Forever 21 there, but this time they didn't have my size in black skinny jeans. They had a size too big and a size too small, but not just right. Luckily I went online and found them! They totally hooked me with the "Free Shipping For Orders Over $50" and I bought not only black skinnies, but galaxy leggings, and studded flats. Whoops . . .
My friend Sarah and her cousin Jessica have a blog sharing their art, crafts, and adventures. Sarah asked me to write a post about how I use her ceramics. I was more than happy to help, check out the post at TheyCallUsCrafty.blogspot.com
It's getting hot in here . . . like really actually hot. The other day it was over 100 degrees when I got in my car. Born and raised in Arizona I know exactly how to deal with this, go swimming! As I'm 30 now I've come to embrace the fact that I'll always be pale and I'll probably never have a "bikini body," but I don't care. I'll put on my coolest swimsuit, a layer of fake tan, bring some friends, and have a great time. I've been looking around to see who has the best deal, I've found six options, two I've already been to and four new pools to check out.
I have yet to check out the Hotel Valley Ho, which I will definitely fix this summer! The hotel is probably the best-looking in the valley with it's midcentury modern vibe. This would be the perfect place to wear a retro swimsuit and soak up the Mad Men vibe. The pool is for guests only on Saturdays, but Sundays it's open to the public.
2. Wet Weekends on Saturdays & Sundays 12-5pm at The W Scottsdale
I've heard this pool is nice, so it's on the list to check out.
I just found out The Saguaro has a 6 month membership for $125 so you can use the pool and get one complimentary night, it's seriously tempting me! Last year they had a Sunday pool party with music that was $5 but I haven't seen anything about it this year. Not to mention I love the restaurants & bars in the hotel, the Old Town Whiskey has the best Old Fashioned I've ever tried and Distrito the best makes the best ceviche.
It's saltwater which I totally prefer (too much chlorine makes my skin feel weird) and the music, free water, & otter pops help too. The jacuzzi fits up to 25 people, we've seen the Vans Skate team, a touring band, and movie stars there all in the same weekend before. We like to stay there and swim, but it's $25 to use the pool if you're not staying at the hotel.
This looks like one of the pool parties you would find in Vegas, not necessarily my style, but could be fun. It's in a casino so if you're a gambler then you could win enough to pay for a cabana.
6. Sunshine Underground Sundays 2-9pm at The Hotel Palomar
This is the kind of pool party I'm used to: DJs, cheap entry, most the people there to see and be seen rather than to swim.
If you know of anywhere else having cheap pool weekends hit me up!
