27 September 2012
Have you ever been?
I was taken to Paris for my 29th birthday as a surprise by my fiancé. We arrived at Garr de Noir and I was greeted with a wave of French behaviour I've never experienced before. The French are a very relax bunch and don't live as seriously as we do in England.
They will have two hours for lunch and meet with friends and will sip Red Wine at 2.00 in the afternoon and slowly eat lunch and enjoy themselves.
As we sat in a quant cafe I saw a model like lady ride a old fashioned bike with a basket on the front. In this basket was a bottle of red wine and a typical French baguette and a bunch of roses. She looked wonderful, not shackled with a helmet or safety equipment. Tut tut you may say or how refreshing?
We queued for 40 mins starring up into the Eiffel Tower completely in ore of the shear size of this amazing monument. We boarded a lift that took us up to the first stop which is around a third of the way. The view was breathtaking. We where high up thou, so high that there was very little you could not see. At that point we where not even half way up. Unfortunately our bravery failed us and we didn't make it to the summit. This is something I will regret until I can go back there and try it again.
I went to the Louvre museum, famous for holding art that has been collected for century's. I saw the Mona Lisa, she sat in a wall cover in bullet proof glass surrounded by armed guards. I was amazed at how small she was. She could have been no bigger than a hard back book. Although I do not think much of the painting itself I couldn't help but feel honoured to say that I had seen it in the flesh.
Back to the cafe we went, this time for a French snack so of course I order the garlic snails. This plate of overly large snails covered in a green butter arrive, I must have stared at them for about 5 minutes whist ill plucked back up the courage I had before I ordered them. I had my Pretty Women moment where I clutched the snail in this device and tried to remove it from its shell, it was awkward and but worth it. I chewed upon my food wearing a strange expression on my face but to my delight it tasted lovely. I soon polished off the other five.
For dinner we found ourselves in a little French restaurant where my need to try strange cuisine continued. I ate oysters which I didn't enjoy, frog legs which tasted like salty chicken and bone marrow which messed up all my senses. The bone looked like a bone, it's smelt like a bone and the marrow looked like beef stock. I spread the marrow on some bread and again was slightly shocked at how much I enjoyed it. I can say thou I won't ever order it again.
We strolled around the lovely city holding hands and soaking up the French vibe, I must say I was thoroughly happy with what we had experienced in only one day. The tower was amazing to see at night time. There is a light show that covers the entire tower that will perform at the beginning of every hour. I must have seen the light show five or six times and each time was a pleasure.
I would love to return to Paris, maybe do some designer shopping and stay in a really posh hotel. I would encourage anyone who hasn't been to go with a loved one and fall in love all over again. It truly is a very romantic city to visit and you will love just how laid back the French can be.
I ❤ Paris • Opuss № I