Wandering in Paris
- kflynn80
- 2 days ago
- 8 min read
Before we traveled to Paris last month, I watched an old episode of Anthony Bourdain’s “The Layover,” a television show that ran on the Travel Channel several years ago in 2012. As long ago as the episode originally appeared, what Bourdain said then holds true today. Experience the city by wandering and focusing on the pleasurable things in life like food, others around you and excellent coffee.
With his advice ringing in my head, we approached the trip very much in Bourdain’s style by starting each day with a run to a new bakery or two and by grabbing yet another excellent cup of coffee (café crème). There was no sleeping in, because I wanted to savor every minute and fortunately, my youngest son Luke and my sister were up for it. My older son Ryan and my husband John ventured out once or twice with us, but overall, it was the three of us with our friend Amber joining us for a few of the early morning walks.
I did not account for how dark it is in France at this time of year. The sun doesn’t come up until at least 8:45 am, so Amber’s walks to our area were quite lonely and on darkened streets.
Nevertheless, our very first trip was to the Rue Montorgueil, which should be on everyone’s list of places to visit. This is the old one-time oyster hub of Paris, which was where Marie Antoinette’s chef obtained her favorite mollusks. It’s a warren of every possible pleasurable item imaginable. A gorgeous fruit shop with perfect specimens that reminded us of Japan, where Amber had raspberries that tasted like heaven. The oldest patisserie, Stohrer, which was founded in 1730 and is famous for inventing the baba au rhum. There are also endless terrace tables, and enough cheese, fish, butcher, flower, wine and deli shops to leave your senses reeling. We returned to the street every day and enjoyed dinner there on two occasions, cancelling reservations to well rated places just to soak in the scene.
I had never stayed in this area of the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, but I expect it will not be my last time there since it is quite conveniently situated. It lies close to two Metro stations that are on Line 4, Reaumur-Sebastopol and Strasbourg-St. Denis, which can get you to pretty much anywhere you want to go quickly. Even better, you are close enough to walk to some of the best places in the city for dining out or sightseeing. It is very much a local’s area, devoid of many tourists, although you will still see them in some places, it is the most popular destination on earth, after all.
On our first night in town, we found our way over to Notre Dame de Lorette, built in 1836, which apparently is where Claude Monet was baptized. We were there because we had made reservations at Bons Georges, a café right around the corner. This is a lively bistro with chalkboard menus where the wine flows freely. I particularly enjoyed the family style vat of chocolate mousse shared by our group.
The next day we ventured over to the same area to walk along the Rue des Martyrs and visit the many shops selling cheese, chocolates, meringues, patisseries, and virtually anything your heart desires. Our destination was Place des Abbesses which has a lovely small scale holiday market with a champagne bar, which we enjoyed as a group. It’s also one of only two locations in the entire city to retain one of the original Art Deco Metro entrances, so if that is something you might enjoy seeing, I highly recommend it. Make sure you bring your comfortable walking shoes for the walk up to Montmartre and Sacre Coeur. After climbing at least three steep staircases, we reached the top and found a throng of tourists interested in taking in the view, which sadly was obscured by fog. But it was an exhilarating adventure.
One thing I wanted to do on this trip was to spend some time in a Parisian pharmacy. This may sound boring, but au contraire, I assure you it is not. We spent an hour and honestly, we needed much more time. We visited one of the largest at the Pharmacie du Forum des Halles. It is enormous and has just about everything you could possibly want. Medicines, French skincare products, cosmetics and essential oils. I bought lotions, serums and masks as well as some shampoo for my kids, Klorane, which I think is an excellent brand. Even better are the wandering staff who are available to answer all of your questions. If you can take some time to do this, you won’t be disappointed.
Another must in terms of souvenirs to bring home are some of the amazing food products including mustards of many flavors, the famous butter from Brittany, which can be vacuum sealed for travel, and numerous types of tea, herbs and spices, and coffee. We had way too much fun going to G. Detou near Les Halles and the famous Grande Epicerie, a top-notch gourmet food hall on the left bank. If you like food at all, these are places that should be part of your itinerary.
Although we didn’t get to any museums on this particular visit, it was imperative to go inside Notre Dame, which has been refurbished after a devasting fire in 2019. It is absolutely stunning and renders one speechless when you see the beauty. I was completely in awe and even more impressed when my son Luke recited his prayers entirely in French. I guess all of those years of Catholic school are finally paying off! My recommendation if you want to see it is to get there early as we did on a Sunday at 9:00 before it is inundated with people.
I should mention that I have visited virtually all the major museums in Paris at this point and believe if there is one everyone should see it is Musee d’Orsay. I enjoyed Centre Pompidou, but we have fine modern art museums here in the states. The Musee National Picasso-Paris is very impressive as is the Musee Rodin. What about the Louvre you might ask? It’s immense and stressful – even back in the 80s and more recently. Once you have seen the Mona Lisa or one of the other amazing antiquities you feel the need to leave with so many people around. Everyone must go once, but although I have been 3 times, none of my visits were particularly memorable.
After the visit to the Cathedral, we walked over to Place Maubert and enjoyed the best croissant of our trip at Maison d’Isabelle. There was a line, but it moved very quickly. We looked for an independent coffee shop, but seeing none open, we went to a Starbucks and had a nice large latte and a place to sit comfortably.
On this particular day, we went to the Opera Palais Garnier and caught a matinee of a modern ballet. I woke up very early (well earlier than I normally get up) and managed to snag six tickets for our group before they sold out. They were very reasonable and we got to go inside and see the absolutely stunning baroque interior. It truly is worth a visit. Our seats were nuts though. They were literally nosebleeds, meaning that my kids had vertigo. Nothing has been modernized, and that is more than okay, although for my nearly 6’6 tall child, it was an ordeal. Worth every bit of angst is seeing the Marc Chagall rooftop that adorns one of the largest chandeliers in the world. This was my first time seeing it, but I hope it won’t be the last. Next time, I will spring for better seats!
Here is a final list of other recommendations:
Berthillon – My dad took my sister and I to this famous ice cream purveyor on the Ile St. Louis as kids and recall not being very impressed, but quite honestly, it is amazing. It was a high of 30 F and yet I returned the next day with the kids and had more. The flavors are so intense and truly special. Our favorite? Prunes with Armagnac and cassis (black currant).
La Rotisserie d’Argent – This is the casual component of one of the world’s oldest restaurants, Tour d’Argent. We happened upon it and my husband insisted we try roasted chicken recalling a trip to Provence, where we enjoyed something similar. His instincts were spot on as this turned out to be my favorite meal. We split one roast chicken and an order of roasted potatoes with jus. We had a glass of champagne to start and escargot for one of the loveliest meals we have had in years.
Au Vins Des Pyrenees – On our way to dinner we stopped for a drink at this beautiful bar which is located upstairs. You feel as if you have walked into another era and are in a 1920s timeframe from the décor. My only complaint was it was freezing seated by the windows, so be sure to ask for a table away from there if you go!
Bistrot des Tournelles – This is an intimate and charming bistro located not far from the Bastille metro stop. Everything is perfectly executed on the small menu which has a wonderful list of natural wines on offer. Get the chicken cordon bleu. It positively oozes with Comte cheese.
Mary Celeste – In the mood for oysters, we decided to visit this watering hole in the Marais known for cocktails and appetizers with an Asian twist. The oeufs mayo was particularly unique and had toasted rice as a topper. Very fresh oysters in a pretty setting in a great part of town.
Marche Couvert des Enfants Rouge – Continuing our oyster eating, we ended up at this market, which is the oldest in Paris. It was quite fun to sit at the seafood bar and order oysters and a few cocktails from another vendor. The area is filled to the brim with people in the afternoon, but this is a part of town that everyone needs to visit.
Bon Parfumeur – My sister and I had way too much fun trying on the many scents in this shop in the Marais. Everything is unisex and clean with unique scents including vodka or gin as part of the mix. I loved it and brought a few items back to enjoy at home.
Fleux – This store offers six boutiques in the Marais that are well worth a visit. They are focused on lifestyle, design, and décor. Very fun and cool offerings for an apartment or even an office. My sister ended up with one of the most inventive pepper grinders I have seen.
Chartreuse Paris-Vauvert – On a walk on Boulevard Saint Germain, John and I saw this atelier for the famous herbaceous liqueur, Chartreuse. The brand’s visitor center is dedicated to the history of the Carthusian monks who invented it and their long-time presence in the French city. I really enjoyed our visit, but unfortunately, the tasting room was not open. I did end up obtaining some special tea, which helps when you have trouble sleeping. Truly a gem.
Moustaches – This store clearly knows there are people like me who have to get a gift for their pets that is cute from Paris. Say no more! Murphy already has a baguette, but he did get an adorable red beret to go with his new sweater. John is not keen to walk him in it, but I think he looks adorable!
I recommend taking Bourdain’s advice on your next trip to Paris and enjoying wandering around and seeing what you find. This was the first trip I can remember where I didn’t have a set agenda (well, I did for restaurants, but we still canceled a few reservations) and it was truly enjoyable. Being in this magical city for the holidays was an added treat. But make sure to dress warm!
Bon voyage!
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