Wandering the Latin Quarter, and a Night at the Opera
Breakfast out, with hot chocolate (so thick and syrupy! sweetened ourselves with long sugar packets!), fresh orange juice, and croissants.
Gorgeous Bella in gorgeous Paris light. It certainly feels like we are in Northern Europe, it doesn't get light til after 8:00.
Heading down the apartment stairs for the day--we're on the fourth floor. There's an elevator that's the tiniest thing I've ever seen. It makes me gasp and try not to have claustrophobia and I only get it in with a big bag of groceries.
Several beautiful churches today. Are they a dime a dozen here? If so, I'll take twelve of them home.
Non-stop beauty of the baking kind. Didn't buy any of these but did find my way into a caramel shop (mother). They also sold nut brittle (mother).
Beside Egyptians, Daisy is entranced with the birds of Paris. Pigeons of course, but also the lesser-known mallards who inhabit every park pond. We have a date feeding these birds tomorrow. Daisy wanted to do it with a five dollar macaroon today. I thought not.
We'll also return to this spot, the Luxembourg Garden, for tomorrow's puppet show. Does it look like I only wear one dress? This is a different, *darker* gray one, made from Colette's Oolong pattern, out of viscose jersey. I love it.
The leaves are all turning such European autumn shades! Lots of complicated golds, no straightforward glowing sugar maples that I've seen. All a little world-weary.
These people aren't world-weary.
Ended the day with an outing to the opera. Not the fancy opera house, it was the more modern Opera Bastille. Our seats were so close we couldn't really read the subtitles above the stage, but then we realized they were only in French anyway. And Daisy needs a new glasses prescription, so even English wouldn't have been happening. Both the girls loved it; it was the best version of "Marriage of Figaro" that we've seen.
Well, duh.
We're not in Kansas anymore.
7 comments:
Doesn't get light till after eight! They must still be on Summer Time, surely. wow
You look very well in your grays.
Lisateresa
What a lovely picture of Bella!
I predict that Miss Daisy will be suggesting she spends a year at La Sorbonne in about ten years time.
"It certainly feels like we are in Northern Europe, it doesn't get light till after 8:00."
That's actually also a result of France sitting in the same time zone as Czech Republic and Slovakia... but much further in the West! Something I observed during my own visit to France. :-) Here, it gets light around 7:30 right now.
So many experiences for you to cherish, though! And I keep forgetting just how exotic our common European sights (mallards!) are for people from other parts of the world! And vice versa. Your post made me realise why all those autumnal photos of maples circulating the internet look so different from my reality: apparently, it's not just the photos, it's the maples themselves! I had no idea. Still, I love our Czech autumn. Even though I also hate it at times.
And yes, sweetening from those sugar packets is also common here! Oh, now I want hot chocolate really badly!
Bonjour Anna et bienvenue en France !
Did you know that you had french blog readers? Well, at least one, me!
I'm glad that you are making the most of your parisian experience. We lived there for 10 years before moving on to the more family friendly shores of Brittany.
I never comment but couldn't resist this opportunity to say hello and thank you for this lovely blog of yours. I've been following it for a while now (since Daisy was around 1 I think) and I'm always inspired and charmed by it.
With 4 under 7, I really loved the few posts you did with some advice to mothers of young children... they really helped. Also this schoolyear, I'm going to take some sewing classes.
Alors merci beaucoup. I know it's a lot of work to keep up a daily blog.
A bientôt et bon voyage,
Gabrielle
(Who also hope to visit your lovely south someday...)
What a trip of a lifetime! Autumn in Paris--maybe someday!
I love the beautiful churches--are they as empty as I've heard?
For me, it would have been the only version of "Marriage of Figaro" I'd ever seen.
I don't like what that says about my life. Sigh...
Your pictures are wonderful and I 'm so glad your children are getting this glorious experience.
I mostly want the food.
Anna, I'm so glad you explained your final picture on this update. Dear Daisy looks so sad! :( I'm heartened to know it was just her "I am adjusting my glasses" face.
Congratulations to you for a wonderful vacation. We are only a few hours apart, just now. I've been following you since 2007, I think...and you seem like a friend. Maybe someday we will meet.
~ Holly
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