Woke up at 4 am again this morning. We’re still battling jet lag. It’s so much harder coming back. We adjusted fairly quickly once we arrived in Paris. Yesterday afternoon, I fell asleep in the chair for an hour – a deep, almost drug-like sleep. Last night, I was falling asleep on the sofa at 9 pm.
Anyway, we’re struggling, but we know it will eventually go away.
We’ve had very high winds over the past 12 hours or so and they will continue throughout the day. It was too warm and humid yesterday. By the end of the day today, the temps will drop below freezing, so I’ll be saying goodbye to my porch plants. Sigh.
On to Paris.
We flew out of JFK on an overnight flight. This was taken as the sun started rising over Ireland and the Irish Sea.
We took a cab to the hotel and dropped off our luggage. Had some lunch at a café across the street and, after we finally got to check in, took a walk down to the Seine. We had been awake for over 24 hours, so we were really tired, but we kept going until we could finally go to bed around 9:30 pm Paris time.
This is Rue Bonaparte, a narrow road that we walk down to reach the Seine. It’s utterly charming. Ladurée is there. Many boutique-like shops line the street; art galleries and designer decor, that kind of thing.
Yours truly looking in the window at Fortuny. What I wouldn’t give for one of those signature hanging lamps made from their beautiful silk.
Crossing the Quay to the Seine.
The Seine. We walked along the cobblestones for quite a distance. Too far, when you consider how tired we were, but what can you do? We love the Seine.
A favorite sign on the banks of the Seine:
Don’t pee on the steps!
After a lot of walking, we headed back to the hotel (which involved even more walking.) The thing that is one of the most charming things about Paris – all the old cobblestones – is also the hardest on my legs and knees. And Don’s. So we were ready to grab some dinner and head back to the room for the night.
The next day we found ourselves back in the charming breakfast room of the hotel. It looks like an old wine cellar and is in the basement.
Everyone should have lighting like this in their lives. If I had my druthers, every photo of me would be taken here in this room! I should mention that you’re looking at two relaxed people who have left stress and worry behind. I had no anxiety the whole time I was there. (It’s back today.)
We have a favorite table that we gravitate to and, like last year, it was available every morning during our stay. Coffee, freshly squeezed orange juice, a basket of rolls and fresh croissants, jam, butter, and coffee. Cheese and yogurt are also available. We chatted with a woman who stays there for a few days every week as she lives full-time in the country – in Burgundy. She’s an American who was raised in Westchester County (where we lived when we first moved out East) and has been living in France for 30 years.
I don’t mind saying I was jealous. We spoke to her a few times while we were there and I now have her business card. She wants us to call her when we return. Her parting words on the day we left? VOTE. She still votes in all American elections.
We decided to walk to Shakespeare and Company but we took a different route via Rue de Vaugirard. We had walked so much the day before, so we wanted to eliminate some of the touristy streets (and cobblestones!) Such a lovely route, running along walls of the Jardin du Luxembourg and the rear of the Sénat, with armed guards protecting the entrance.
And here we are. I love this bookshop. Don loves this bookshop. This time, we wanted to visit every nook and cranny inside the shop, and we did. We spent a long time there. No photos are allowed inside the shop, so I can only supply photos of the exterior. It’s always crowded, but it’s so worth it.
This is one of the fountains found throughout Paris, called Wallace Fountains, that provide clean drinking water to the citizens of Paris. This one is right in front of Shakespeare and Company and we took advantage of the opportunity to fill our water bottles.
We noticed that everyone in Paris was bundled up as if it was winter, whereas we had our jackets open and, at times, took them off. It was in the high fifties, just as it was back home. Is it because Paris/France is in a more temperate climate, so the weather change seems more extreme to them? To us, living in cold upstate New York, it was mild.
Shakespeare and Company is an English language bookshop. There are a few books in French and Spanish, but the vast majority of the stock is in English. I was so happy that I had read the history of Shakespeare and Company earlier this year. I felt as if I really knew the space and was able to share little details with Don.
Of course, we both bought books. I tried to find books I hadn’t seen here.
A beautiful edition of short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers, Lord Peter Wimsey Investigtates.
A Penguin Classics Edition of A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf.
The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford. I’ve been looking for it around here to no avail.
Furious Hours by Casey Cep, an American writer. Its subtitle is: Murder, Fraud and the Last Trial of Harper Lee. Based on a real-life trial of a serial killer that Harper Lee was very interested in, so much so that she spent hours at the trial, thinking she might write about it. As far as I know it’s available only in hardcover here, but they had it in paperback, so I bought it.
Middle England is a book I’ve read about and very much want to read, but it’s not available in America yet. So I snapped it up. I got it on a return trip to Shakespeare and Company.
And I requested their iconic stamp inside each book.
Heaven. On that return trip, I also purchased a book bag with their logo.
After this, we sat in an adjoining park and took pictures of Notre Dame. That will be for tomorrow.
Happy Friday.
