Well, suddenly, we are already to our last day together here in Europe. Tomorrow, Connor flies to Barcelona to spend two more nights before returning home to the States. Then I begin Part II of "the amazing program," going to visit friends in London, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland.
We've spent our last days together in Paris, in a beautifully decorated apartment called Le Deco, in a great residential district, the 11th arrondissement. It feels homey and local, but also happens to be the center of a lot of the nightlife here in the City of Lights, as well as a neighborhood full of great restaurants. Next to us, to the west, we have Le Marais, with even more restaurants, cafes and bars, and some really great shopping. We've spent a good chunk of every day just wandering these wonderful neighborhoods, window shopping and admiring both the beauty and creativity of all the boutiques. One afternoon, we stumbled on a great flea market just blocks from our apartment, filled with the most interesting and unique items. We jumped excitedly from one vendor to another, wanting to buy all kinds of great pieces (furniture, art, dishware), but had to be satisfied with just enjoying the scene instead. Which we thoroughly did. As for the hundreds of famous sights and museums, we spent one evening hopping on and off the Metro, seeing the big hitters lit up in all their glory (the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Seine and all its many bridges), but for the most part, we've just been wandering and enjoying, observing and soaking in the Parisien life. Maybe because we're on our seventh city, maybe because I've been here before and Connor is not much of an itinerary driven guy anyways, I don't quite know what the exact reason, but we chose to do Paris slowly, seeing it as a cosmopolitan of many great neighborhoods, rather than a map of sights.
Obviously, I wasn't at all diligent about writing on the this trip, since my second entry comes on our last day together. But from the start in Barcelona, through the South of France and then to Italy, we had an amazing time. We saw, did, lived and ate so much!
Some of the highlights..
- Foccacia sandwiches filled with pecorino, fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, arugula, bresaola, salami Toscani, and prosciutto from our favorite cafe in Florence
- fresh pasta with Connor's homemade sauce in Rome
- the Colosseum and the Vatican, of course, both so grand!
- cheese and charcuterie EVERYWHERE!!
- escargot salad and beef tartare at Bistrot d'Antoine in Nice
- our day trip to fabulous Monaco and a great lunch at a fantastic wine bar
- a romantic evening in lovely Cassis, strolling along the harbor and chowing down on fresh seafood
- incredible panoramic view of Florence from the top of the Duomo
In short, we've seen and done a lot, and eaten even more! We can definitely say we've made the most of our wintry, European adventure, and as Part I comes to a close, we are very happy, if not a bit chubby!
