Tuesday 12 March 2013

Paris weekender..

One of my oldest and closest school friends Alex is spending this year working and living in Paris.. yeah, I'm jealous too! So it was a given really that I was going to jump on the Euro-star one Friday and visit her for the weekend!
Now, I've been to Paris many times before so I've done most of the touristy things before.. so apart from going to spend time with my beloved Alex (of course!) what else would I be getting up to?...eating of course. I'm a big time fan of French food. It was my mission to eat my way around Paris..

I am known by all of my friends as a bit of a cheese fan.. okay that's a bit of an understatement  I'm a HUGE cheese fan, to the point Tamsin my flatmate often calls me 'cheesay.'
So, we're in Paris on our first evening - we had to track down THE BEST cheese fondue restaurant...

It was simply stunning, we had two, the first was the classic cheese mix and the other had mushrooms inside. We were also given a selection of cold meats and bread... I can still almost taste it now..


Alex was extremely pleased with herself..who wouldn't be with that amount of fondant goodness sat in front of you..?



I'm afraid I cannot remember the name of this gorgeous establishment, but there are many dotted around the city and a cheese fondue is a must in the French capital.



We walked around the city and across the river and then headed home but not before a cocktail or two..




The next morning we were up bright and early and headed straight to the Arc De Triomphe.. very excited to get up to the top, little did I know the amount of stairs!






I took a pic of the two sisters at the top..it was bitterly cold, can you tell from their faces?!



Despite the fact it was a fairly overcast day the views were still stunning.. I had to whip instagram out, naturally..






 Trotting off we started heading down the Champs-Elysees for a spot of shopping..






It had been at least 2 hours since we'd eaten (minus the nutella crepe we shared) so next stop had to be Angelina's. When we arrived it was clearly extremely popular as we had to queue for about 5 minutes outside, once in we had one thing on our minds.. tea, hot chocolate, pastries and not forgetting one of my favorites.. the macaroons.






The tea was just what I needed to warm myself up hmmmmm


Angelina's is a beautiful restaurant set in the heart of Paris, it had a lovely charm to it and holds a lot of history within its walls. I do feel that the amount of tourists in the cafe spoil the 'french experience' and I was intrigued to know if there was any point in time that the locals used it. We visited on a Saturday so I'm guessing more during the week, but hey, we couldn't complain being tourists ourselves..!This place isn't cheap but its well worth it, if you want to spend a little more then I'd have lunch - some of the savory dishes coming out looked delicious! If you are visiting Paris for the first time i'd advise you go to the Lourve near by first.website: http://www.angelina-paris.fr/#/home/



 With our sweet teeth satisfied we went on a bit of an exploration..



We ended up strolling through the beautiful Tuileries Gardens, it was pretty nippy so the girls kept their fur trimmed hoods firmly up!



We ended up on the Love Lock bridge...




We were determined to see a proposal on the bridge.. I even offered to get down on one knee for Alex, luckily as we came to the other end of the bridge an angelic newly wed couple came out of the chapel across the road opposite us and made their way onto the bridge.. it was veeerryyy nippy but the bride had a gorgeous white fur jacket. We just stood on the spot and almost melted with the romance in the air..




Last off.. I couldn't spend a weekend in Paris and not have an 'Eiffel tower snap' ...I may have got a little over excited in the moment..





After a long day walking all over the city we went and picked up some freshly baked, warm baguettes from the 'boulangerie' and retreated back to Alex's flat..and this is what we tucked into,   and guess who gave it to her?! her landlord! possibly the finest landlord I have ever come across.
just look at it.......



This was a beautiful goats cheese, the moldier the better in my opinion.. 





This cheese was fascinating.. small cheese florettes, it tasted very similar to a mild cheddar.. scrumptious.



We were extremely satisfied with sitting inside with our cheese as it continued to snow outside..



That evening we went up to Montmartre high up in the north of the city and in my opinion one of the most romantic spots of the city, especially at night.








We settled down in a quaint traditional french restaurant which was buzzing with locals and a three man band,


 This was our very charming waiter..!


To finish the evening off we walked back down into town and did a pit-stop outside the Moulin Rouge, will go inside next time - I've promised myself..





Usually I'm more of a party animal, but we were all very happy to head back, snuggle up with tea and watch a movie - it was just like boarding school days together..


The next morning we got up bright and early had lunch and went and saw what we could find... we came across this pet stall by the river, the men selling the adorable animals were extremely relaxed so we helped ourselves to giving the baby rabbits a cuddle or two..

there was a huge selection of beautifully, bright coloured birds.





If you haven't yet been to Paris, GO! Doesn't matter who its with just make sure you visit the Louvre, (not the whole thing..)  Eiffel tower, if you haven't already been, the L'orangerie gallery in the Tuilerie Gardens if you like impressionist work like me, the shops on the Champs- Elysees, Monmatre at night for the stunner of a view over the city and dont forget to eat eat eat!! ..it was a gorgeous food filled weekend,  I definitely made sure I hit the gym the next day back in London!

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