Paris in the Fall

Recently I had a day off during the week. I made the decision to spend the day walking around the city and exploring instead of the list of things that I could do at home (laundry, prep for classes, clean, etc). I am trying to be better at taking time for myself and take advantage of the little things that are at my disposal. I know that we won't be in France forever so I am sure when I look back on this time I am not going to regret the days that I made the decision to wander around Paris and soak it all in. I think you would agree, right?!

So if you'd like to join me for a walk around the city on this Friday afternoon, please do. We'll start with a walk along the Seine River. See the Eiffel Tower peaking through the trees!

The colors along the river are so vibrant.

 There are many dinner boat cruise options to consider.

 The Tuileries are a perfect place to spend some time soaking in the sunshine and crisp fall air.

The Louvre is grand and amazing any time of year but the colors of the Louvre against the blue sky and colorful trees is extra magical.

 This group of ladies make me smile from ear to ear. They know how to enjoy life!!! I want to spend my afternoons in Paris, with friends, and soaking in the sun, anyone want to join me?

 In addition to some amazing fall colors, the Tuileries have a fun art installation going on.

 A walk past Notre Dame is good for the soul.

 This park has beautiful mums adding some fall cheer.

 My last stop of the afternoon was Shakespeare and Company. This is a famous landmark bookstore in Paris and it was my 1st visit. I didn't go looking for it intentionally but stumbled upon it. It's a great story as to how it started out, you can read about it here.

And I know it isn't very Parisian but it was VERY exciting that Starbucks of Paris had PSL on the menu! Just a little familiarity and comfort from home to end this great day!

Happy Friday and Bon week-end mes amis!

Lunch at Chez Moi

A few weeks ago we were lucky enough to be invited to a lunch at Chez Moi. It is a small, quaint restaurant located in the 11th district of Paris, very near the metro station Saint-Ambroise. A colleague of mine invited us to celebrate her birthday with a luncheon. She invited a small group of people and we shared a great lunch consisting of salad, quiche, dessert and coffee. What is great about this location is that you really feel like you are sharing a meal in someone’s home. The kitchen and dining area are essentially 1open space and it is family style dining.
During the week the restaurant has different salad and quiche menu options as well but on this day it was a private lunch so we had the entire restaurant to ourselves.
It’s a fun spot to go to celebrate an event or share a meal with friends and yet not have to cook or clean up! Our first experience at the restaurant was equally fun and we look forward to going again sometime soon.

The birthday girl

Yummy salad

One of the quiche (this one has zucchini and peppers)

Dessert

Owner and Chef of Chez Moi

The group enjoying dessert outside as the sun decided to join us

My really cute date for the luncheon

Tour de France in Chartres

***Reminder...giveaway is still open for a few more days! If you are interesting in joining the fun check out the previous post!!!

Yesterday the Tour de France came through Chartres so of course we had to go watch. The day consisted of time trials which I was told was actually a better way to watch the race in person as the cyclists are spaced out versus being in the large groups.

I have watch a little bit of the race on TV with James but in person it was amazing to see how fast they are actually moving! It's even more impressive that it was the 2nd to the last day and they still had the energy to be zooming past us!

We stood around the 1km to the finish mark for a while watching.

 

Waiting for the yellow jersey to finish the race!

 Here is a French favorite, Rolland, cruising by!

 The Polka Dot Jersey, Thomas Voeckler, had the crowd cheering.

 And last but not least, the yellow jersey! Winner=Bradley Wiggins.

 

They were very serious about supporting their riders! Where do you even find an outfit like this?

 

These guys kept the crowd entertained in between riders. 

 No need to guess where these guys are from, kangaroo and all!!!

 Maëlle got a chance to help raise money for research, every kilometer= 1 Euro! She did great, averaging pace at over 20 kilometers an hour!

 Always a champion in my book!!!

Play me I'm yours

Walking around the city the last few weeks I have seen a few of these...

Piano at Montparnasse Train Station

Each time I walked past one of the pianos there were always people playing them. It never failed that the people playing had some mad skills! No chopsticks to be found (nothing wrong with chopsticks, that is the level of my piano skills). 

I decided to do a little research to get the back story on these pianos. I found out that the pianos are artwork by a British artist (Luke Jerram) and have been touring internationally since 2008. In total there were 40 pianos placed in different locations in Paris for 2 weeks. The purpose is to encourage people to share their love of music. After the 2 week period of time the pianos are lent to local non-profits until the next edition of "Play me, I'm yours Paris" in 2013.

Really cool idea, don't you think? Would you be brave enough to sit down and play?

I look forward to paying closer attention to the "Play me, I'm yours" next year. I think it may be ambitious to see all 40 pianos but I will definitely be on the lookout! 

Talent, Paris is overflowing with it

I was talking to coworkers yesterday about people being talented. Some of the students I teach are fashion designers, artists and actors. It got me thinking that when someone is described as having talent, in my brain, it means that they are good at art, music, writing, acting, or something considered artistic. At times, I have also heard the word "talented" used to describe a really good athlete. So using those definitions of talent I have almost zero. I know people (friends and family members) who have LOTS of talent. So are we born with talent? Once we discover our ability in something does it flow into the other areas and those then become talents too? Is talent defined the same for others as it is for me?


Paris has no shortage of talented people. There are artists and musicians everywhere! Here are a few things I have seen in recent weeks that strongly illustrate this.

Spray paint artwork on a metro train, pretty amazing in my opinion

Someone singing and playing the piano on the street outside of a shopping area

This takes sidewalk chalk art to a WHOLE new level!

So to all of my talents friends, how do you think this works? Did you always know you had talent or was it something you discovered later in life? Maybe I have yet to discover what my talent is! Just in case though, if you have a little extra talent laying around to spare feel free to share some with me. It would make me feel a whole lot better walking around Paris with all of these talented people everywhere!!!

Giraffe sighting

So I have been teaching at a business for about 3-4 months and finished a class there this last week. Every week that I leave I walk past this building with a large opened door, and what appears to be a giraffe. I finally remembered to ask about it after the lesson last week.

Sure enough, it's a giraffe! The space is owned by the "Galeries Lafayette," an upscale shopping center. I guess they find the need to have a giraffe on hand in case they need to whip out a safari themed display.

Just a strange and interesting Paris sighting!