To Market, To Market

One of my favorite things about Paris is all of the amazing patisseries, epiceries, charcuteries, fromageries, boulangeries, and beaucoup de marchés.  An area near my apartment called Montorgueill is a tiny pedestrian street filled with awesome little markets and cafés and pastry shops.  So much charm and so many amazing foods, spices, and fruits to drool over!

On to the food porn!

Oh yeah, and this is me:

The Eiffel Tower

I went to see an amazing exhibit at the Centre Georges Pompidou called "Dreamlands" which is all about visions of future cities through history and I filmed this little video about the building of the Eiffel Tower during the World Fair of 1889. So cool!


Eiffel Tower from teena turner on Vimeo.

 Also, the views of Paris from the top of the Georges Pompidou are hard to beat!!

Must Find Karl Lagerfeld Diet Coke!

Il pleut

It's raining!

But before the rain started (again), my new friend, Michelle, and I explored parks and pasta shops and cafes and tea rooms and patisseries.  Good times!  She lives in Barcelona but is from LA.  Someone to visit in Barcelona next month!  

Some captured moments in the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont in the Montmartre.  This park used to be a city dump (!) and is now a man-made masterpiece of nature (ha!).

This stinks

My apartment has been smelling super rank for a few days -- like kinda very gross -- and I've been trying to air it out, light candles, take out the garbage, anything.  I was getting super bummed thinking I had rented a "lemon" and was about to email my landlord about the gross moldy mildewy smell infesting my life, when I realized it was just some stinky cheese I had bought. Merde!

Here is a pic of another cheesy thing I ate one day.  Mmmm....

This is scalloped potatoes and roasted zucchini on fresh bread with a super thick and wonderful layer of melted goat cheese on top. 

Yes, it's true.

Adventures!

So... since we last met, I have had many an adventure, including but not limited to, fancy dinners with strange (and regrettable) meats, moped rides through Paris, concerts in the park, art shows, late night/early morning dance club excursions, walks from one end of Paris to the other, new friends, old friends, solo meals/drinks, museums, and attempts at French conversations.  All in all, a good week!  Oh yeah, and the Eiffel Tower, too.

Some pics!

LE CONCERT: The National and Pavement at Le Zenith in Parc Villette

I roamed around the gigantic park while I waited to buy tickets for the show -- the park is filled with sculptures and artwork, a lot like Millennium Park in Chicago.  As the concert got closer, I sat outside and listened to the soundcheck while waiting for the box office to open to see if I could get a ticket.  As I waited, a scalper approached me (actually a few did) and I ended up negotiating a ticket for less than face value, it wasn't a fraud, and I got in to the show with one of the best seats in the house! So awesome!

Also, they sell champagne and baguettes with cheese and ham inside concerts here.  Amazing!

My kind of park!

Classy heifer

Experiments with self-timers.  

This is what you do when you hang out alone all the time.

The National (so dreamy)

Pavement (return to 1996!)

Le Zenith is pretty cool.

Ok, off to a lunch date with a new friend at my favorite little bakery cafe, Rose Bakery. More soon!

Les Catacombes

I ventured to Les Catacombes yesterday, a series of underground caverns and tunnels under Paris with the bones of hundreds of thousands of French from the late 1700s and early 1800s.  The mass cemetary has walls and tunnels constructed of skulls and bones and decorative sculptures and crosses dedicated to the dead.

As you enter the tunnels, a sign warns: "Arrête, c'est ici l'empire de la Mort" ('Stop, this is the empire of Death').

My Street

Some pics of my neighborhood... it's just on the outskirts of Le Marais, really close to a few metro stations.  Not a super "chic" street but walking distance to all kinds of great places.  Also, there are randomly a couple of famous French restaurants on my block. Excited to try them out!

my street

my building

tiny market across the street

corner Italian cafe and deli

two awesome restaurants are in this old crusty building on my corner

Settling in...

I brought 124 lbs of summer-perfect stuff with me, to discover bitterly icy cold as I stepped off my flight. My first week, I've been piling on layer after layer of less-than-warm stuff to create kinda-warm outfits and setting out on adventures around the city. Ain't gonna let a little cold breeze (and numb fingers) get me down!

On to my adventures!

Day 1:

Landed in Paris, jumped in a cab and explained in French where I was going.  He did not understand me (ha!) but appreciated the effort and small-talked with me in French the rest of the drive and we had a decent conversation... and I made it to my apartment!  My apartment is awesome and cozy and tiny and I love it! 

After unpacking, I roamed around the neighborhood and beyond, got a little lost and found myself a cute little tiki bar filled with vintage Elvis paraphernalia, crocheted paintings, Caribbean touches and tropical drinks. Perfect!

Then I hit up my favorite thrift store (where the owner greeted me like an old friend) and I scored a cute sweater dress for 5 euros.  Sweet!  I finished off the day with a falafel from L'As Du Falafel, a little place in my 'hood known as the "best falafel in Paris."  C'est vrai!

Day 2: 

Crossed the Seine and explored the "Left Bank" through the Latin Quarter and the chic St. Germain area. Traipsed through the Marché aux Fleurs (flower market), ate some goat cheese and drank vin blanc before heading to the famed department store Le Bon Marché, and walking over to the gardens of the Hôpital des Invalides (military museum). Capped off the day at one of my favorite cafés in my neighborhood, Café Charlot, and read my book while sipping more vin blanc (surprise!). 

All in all, I think I walked about 20 miles that day. My dogs were barking! But an awesome day.

More to come from the rest of the week...

The BIG Day

I'm off to Paris today for my three-month "greatest idea of all time" and am brimming with butterflies.  I will be eating croissant and sipping café crème tomorrow morning at une petite terrasse near my little apartment.  Woo hoo!

I had so many wonderful send-offs and well-wishes from the best people in the world -- my amazing friends, my incredible family, and my awesome work peeps. I'm a LUCKY girl. Sorry to get emo for a sec but I'm just  in that kind of mood -- a really REALLY happy and thankful mood for all of great people I love and all of the adventures I'm about to have. Not ever gonna take it for granted... not once.

My mom would be really proud... and she will be with me every step of the way.

Au revoir!