French Open Trip 2018 Day 7: The Parisian Way
After getting back to our hotel room sometime after 1 AM this morning, Jenn and I slept in as late as we possibly could. Yesterday was absolutely incredible but today we had another jam-packed day ahead of us. We woke up a little before 10 AM and grabbed an Uber at 10:30 AM to take us to the Anvers subway station (we were running late again) to meet up with my siblings for a Parisian food tour.
Obviously, Jenn and I love food tours, they're our favorite type of tour. But this was going to be the first food tour for my siblings so I was nervous to see if they were going to like it. We were greeted a few minutes after 11 AM by PJ a jolly heavy set gentleman who was bursting with energy. He started the tour with a ten-minute overview of the Montmartre region and its small-town vibe on the outskirts of Paris. We then began the tour.
Our first stop was to Maison Georges Larnicol a beautiful chocolate store where we each picked out a couple of chocolates to take with us and enjoy on the road. Next up was an exquisite macaroon store that had some of the best macaroons I've ever eaten. After that, we went to a small bakery that made bread every hour. We got to go back and watch them make the bread and I have to say the smell of the place had all of our mouths watering and wanting to eat right away. Our next couple of stops were to a cheese and meat store to pick up a bunch of meats and cheeses to be enjoyed later.
From there we walked a couple more blocks to a small restaurant where we all sat down and were served a bunch of bread, meat, cheese, and red/white wine. We got to pair all of the food with different wines and cheeses and it was one of those experiences that made me wish we lived in Paris. I literally could eat meat and cheese and bread every day. Give me a glass of wine on top of that and I'd be one happy camper.
After we had eaten more than our fair share (and drank in equal measure) we then walked down the road to two more stops. First up was a cream pastry spot that was out of this world. A small fried donut with cream on it. I could have had a bunch more of those. And last up was a very small hole in the wall crepe shop where we all got to have one crepe to enjoy to conclude the tour.
After feasting for a couple of hours we said goodbye to our energetic tour guide PJ and made our way back into town. We grabbed an Uber Van to take us from Montmartre to the Arc de Triumph where we went up the Arc. It's been a number of years since we've made the climb and although it still isn't easy it didn't seem as bad as last time. At the top of the Arc de Triumph, we had great views of the nearby Paris streets on what was a perfect day. We all took a ton of photos, walked around the top and then made our way back down the circular stairs.
When we got to the bottom we then made the walk from the Arc de Triumph to the Eiffel Tower. Although we had been there the night before there's nothing quite like the Eiffel tower during the day. After a fifteen minute walk, we arrived and took a slew more photos around the Eiffel and the nearby streets. By this point, I think the entire group was exhausted, so we went our separate ways to go back to our hotels and rest.
Jenn and I made our way back to our hotel, laid around and enjoyed a quick jaunt over to Starbucks before calling it a night. After two jam-packed days at Roland Garros and a food tour this morning there was nothing better than laying in bed, watching the Eiffel Tower light up from our hotel windows and look forward to our final moments of Paris tomorrow morning.
