Travel

Lovely London: Part 1

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As we sped away from Paris on the Eurostar, through the countryside of France we sipped our last bottle of rosé and nibbled on french bread and cheeses. The train ride to London from Paris is very quick and easy. We definitely prefer it over the hassle of flying and dealing with Heathrow Airport. Once we arrived in London, we had a quick bite of dinner and visited with friends before heading to bed. 

In the morning, we woke up and headed to one of our favorite chain restaurants in the UK, Bill's. This place has a nice rustic feel to it with enamel tea pots that are ever so lightly worn in, antique looking ceiling tiles and candelabra center pieces in the evening. Ivy, not being able to wait another moment before having a cream tea (a pot of tea with scones, jam, and clotted cream) ordered the Queen's Cream Tea Birthday Special. Eve and our friend A (who we were staying with) ordered poached eggs on avocado on toast and berry banana pancakes. Yum!

After breakfast, A left to do some PhD research (she's such a smart cookie) and we headed off to Oxford Street for a bit of shopping. Our guilty shopping pleasures in the UK are Primark, (The Forever 21 of England), Accessorize (an accessories shop) and New Look (clothing shop). We ended up picking out some killer Harry Potter PJ's at Primark and some cute fluffy purse charms at Accessorize. The summer sales were going on and it was hard not to buy up half of every store!

Once we had wondered all the shops on Oxford Street, we were starving so we headed to the Borough Market right across the street from our friends apartment. This market is AMAZING! It is full of fresh produce, local cheeses, craft ciders and beers, oyster bars, meat shops and more. We could definitely live happily ever after if we only ate here for the rest of our lives! We gobbled up tasty prosciutto sandwiches and a few glasses of sparkling rosé. Later Eve tried a fresh pressed green juice from one of the vendors as well. Seriously yum!

After lunch we went back to the apartment to take a nap and rest our feet. Once A returned from her work we met up with A's boyfriend D and had dinner by the river Thames. We walked past the tower of London and the Tower bridge. We stopped for dinner at a tapas bar and watched the sun set over the river. Once we finished dinner we all went out for a drink at a local pub where Eve and A sipped sparkling wine and Ivy drank her favorite cider, Rekorderlig

The next day we started with brunch at Spitalfields Market. This is near where Eve lived a few summers ago for a summer university course. We ended up going to breakfast at Blixen. We ordered scrambled eggs with mushrooms and truffle ragu, a double rosti with spinach poached eggs and parmesan cheese, and side of truffle popcorn all washed down with bubbly, naturally. :)

Afterwords, we took the tube to the Regent Street, where we ran, not walked to Fortnum & Maison. This shop is one of the most beautiful stores in London and filled with tins of cookies, jars of jam, picnic baskets, a huge selection of wines, and more. We wondered in awe for some time dreaming of one day filling our home with all its treasures, then we ran downstairs for the ultimate summer treat. Champagne Popsicles! Their packaging is so pretty we almost didn't want to open them, but lets be realistic, we never waste champagne! 

We bought the pops and headed off to sit in Green Park down the street and enjoy the summer sun. 

Once we had sunned and enjoyed our champagne pops we headed back towards the apartment and walk along the river. By the time we got back though (15 minutes later) it was pouring rain so we were forced to dry off in the apartment till A returned from the library. Once she got back, we walked to Borough Market to try out one of the oyster bars we had spotted earlier. Richard Haward's Oysters had a great deal of 4 oysters and a glass of prosecco for only 10 pounds!

After the oysters, we got changed and met up with a group of friends at a small wine bar called Champagne+Fromage (the name says it all) before heading to Roka Aldwych for a fabulous dinner celebrating our fellow American friend R's masters graduation.

After dinner, we all headed home to rest up for the next day and all the magic to come (hint hint!). Stay tuned!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Parisian Adventure: Part 3

Catacombs of Paris

On the third day we slept in a bit and then headed to our local bakery to pick out some pastries. Secco is located at 54 Rue de Sévres and had pretty tarts and yummy pain au chocolat. We had such a hard time choosing what we wanted!

Ivy's breakfast espresso and berry tart...yummy!

Ivy's breakfast espresso and berry tart...yummy!

After breakfast, we got dressed and headed to the Catacombs for a day of spook! We had visited the Catacombs on our first ever trip to Paris but P-man had never visited so we decided to have another go. Since we did not plan ahead, we ended up sitting in line for 3+ hours!!!! We highly recommend BOOKING AHEAD. On our first visit with our family, we booked ahead and had NO wait time which left us more time to enjoy other places in Paris. Waiting in line that long was a real  bummer, but we think it was worth it. There is a small park that the line forms around and the line is great for people watching so all in all, it wasn't so bad.

Once we got into the Catacombs we were so glad we had waited in line. The tunnels below the city were originally made by the Romans quarrying stone for roads and buildings. In the 1700's The Cemetery of the Innocents in Les Halles became too full and was a source of disease for the surrounding neighborhood. In 1786, the city decided to transfer the bones from the cemetery to the abandoned tunnels. Nightly, the priests would cart bones from the city's cemeteries covered with a heavy black cloth and place them in these tunnels. The city continued to place bones in the Catacombs until 1814. When the bones were placed in the tunnels, they were piled up on either side of the tunnel, leaving a path in the center to walk. You can find designs made in the piles such as hearts made of skulls, crosses, and other interesting and certainly spooky patterns. 

After the Catacombs, we were caught in a torrential downpour and decided to head back to the 6th Arrondissement to have some lunch and change our now soaking clothes. We had noticed a small wine and tapas bar near our house so we decided to check it out for lunch. Osaba specializes in Spanish cheeses, meats, and wines. The restaurant itself is very small with a few tables upstairs and a few outside on the street. Since the rain seemed to have stopped for a while, we took a chance and sat outside because when in Paris, live as the Parisians! Between the three of us we split a bottle of rosé and the large cheese and meat board with a never ending basket of sliced baguette. The rosé was wonderful, fruity, and dry (we liked it so much we we bought a bottle to go!) and the sliced meats were delicious. There were 6 different types served and each were unique and tasty! Our favorite part of the lunch was probably the spiced honey served with the cheese. We ended up fighting over who got the last bit of honey! We love this little place so much that we went back here again!

After lunch, we decided to take a bit of a break from running around and we relaxed at home. We think it is really important to take time to relax during vacation. When you visit such an exciting place like Paris it is easy to spend your whole time racing from place to place and its easy to get run down. We took this afternoon to read a bit, nap, and look at maps to plan the days ahead!

For dinner, P-man was feeling a little under the weather so he decided to take advantage of the enormous tub at our house and read. We decided to venture into the Saint Germain des Prés. We were in the mood for something off the beaten path and found just that at Au Pied de Fouet. Au Pied de Fouet is located two blocks north of Boulevard Saint Germain, where the wonderful yet touristy Café de Flore and Les Deux Magots are located. Au Pied de Fouet is a tiny restaurant which serves up classic country style French cooking. Ivy had fish in a basil cream sauce while Eve had the classic duck confit. We washed down our wonderful meal with a carafe of the house white wine which was really yummy, light, minerally, and dry. We had a chocolate cake with creme anglaise and the chestnut mouse for dessert. Both were so tasty that we forgot to photograph them! Both dishes were delicious and the atmosphere made the meal even more enjoyable! We both can't wait to come back here with our parents who would have loved this tiny gem. 

Versailles Palace & Gardens

The next day, we rose bright and early and headed to Versailles! We had never been to Versailles because we thought it would be a long trip and hard to get to. Wow were we wrong! From Paris, the easiest way to get to Versialles is by the RER C train. We took the Metro from our house and transferred to the RER C at Saint Michel- Notre Dame Metro stop. Then you board the next RER C train to Versailles Rive Gauche. The train took about 30 minutes and then the walk to the palace was another 5-10 minutes. 

Already at 9am the palace had a long winding line to get inside the doors. Since P-man has an EU passport and is under 26 years old, he could get into the palace for FREE! We still had to buy tickets so we had P-man stand in line while we went inside to buy tickets. Inside there was a long line for tickets. DO NOT stand in that line! On the far back of the building there is a small room with ticket machines, there was absolutely no lines. Maybe in the afternoon it would get busy but for some odd reason no one was in line at the machines. We bought "Passport" tickets for 25 euros which gained us access to the palace, the grounds, and Marie-Antoinette Estate. P-man being from England only needed his passport to get into the palace, however he did have to pay for the grounds ticket which was around 7 euros. 

The palace was very beautiful and extravagant. The detail from the stone floors to the tapestries was perfection. The only downside was all the people! It was almost impossible to stand in one room more then a minute without being pushed out by the people trying to get inside. We agreed that we would be willing to pay more to be able to enjoy it with less people. The experience was not like most museums, where people are quiet, view things respectfully and take turns viewing the art.  It was more like the Mona Lisa, where you have to literally fight your way to the front. Many people were completely oblivious to the other visitors and many people walked right in front of us with their cameras above their heads trying to take a photo. Despite this, it was still a great experience and the palace was worth the wait and crowds. Maybe in the winter it is less busy?

Not surprisingly, the grounds were Ivy's favorite part. They were HUGE! There is over 800 hectors of land surrounding the palace, all of which was designed and planted perfectly. We expected it to be big - but not THAT big. We walked for 20 minutes and were not even halfway through. The grounds are made up of manicured lawns, parterres of flowers, fountains, sculptures, wooded areas, and ponds.  The areas by the ponds are perfect for summer picnics. And most of the grounds are free to visitors (if you use the garden entrances which are separate from the palace). 

After we strolled the grounds and visited a few of the Estates, we headed back to the train station. On our way back to the train station, we stopped at the Grand Écurie (Royal Stables) since Eve couldn't bear to not see the pretty horses.

Once we were back in Paris we headed to Angelina, famous for their thick and creamy hot chocolate and pretty pastries. Eve picked out a tasty éclair while Ivy picked some macarons to nibble on. We then strolled around the local shops before heading home for a little rest. We sat in the garden having lattes and our sweet treats.

They sell their hot chocolate in powder and liquid form so you can bring it home.

They sell their hot chocolate in powder and liquid form so you can bring it home.

Eve having a hard time choosing!

Eve having a hard time choosing!

Ivy in our garden enjoying the pastries. 

Ivy in our garden enjoying the pastries. 

Ivy's Earl grey, chocolate, pistachio, and espresso macarons and Eve's caramel éclair!

Ivy's Earl grey, chocolate, pistachio, and espresso macarons and Eve's caramel éclair!

Once our legs recovered some from all the walking, we headed out for a evening drink at Les Deux Magots. This café is world famous and one of the oldest in Paris! It also has had numerous famed visitors over the years such as Ernest Hemingway, Elsa Triolet, Luis Aragon, and many others over the years. We each had a glass of rosé and it was accompanied by some olives and an assorted snack mix. We were delighted by the view of the Église Saint-Germain des Prés (one of the oldest churches in Paris) and by the Parisian man and his old dog enjoying an evening brew beside us. 

Cheers!

Cheers!

After drinks we walked over to Le Marais for dinner. We picked to go to Restaurant L'Alivi because this was the restaurant we had stumbled upon with our Mom and Dad two years ago during Christmas. The restaurant is in a charming old building which looks like the rest of the neighborhood was built up around. We LOVE this place for its atmosphere and its food! Eve started with a lovely Corsican eggplant salad (hidden under a pretty sheet of pastry) and P-man had stuffed sardines and salad. Ivy ordered some steak she had been craving and it was seasoned and cooked perfectly. Eve had a pasta dish with slow roasted veal for the main course and P-man pork and grilled eggplant. For desert we ordered the Corsican cheesecake served with a shot of limoncello, the chocolate lava cake, and the strawberry tart with cream. Everything was delicious and exactly as we remembered. 

 After dinner, we strolled along the Seine enjoying the Paris evening and headed home for a good nights rest.

xxx Ivy & Eve