If you just tuned in, you may have missed the first part of my adventures. Catch up with day 1 and day 2.
I have been to Paris a couple of times, but never gotten any great pictures, so I was determined on this trip to have some pictures that I could actually put on the wall! So the morning of my third day I decided to spend two hours with a photographer, Olga, from my favorite travel support website, flytographer.com . I’ve written about them before, and absolutely love them! They help capture the magic of travel with a community of local photographers in over 200 cities around the world. Bad selfies with iconic monuments be damned, this is the way to go for great travel photos!
After a really fun shoot, with a mini tour of many of the great sites and monuments, I was ready for lunch.
I was excited to try a restaurant my girlfriend had told me about, a fantastic hotspot called Kong. This super trendy restaurant bar is on the top two floors of the LVMH building and next door to the lovely Louis Vuitton Headquarters. It has an awesome vibe and atmosphere with interiors by Philippe Starck. You might recognize it from “Sex and the City.” With amazing floor to ceiling windows, I had an excellent seat with beautiful views of the Seine River and Ponte Neuf Bridge. It’s perfect for lunch, a popular spot for dinner, and a super chic nightclub on Friday and Saturday nights. Gotta give a shout out to my girlfriends great guidance! Thanks Lydia!
After lunch, I crossed over the nearby Pont Neuf bridge, perused the tens of thousands of lovers locks on the oldest bridge in Paris, to stroll along the left bank of the Seine, immersed in happy thoughts, to the Musee D’Orsay.
This is my favorite museum, and I don’t think I’m alone, because on many websites it’s ranked number one above the Louvre. Maybe because it’s so much more “doable” and not overwhelming, also because you will recognize everything in this place! Housed in a former Beaux Arts Railway station, The Musee D”Orsay is internationally renowned for having The largest collection of impressionistic and post-impressionistic masterpieces in the world. Every famous piece you can think of from Degas, Cézanne, Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Seurat, Gauguin, Renoir and so many more. It’s stunning! And I’m always shocked at how close you can get to these pieces, there’s just something astounding about having your nose 8 inches away from Vincent Van Gogh’s “Starry Starry Night”!
From the museum, since I was already on the Rive Gauche, I knew I should definitely run into Le Bon Marche before the end of my last day here. This is no ordinary department store! Founded in 1838, and now the property of LVMH luxury group, it sells a wide range of high-end luxury goods. This doesn’t look anything like an American department store, Le Bon Marche is a stand alone shopping destination. The decor and design are stunning. It is an unmissable treat and a unique experience, complete with Le Grande Epicerie which has 30,000 gourmet products from around the globe culled into one amazing space. There’s no way you won’t find that dream gift for your favorite foodie back home.
To round out my last evening in The City of Light, I was excited to try Matsuhisa Paris. In 2016, Le Royal Monceau Hotel, introduced the first Matsuhisa/Nobu restaurant in France. The extensive and original menu at Matsuhisa Paris offers a unique Peruvian -Japanese culinary experience with a bespoke array of Nobu’s legendary signature dishes. Everything was delectable, as you can imagine, and during fashion season every table is awash in so many supermodels and fashion icons that you’ll feel the need for a makeover!
So as my three quick days in Paris came to a close, I’m was already plotting the things I would do, see and eat the next time I’m there. I am dying to see the Louis Vuitton Museum a short drive outside of Paris, maybe take a helicopter trip to Versailles, eat at Le Cinq, stay at the newly re-opening Hotel De Crillon….dreaming already.
