Paris 2009 – Dinner 2

New Years Eve is a lot of fun in the City of Lights but finding that special place can be too much for even the most experienced traveler. Foodie Rosa Jackson chose La Bastide Odeon for us this year. Ringing in the New Year!

La Bastide Odéon

7 Rue Corneille, 6^th (01.43.26.03.65). M° Odéon.

Chef/owner Gilles Ajuelos has made this Saint-Germain bistro something of an institution. The dining room in shades of ochre has a southern feel and his cooking borrows from all over the Mediterranean. Part of the menu is even dedicated to vegetarian dishes, a rarity in Paris. For New Year’s he has concocted two tempting set menus with enough choices to keep everyone happy.

La Bastide Odeon

New Years Eve

Images of our day in Paris

Paris 2009 – Day Two [Itinerary]

New Year’s Eve in Paris! For me – there isn’t a better place to celebrate the conclusion of the past year and look to opportunities of the New Year.

Paris goes quiet on New Year’s Day (I guess everyone else is sleeping in after a night on-the-town). Best of all – after this weekend most of my fellow tourist are gone and long waiting lines are a thing of the past.

Today – we are off to see two temporary exhibitions in the city.

We start our day at Musee Jacquemart-Andre to view an exhibit of works by Bruegel, Memling, and Van Eyck. This small museum is located to the north on the Right Bank. This museum was once a private estate within the city (and is clearly how I would have loved to live should I have been born during that time).

The museum’s private collection of work and architecture is well worth your time. While the special exhibit is wonderful – the estate and collection is hard to beat.

Next we headed over to one of the oddest museums in Paris, the Pinacotheque. The museum is host to a special exhibit Golden Age of Holland. The museum continues to be an odd place – that said – it attracts some wonderful temporary collections.

Paris 2009 – Dinner 1

I love good food. Every year I look forward to receiving recommendations from our local foodie Rosa Jackson. She is terrific. Hiring a local foodie is my #1 travel tip. It saves tons of time, reduces stress, and rounds off a good travel itinerary.

Tonight we return to one of our favorite places to eat in the Latin Quarter. We return to the Le Petit Pontoise every year for some traditional French cuisine. The place is small (like most Paris spots) so make reservations unless your dining early. Their Foie Gras is terrific.

Mark tried Foie Gras and Escargot for the first time. The chef continued to live up to our expectation! We are loving it.

Paris 2009 - Day One (Afternoon)

Where better to begin a trip to Paris than viewing a special exhibit at the Louvre?

This exhibit Rivals in Renaissance Venice displays the great works by Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. Their rivalry did not lead to aesthetic degradation but rather to a profusion of ideas.

There are lots of remedies to fight off jet-lag but none can compete with a visit to the Louvre. Not a bad choice.

Long lines had us avoid the final days of Toulouse-Lautrec. The Les Arts Decoratifs Museum is co-located with the Louvre. The Web site also has a nice guide of the exhibit (PDF) so that will have to do.

Instead we took advantage of the incredible warm weather and walk around the park and along the Seine. It made for a good day of photo taking and quick overview of the city. The parks were busy.

Ferris

Paris Fun

Paris 2009 – Day One [Arrival]

I know this is going to be a tough day to keep going after an overnight flight from the good ol’ USA to Paris.

Our flights went off without a hitch and we cleared Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris without delay. We found our traveling companion, Barbara, and headed into the city.

One of our favorite features is Hotel D’Able is directly on the RER train route. It makes for a convenient transport to and from town. Best of all it is much more affordable than a taxi.

After dropping our suitcases at the hotel – we ran a few quick errands to pick up our tickets at the local FNAC counter and purchase my coffee-maker.  Yes - I have to drink American coffee even in Paris.

Still Smiling

Next leg of the trip to Paris and smiles all around. Only 8 hours to go!

Paris Bound

After arriving too many hours early we are on our first flight.
Chicago here we come.

Mapped Out Paris

View Paris 2009 in a larger map

Ultimate

This would qualify as the ultimate sacrifice to make the trip! Yes - -
a portable resting chair.

Paris Planning

It is true. I am desperate to go to Paris and promising all types of things.

Paris Pain

Paris is only a few days away and I have injured my back. Yes, can you believe it? Years of wear and tear have caused L4/L5/S1 discs to be bulging. The result is extreme pain in my lower back and legs. Yesterday I had my first epidural. Wow - wasn't that an adventure to experience only once.

So ... I am faced with the reality that I may not make this trip to Paris. And ... if I do - I have to do research on anything that might help me travel more comfortably. Today - I ran across this flight seat cushion. It looks weird but it is listed in the travel survival guide from Conde Nast traveler.

2009/2010 Itinerary

Okay - so I over did it with the pre-planning again. I cannot help myself. We have 10 days in Paris this year and new guests (my niece and her husband) with us for their first trip to the City of Lights. I cannot wait to share the city with them. I know we will have loads of fun. And ... from a quick look at this year's itinerary - we may even lose some weight from all the running around town.

Paris Supplies

I ran across these travel slippers at REI in Dallas. I have always wanted a pair of slip on shoes for use on longer air plane rides. These Acorn slippers should work perfectly. I also grabbed a new travel pillow.

REI has great supplies. I added a pair of silk glove liners, ear muffs and wool sock liners to round off my preparations for the cold Paris weather.

New Year's Plans

Here is the menu for our New Year's Eve dinner in Paris. The restaurant is located near the Luxembourg Gardens and very close to our hotel.

LES ENTERES
Soup hot chestnuts and bacon grilled fingers of gingerbread
Tartare of oysters and salmon, served with a leek, radish and horseradish cream
Roasted Turnips and whipped goat fresh pink grapefruit and ginger
Pressed chicken and foie gras with artichokes, pepper chutney Mango

LES PLAST
Walnut St. Jacques Orange, neighborhood pumpkin and sweet potato
Interlocking doe pepper, mashed pumpkin
Filet de bar à la plancha, mashed parsnips and wild capers
Lièvre à la Royale Senator Knives
Guinea fowl supreme with heirloom vegetables, broth with foie gras and cream datte

FORMAGE
Roquefort terrine and fresh goat cheese, fruit chutney (suppl. 8 €)

LES SESSERTS
Yarrow is traditional minute vanilla bourbon and Grand Marnier
Ice cream with bitter chocolate, ice cream, chestnuts and candied orange
Clementine lemongrass, coconut milk and sorbet struck quark
Sanded smooth with quince and creme brulee, grout "apple - quince

Temptations of Paris

Barbara is already teasing the gang.

Paris Planning

We are days away from departing for Paris. Our planning is pretty much complete. A few minor details are left. Soon we will be enjoying the City of Lights!

Sent from my iPhone

Paris 2009 – Day One [Afternoon]

Where better to begin a trip to Paris than viewing a special exhibit at the Louvre?

This exhibit Rivals in Renaissance Venice displays the great works by Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. Their rivalry did not lead to aesthetic degradation but rather to a profusion of ideas.

There are lots of remedies to fight off jet-lag but none can compete with a visit to the Louvre. Not a bad choice.  Rivals In Renaissance Venice 

 

Long lines had us avoid the final days of Toulouse-Lautrec. The Les Arts Decoratifs Museum is co-located with the Louvre. The Web site also has a nice guide of the exhibit (PDF) so that will have to do.

Instead we took advantage of the incredible warm weather and walk around the park and along the Seine. It made for a good day of photo taking and quick overview of the city. The parks were busy.

Countdown to Mexico

Hard to believe our Mexico vacation is less than 6 weeks away! I cannot wait to get away from the states for a few days and enjoy a different culture. H1N1 has definitely hurt tourism in Mexico since last year. I hope some of our favorite stores are fairing the flu and economic storms. Nevertheless we will enjoy seeing friends and restful time away from the office.

Montreal Canada

Montreal Canada
Originally uploaded by dwgdallas

Sunny day in Montreal Canada

Biodome

The Biodome is a great treat in Montreal. We went early on Saturday morning and it was already packed.

Old Montreal

Here are some good images from old Montreal.

Cirque d Soleil show OVO is great. The tents are located on the pier in Old Montreal.

Tourist

Okay we are the ultimate tourists. Yes - we took the open decker tour bus around Montreal. It was a lot of fun - except for the brief showers.

Montreal Botanical Gardens

It really is a must to visit the botanical gardens in Montreal. They are terrific.

Montreal Day Two

Waking up to cooler weather is real fun! Texas' temperatures are reaching 100 degrees - and Canada still hoovers around 70 or so. Yes. This is good weather even if a bit rainy.

Today - we have plans to enjoy the Montreal botanical gardens. But before we got started - we ran visited the Governor's house located close to our hotel in Old Montreal.

Montreal Day 1

Storms delayed our arrival to Montreal. Once we landed - we discovered the airport had been closed for over 1 hour due to thunderstorms. Luckily - Barbara was delayed too. So we text messaged each other from the runway while both our pilots waited on a gate. Funny, sad and a LONG day.

Hotel D Armes

Pictures from the lobby at the Hotel D Armes in old Montreal

Hotel Place D Armes

We enjoy this hotel located in the heart of Old Montreal. We are in room 1505 - building one. It is a nice room. Although I would prefer a different wing of the hotel. This one shares the elevator with the very popular rooftop club 701.

Aster

How about this Stoke's Aster? They really are nice when blooming.

OVO

Tickets are purchased. Yes. One itinerary item down - about Fifty to go.

Montreal Bound

It is time to make plans for our upcoming trip to Montreal Canada. This year - Barbara will join us. The Montreal Jazz Festival [http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/ ]will be on-going during our visit again this year. Also, good news - Cirque du Soleil newest show called OVO will be showing near our hotel! I am a huge fan. On my last trip to Las Vegas I saw 4 Cirque du Soleil shows in 3 nights. It was a blast.

Trains, Planes, and Automobiles ...and well, Trains

I know I should love the Frankfurt train system - but honestly we never could get the 'feel' for it. We tried the U and S a couple of times only to eventually return above ground and fend for ourselves walking the city. The train from the airport wasn't much easier to use for us and we missed our stop in the city. Who knew it had a different name than on the map? Not us. Oh well - we can master the system on our next trip to Germany (I promise to do better research before that trip!).

More Shopping

Frankfurt has tons of shops including two impressive Gallerias. Goetestr. is known for its shops including Gucci, Tiffany's, and other high-end retailers. We found a couple of local shops well worth visiting:

Erzgebirgische Volkskunst, Tongesgasse 27, sells German-made nutcrackers and other wooden goods. The small shop is wonderful. They carry original wooden music boxes with a base price of $150 Euros.

Affentor Frankfort, Fahrgasse 23, sells handmade cloth computer bags, purses, and totes. Their designs are original. Also all sales assist non-profit organizations. Computer Bags were about $89 Euros. This area is also home to some great contemporary art galleries.

We fell upon a progressive urban neighborhood South of the Main - at Bruckenstr. and Wallstr. - this area is full of pubs for drinking, custom designers for the trend setters, and plenty of off-the-wall tiny shops. Wertsachen, Bruckenstar. 58, is worth a visit.

Finally - the indoor market in Frankfurt is good fun. Here you can find almost anything you could desire to add to your pantry. On the weekends - this place is packed and spills outdoors to the nearby patios.