Friends from Afar

Friday was another gorgeous day in Paris. The weather really could not have been any better. Darcy and I began the day with our search for the perfect crêpe. We found a pretty good one, but it was not as freshly made as we wanted. We enjoyed it anyway, as you can see...


Thanks to the wonders of Facebook and statuses, we got in contact with an old friend, Elizabeth Crouch. We all went to school together and Elizabeth was my next-door neighbor growing up. We probably hadn't seen her in ten years and we just both happened to be in Paris at the same time. So we decided to meet up for lunch. Darcy and I still had a little time before that, so we decided to run down to the neighborhood south of Notre Dame to take some pictures of the College de France for our friend Charlie Haws. We got off at the Hotel de Ville station.

We then headed South toward the College. The neighborhood around the College was really beautiful. I love the narrow streets.



And here are some pictures of the College itself...









(This last picture is of a beautiful museam right across the street from the College)
After that, we walked back toward Notre Dame...

...hopped on the metro and scurried to the area of Le Marais (literally translated into "The Swamp"). It is an old Jewish Neighborhood (which has now become a hip gay neighborhood) and was where we were meeting Elizabeth and one of her friends from Seattle, Richard. It was so great to see Elizabeth and catch up. One of her friends lived in Paris for many years and had given her several recommendations for food to eat and places to go, so we followed her lead. We went to a great little French Cafe for lunch, and then we just walked around Le Marais, enjoying the narrow streets and the neighborhood feel. I think for Darcy and I it felt like we were in a real Paris neighborhood for one of the first times.

We then walked south across the Seine to get the best ice cream in Paris, Berthillon. We asked a woman to take a picture of us all on the bridge. She was brave and stood in the road to snap this picture. Unfortunately, her bravery was not matched by her knowledge of how to take a picture. Two times she pressed the power button instead of the shutter button, and she framed it so that you could only see the four of us, rather than the beautiful views behind us. Oh well...


The ice cream was fabulous though, as was the area around it. Narrow streets with sidewalks that you practically have to walk single file on. Really cool...

We then went back north and walked around Le Marais some more. We also explored the area of the Bastille and Place de Vosges. (Sorry we don't have as many pictures as usual. We got a little distracted in the middle of the day). Elizabeth and Richard hadn't been to the Eiffel Tower yet, so we decided to hop on the Metro and head that way. We hopped off on the Champs-Élysées and walked the rest of the way.


(Darcy in front of le Grand Palais)

After seeing the long line to get to the top, we both decided to do that another day (Darcy and I are about to do it today, as soon as we head out). We then hopped back on the metro...

...to head back to Le Marais to go to what Elizabeth described as "The best falafal I have ever had in my life." I am not as experienced in eating falafal, but I have to say it was the best I have ever had.


We then went back across the Seine to the neighborhood south of Notre Dame...

We eventually made our way to Notre Dame itself. The way the sun was setting cast a really beautiful light on the building. We sat and enjoyed the lighting (and the people watching) for a while.





After the sun had practically set, we walked back north to Le Marais in search of the perfect place for dessert.


(Hotel de Ville)


We eventually found a nice place and each enjoyed a little dessert.


A nice ending to a fabulous day with friends from afar. Now off to the Eiffel Tower and Sacré-Cœur...