The All of It: dispatches from another world

Bonjour from Paris. We arrived yesterday morning and, 24 hours later, are feeling almost human again. These long flights and big (9-hour) time gaps are killers, even to experienced travelers. I napped yesterday afternoon, went to bed about 10 PM and woke up at 2 AM ready to start the day. It will be better tonight, I hope.

We left Sact'o at 7 AM Wednesday on a short flight to Seattle. Both seats were in aisle 6; only the second was in Business Class.

Once you have had the pleasure of BC it's hard to think about sitting in the back ever again. But here's the problem. If you are not affiliated with Delta in any way, the cost is absolutely ridiculous. So if you want to sit up front on a fairly regular basis, encourage at least one of your children to work for an airline. Here's the menu for dinner.

But first, a little salad of roasted apples and potatoes on a bed of arugula and soft goat cheese, washed down with a lovely Pino Gris from Oregon. All of this served at 35,000 ft.

After that tasty tidbit came the lamb and a sharp and not-well-aged Tempranillo. After that, sleep on a seat that opens to a flat bed. Comfy down pillow, lightweight down blanket. Nice. And then it was almost dawn, spied out of my window.

We arrived at CDG right on time ~ 8:20 am ~ in a light rain, got stamped in, got our bags then a taxi and arrived at our apartment about 10:30. The apartment is in a very old building, up on the 3rd floor looking out on one side to a street with lots of leafy green (for the moment) trees, on the other onto an apartment building with several floors of overflowing window boxes. This pile is across the street from our bedroom.

Two bedrooms so daughter Cait can come to visit next week. Third arrondissement (Marais), two metro stops close by, plenty of shopping, restaurants, etc. It's Paris, after all.

We went down the street for dinner last night ~ www.lesvitelloni.com. Light supper, very tasty, shockingly expensive. This city is not a place to come if you plan to save money.

Yesterday's shopping provided some lovely goodies for breakfast. First, a jar of THE BEST yoghurt. Once you're done, wash out the little jar and you have an instant wine glass. I have dozens of them that I've hauled home. In the "old days" all yoghurt came in them. Now you have to hunt to find them and avoid the plastic tubs.

There's also a brand called Chambourcy but I couldn't find it. Those glasses are a bit more fancy. You know, for "premium" wine.

Mr. C went out early to the local boulangerie and brought back two really fantastic croissants ~ maybe even better than our favorites from Carton's ~ and a baguette. This bakery is owned by a man who won the annual "Best Baguette in Paris" contest and yes, he deserved it!

We walked up to the Marché des Enfants Rouges to do some food shopping and check it out.

I was very surprised by how deserted it was at 10:30 on a Friday morning Very few vendors although the restaurants were open and busy cooking up a storm for, I guess, the lunch crowd. But we found plenty of other things at various markets along the way; a roast chicken for dinner, some fruits and veggies, a bottle of pink Bordeaux, another baguette (the first having disappeared at lunch). It has stopped raining so we may go out again in a bit. Mr. C is napping on the couch ~ I napped earlier. You really can't say enough in praise of naps!

That's a wrap on the first 24 hours. Mr. C wants to Metro over to Maubert-Mutualité and our old haunt in the 5th. There's a terrific butcher shop that sells cooked pork roast and he's hankering for some of that. Plus the Moroccan olive man is at the street market with great pans of olives, garlic and mushrooms in a divine herb-y brine. If it's not pouring rain in the morning that's what we'll do. We also need to find a good street market here in the 3rd that's open tomorrow. Sunday is the Richard Lenoir market over by the "new" Bastille Opera. I know I don't have to cram it all into the first three days but as long as I'm in the neighborhood . . .