paris in december part I



Mid-December Marco and I took the train from London St Pancras  >>>  Paris Gare du Nord to spend the weekend in Paris and see the city during the Christmas season.

 

As it was a last minute trip, the Airbnb apartment we rented last time in the Marais wasn't available.  We found a great place near the Montmartre neighborhood instead which was perfect because I had never been to the Basilica Sacré-Coeur.

 

Friends Ian and Mélanie were also in town as Ian had a basketball game in Sceaux, a posh suburb of Paris.  So we spent the first night in Sceaux watching Ian play.  After the game the four of us drove through Paris at night taking in the elaborate Christmas light decorations and then found a bustling brasserie where we enjoyed wine, steak, and frites (except for the professional athlete - he opted for a hearty salad).

 

The next day we spent the morning taking in the city views from the Sacré-Coeur and wandering Montmartre and the artists' square, Place du Tertre in the 18th arrondissement.  Montmartre was once the mecca of modern art and home to Picasso, Dalí, and the like.  With it's tiny cobblestoned streets the neighborhood is full of the typical Parisian cafés you see in movies and these cafés proudly display what motion pictures were filmed at their establishments.   

 

In the afternoon we shopped the Champs-Élysées along with the rest of Paris where big name stores like Louis Vuitton, Goyard, and Nike have massive elaborate shops and store fronts. 

 

Ian and Mélanie needed to head home to Caen that evening (our recent trip to Caen here and here) so we said our goodbyes and Marco and I champagne BYOB-ed it over to the Eiffel Tower.  We sat beneath it with our mini bottles of bubbly and waited for it to sparkle at the top of the hour. 

 

For dinner we headed to the Latin Quarter for a cheap hole-in-the-wall gyro dinner.  Near the Sorbonne, this neighborhood is definitely a student atmosphere with rowdy bars - the place to go to find a GOOD cheap meal (doner, gyro, crepe, falafel).

 

We ended the night at a craft beer bar and small music venue Le Supercoin.  A grittier and quieter atmosphere than another craft beer bar we recommend, la fine Mousse, but still a knowledgeable staff and stock of quality microbrews - everything from Belgium favorites to some lesser known French and Italian breweries who are doing great things.