DAY 13: Monet, Manet, Money…

Rainy and cold again… ahhhh January. Dropped into PAUL’s across the street for a croissant and cappuccino- melt in your mouth goodness. The market was abuzz…

Got on the Metro to Clignancourt, where the biggest flea market in Paris takes place. The first few hundred stalls are sneakers, knock-off designer bags and baggy jeans… but if you survive the oogling and “S’il vous plait Mademoiselle,” you venture back into the depths of wonderfulness. The sole reason I’m determined to make millions (besides paying off THIS trip) is to shop at the Paris flea market… to adorn my 5 homes. Stalls are packed to the brim with silver dishes, chairs from Napoleon, crystal chandeliers, lithographs from the early 18oo’s, fabrics so exquisite, you have furniture custom made to use them… and the jewelry. Oh the jewelry. Vintage Chanel, emerald leopard brooches, gold crowns embellished with rubies and sapphires, diamond rings the size of lion’s toes and special pieces hand made by local Parisians- my “score” of the day.

I started to lose feeling in my feet, and the shopkeepers were heading to lunch, so I made my way to Musee d’Orsay and decided to grab a bite myself. It was PACKED, but this is where flying solo pays off- you get to jump ahead of everyone and their whiney children.  Two American women behind me had me in stitches… I think they were trying to be Parisian- “Doris” had black hair in a big rats nest atop her noggin, with blood pudding lip liner, Jackie O’s (hiding her recent face lift), grey sweat pants (surely Chanel), riding boots and a long, black fur jacket. “Louise” was a peroxide dear, who walked like a mummy and just as she was about to say something, I realized she was trying to gain feeling in her botched upper lip- she donned a brown fur coat that swept the floor, accessorized by every gold piece of jewelry from YSL’s fall collection. When I heard a Texas accent bellow out I nearly spit my Eidelweiss Blond all over the table.

I ate a grilled chicken salad with endive, grapefruit and beets- sliced and peeled for flare. The dining room was delectable with putis and angles flying around the ceiling, a marble statue of a curvy woman in the center of the room, surrounded by crystal chandeliers that complimented the gold leaf carvings. There was an exhibit on mushrooms and acid… I mean Art Nouveau… works by Aubrey Beardsley and showcases of great album covers for The Doors, The Grateful Dead and Joni Mitchell. I loved seeing work by Degas, Renoir, Van Gogh, Cezanne and Matisse… I won’t bore you with a history lesson, but it was really something to see their work up close and personal.

It’s a good thing I didn’t make any New Year’s resolutions like no carbs, gluten, sugar or caffeine… I’ll look like a Rodin sculpture by the time I leave Paris, but it is OH-SOOO-WORTH it! I attempted walking home from the museum, but of course I got lost and had to rely on the Metro. Every storefront I passed was closed, except for my neighborhood. Every single restaurant, bakery, café, clothing store and chocolate store was open and busy. I took it all in for about an hour and sauntered back to Bourbon Le Chateau. Dinner consisted of day old baguette that was nearly too hard to eat (I learned you should eat it within 4 hours of exiting the oven- imagine what it does inside your stomach?), salami, Camembert, Cotes du Rhone and pears while listening to Madeleine Peyroux and reading another book on Paris, which I finished by midnight. 

A few randoms:

-They eat horses! Some prefer it over beef and mutton… sad.

-I had my first ass-grab of the trip… a man walking by bumped me and grabbed a handful! I thought he was robbing me, but realized he just wanted a piece! That’s the closest I’ve gotten to being hit on.  Sad.

-Free WiFi is not free. You pay between 1-5 pounds every 30 min-1 hour, depending on the place.... luckily, I made friends with a little boutique hotel below me that lets me sit in their lobby and poach...

-It’s a good thing I’m not vegetarian because they DO NOT cater to them. Obviously when you have legs of lamb and sausages hanging over piles of chickens and pate bowls.

-Concerning window décor, there has to be psychological equation for certain visual “please-er-ies” and their affects on sales. Pastries are like puppies- you just HAVE to take one home! Bakeries and hat shops look identical: they have their best “work” on display, each supported by a sturdy base with complimentary colors building north. Delicate sugared lace, cut-outs of fruit felt, silky glazes with sequin shavings- each a masterpiece, though one lasts longer and is a bit pricier than the other.

Au revoir from this bon vivant: a person who enjoys good food and drink!