The glass “cage” pyramid is a buzz kill. It takes away from the great ambiance the center court exudes and just does not go! Inside really wasn’t spectacular. I had high hopes of seeing much more originality and instead it has become a modernized conveyer belt for tourists. Saw “Venus de Milo” and “The Last Supper,” both impressive, but my favorite was “La Victoire de Samothrace.” Wind and wings are a winner- the draping across her body is sooooo beautiful and her wings and stance are poised and powerful. M and I split up and I continued on through the third salon which smelled like a Fromagerie- I felt like I was at recess and all the kids were crop dusting and running away. When you’re playing tag in front of Jesus, it means you don’t know where the hell you are and definitely aren’t appreciating what you’re looking at.
And that Mona Lisa is a real attention whore. After the 32nd Chinese family posed smack dab in front of her (keeping the flash on, which reflects off the protective glass, so you can’t even see the painting), I had to leave. Good luck finding an exit in the Lourve. I go to museums to get lost in my mind (not lose my mind), go back in time and enjoy peace and quiet. Jabbering Italians, Brits on their mobiles and screaming 1st graders offended me. I felt there was a lack of respect for the art and its home. My feet were killing me, so I found the shopping and dining hall and fell in love. Yes, my new boyfriend, “Pistachio Macaroon” and I will be very happy together. I took M one and he also fell in love, so we’ll have to fight over him.
Onto Champs Elysees where we found a Ma & Pa Brasserie with cheese, wine and a bossy book keeper that helped herself behind the bar to a cheese plate and cocktail… we decided to check out Belleville for dinner, in the north-eastern corner of Paris. When we got off the metro and started walking, I had flashbacks from the ghetto in Mexico. I felt like we were at an Arabian sausage fest where all the brides were sent away and futbol consumed every bar. After 10 minutes of brisk, unsettled walking, we took a “right” turn and found ourselves in a very cool neighborhood. Mecana was a bar we started the evening, with house-infused caramel vodka also known as liquid crack. Further down the way we found a diamond in the rough- what we both agreed was the best part of the trip thus far- "CARAVANE."
Faling in love twice in the same day is rare- this time, it was with our waitress "Sandra." If Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek had a baby together... This little fire plug from Portugal started us with mojitos and translated their Guatamalen, Thai, Indian and French fusion menu. “Can we have one of everything please?” We started with a game of chess (seriously) and “feroce d’avocat,” which when I looked it up translated to “angry lawyer.” It was avocado ground with fish and paprika with fried plantain banana fries. For dinner we shared “Tom Ka Kai”- a play off of Tom Yum soup with basil, chicken, mushrooms, red pepper and coconut milk- and “Wok de Legumes”- noodles with mushrooms, cilantro, carrots, tofu, curry and onions. This all paired terrifically with a bottle of Vouvray- by far, the best wine of the trip. We moved from a back table up to the bar (all the chairs, stools and tables are old school house furniture hodge-podged in a colorful 5-room space with great art and even better music) to enjoy espresso, cognac and Sandra. I chatted her up about places in Portugal and tied a bib around Michael’s neck to catch the drool. After we paid the bill, she said good-bye to us with two shots of “Zubrowka,” Bison Grass Vodka from Poland that tasted like cinnamon. I heart Paris.
I finally got my pedometer working- we ran/walked 15 miles yesterday! No wonder my feet hurt… one more day in grand Paris, and then off to Burgundy!
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