A Marais Must.

So it pretty much goes without saying that if you find yourself in the Marais, the ONLY thing you should be buying (apart from a gem of a vintage bag or denim jacket) is a falafel. And the Rue des Rosiers is the place to be.

At only €5.50 its a bargain compared to say, a crepe or a panini, and you get a lotttt for your money.
In fact, I defy you not to be full after one.

Even if there's a long queue, don't be put off! It will go down quickly and you can take away and sit in a nice park somewhere.

Pretty nice way to spend your lunch hour, hey?

Sorry we're closed.

Summer, especially August, in Paris can only mean one thing....


 Although I don't blame the Parisians, the metro felt hotter than a sauna today. eurghhh. :(

Le petit dej

In an effort to resist eating too many pain au chocolat I have been trying to start my day in a 'reasonably' healthy way. Because sitting at a desk just isn't going to burn of those calorific butter/pastry/chocolate parcels of yummyness. Such a shame.

Taking inspiration from Gweneth Paltrow of all people, and her new cookbook (It's All Good), this is what I'm rustling up in the morning:

 




Avocado on Toast:
(and it is literally avocado, toast and a drop of olive oil)

All washed down with a nice mug of green tea.





I'm totally looking like Gwennie already...

Sundays are for sleeping.

Being a Sunday and the 14th of July, in true French style, not much was open yesterday. It was also a million degrees outside. Therefore, we decided that the best thing to do was to have a lie in, sit indoors and watch the parade on the TV. Good decision in hindsight. At 6pm it was off to the pretty Parc de la Tour Saint-Jacques by Chatelet to soak up the last of the rays, then off to watch the fireworks.....

I had read on the BBC website that we should go somewhere with a view over La Tour d'Eiffel, and it suggested Belleville park. So to avoid the crowds that is where we went.At first, the park seemed to be locked and we couldn't see much sign of life. Having traveled 30 mins to get there this was slightly worrying as we might miss the whole thing! But turning a corner, we found that hundreds of people were piling in the top entrance, trying to shotgun the best spot.

The only trouble was we couldn't see the Eiffel Tower... And whats the first rule of watching a firework display? Know where you're facing.           Putain.

So we just sat on the grass, with a bottle of wine and waited.

 Inevitably we were facing the wrong direction so as soon as the first explosion went off, it was a stampede to the other side of the park. But after some elbowing through the crowds the bloody TREES were in the way and all we could see were a few red sparks.... So to sum up, all we saw of the 14th July fireworks were trees and rows and rows of heads. Greatttttttt.

Well, at least we know for next year...

Paris: C'est le weekend!

So my year abroad has officially begun... How exciting!
I am currently in Paris, on a 'stage' during the week while trying to squeeze in as much of 'la vie parisienne' as I can after work.
And I have done pretty well so far considering the 6.30 am starts (as a student this is hideous), having already been to the Musee d'Orsay, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs Elysees and strolls by the Seine...
The weather has been perfect, and it's 'le 14 juillet' this weekend. I have definitely arrived at the right time.
 And as Audrey Hepburn said "Paris is always a good idea".
As it has been so pretty, I have been very happy snappy and here are some of the results:

p.s. sorry for the cliche use of Instagram but they do look prettier with a filter. #noshame.