Two weekends ago, Kyle and I celebrated my first birthday in Paris. It was so much fun! Kyle had a whole weekend planned.
Friday, May 20th, was my actual birthday, so Kyle met me on his lunch break at our favorite little cafe. I had the most amazing afternoon strolling around the city by myself while I waited for Kyle to leave work for the day. (Sometimes I really hate not having a job. Most times though, it's pretty dang cool to be a lady of leisure! What the heck will I do when we step back into reality??)
Kyle ended up having to stay at work until about 9:30, but our reservations for dinner didn't have a time set, so we just headed straight to the restaurant when he got home. We ate at a tiny restaurant on the street behind our building called Chez Lucie. It was AWESOME. The chef is such a character and makes visiting Chez Lucie worth it even if the food was terrible. Good news though, the food was NOT terrible. The chef/owner is from a French Caribbean island called Martinique and the cuisine is Creole/Caribbean. Totally different than any of the French restaurants we have been frequenting, but a nice surprise!
We were sitting at the last table and that's the front door. Super small, right?!
Mon Amour
"It's my birthday and I'll wear my ruffly, polka-dot dress if I want to" :)
We were so sleepy after dinner (and the shots of rum the owner kept pouring for us), so we called it a night and got our beauty rest for the full Saturday Kyle had planned.
Bday Bash Continued
On Saturday we attended a wine and cheese tasting Kyle set up. It was in the basement section of a really cool old building. It used to be the wine cellar for the wealthy family that owned the building hundreds of years ago, so the wine tasting company carried on the tradition. I brought my camera hoping to snap some good photos of the building, but I realized it was dead when we got there. Major bummer. I pulled these photos from their website to give you a rough idea...
After the wine tasting, Kyle took me to see a one-man show called How to be Parisian in One Hour. The creator of the show thought it would be really funny to put on a show in Paris (spoken in English) that makes fun of all the Parisian stereotypes (he makes fun of Americans, too, of course). He was right, it was hilarious. He said he tried for two years to get a theatre to let him perform his show with no luck (Parisians aren't big fans of being made fun of in English, I suppose). Someone finally picked up the show and he's been selling out for a couple years now. He is about to do tours in Europe and America, in fact. If you haven't spent time in Paris it may not hit home. If you have, you will find that it is spot-on, as we did. Loved it.
To cap the night off we went to a jazz bar called Caveau de la Huchette. It was like stepping back in time. The place has been around since the 1500's. The street level is a bar and lounge while the basement level is where the bands play and people dance their little hearts out. I'm pretty sure everyone there was a professional swing dancer. Needless to say, Kyle and I sat along the side of the dance floor and watched, but even just watching them was a blast! I couldn't get any good pictures, but here are a couple from their website and the link is pasted above.
It seriously looks like a cave or a dungeon.
They definitely weren't dressed like this, but this picture gives you an idea of the energy in the place. They were all such great dancers! It was as if they choreographed their moves.
To complete our weekend o' fun we picnicked in a park we had never been to before. It's called Buttes Chaumont and it is in the 19th arrondissement. It makes you feel like you have left the big city all together. There are waterfalls, lakes, bridges, English and Chinese gardens, and a monument modeled after an ancient Roman temple on top of a hill in the middle.
The Roman Temple.
Peeps soaking up the Paris rays.
My boo
Sweet running attire. The front of it had "Everlast" splashed across it. I think he was a model for Gold's Gym back in the day.
Then you walk right out the gates and back into city life.
Finally...
Julie was sick and couldn't join us for any of the fun weekend festivities :( She is so super sweet though and treated me to a delicious birthday lunch when she was feeling better. It was so nice of her and I had a great time!
I don't know what my appetizer was, but it was delicious and I would totally order the mystery balls again!
My seared tuna main course.
My Dessert: Raspberry tart with lemon flavored ice.
Julie's Dessert: Chocolate cake thingy with caramel inside and something green on top.
So good!
I promise, I do a lot of exercising and city-walking to work off all these yummy meals.
Overall, I had one of the best birthdays ever! Complete with the best gifts, activities, wonderful fiance, messages from home, time with new friends in Paris. Thanks to everyone for making it so special!!!
Bisous!
Maygan
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