Boats, Bikes & Transvestite Hookers?

Bois de Boulogne


Kyle and I have been very active this summer and have made each weekend a little mini vacay in Paris.  We try to visit a new part of the city each time, and luckily that is super easy to do in ol' Paree!


A few weeks ago we visited Bois de Boulogne to do some hiking around, biking and row-boating.  "The Bois" is a huge park in the 16th arrondissement - it's two and a half times the size of Central Park!  There are all sorts of activities for families, active folks and slimeballs, too, apparently.


The Bois turns into one of the main Red-Light Districts in Paris at night.  So crazy!  I would never have believed this if we hadn't seen it for ourselves.  Kyle and I were on our way back to the bike rental place when we spotted a "lady" of the night (it was actually still daylight, but I guess the early bird gets the worm).  This "lady" was larger than Kyle, had on thigh-high white platform boots (and little else) and had huge fake breasts.  Fake, of course, because it was a MAN.  Stay classy, Paris.


Anyway, we weren't able to get a photo of this creature, but we captured the good, clean fun on camera :)

Getting our hike on.

Kyle was a bit rusty on the rowing at first, but once he got his groove we were moving like the wind.

I helped a lot...

I hear the bike-riding-witch theme song from Wizard of Oz when I look at this picture.  

Le Tour


We had the opportunity to see the riders in Le Tour de France finish their ride into Paris.  We stood along the Champs de Elysees (which is the street with the Arc de Triomphe at the end).  It was way cool, but also way packed.  I think next year we'll try to find a less crowded area along the river to watch the riders come in.

(if you make the video full screen you can barely see the riders whizzing by)

After Le Tour, we took the long way home and stumbled upon Saint Sulpice - a beautiful church that is probably best known by most of us as the church featured in The Da Vinci Code.  It's where that guy was digging up the floor looking for the Holy Grail.  (It's been a while, I don't remember all the deets of the movie very well.)  Wiki - Saint Sulpice

These were actually taken the following weekend when we walked past Saint Sulpice at sunset.  This is the most gorgeous time of day in the city.  The sunset creates a really pretty, almost pinkish, light on the buildings. Love this time of day!

Saint Ouen


Last weekend we visited the Saint Ouen market (or marché aux puces to the French).  It is dubbed "the most important concentration of antique dealers and second-hand furniture dealers in the world", and we could tell why. This place is a dream come true for interior decorators, antique collectors, hoarders or just anyone who likes cool stuff!  There are two separate areas to the market.  The first is a cluster of hundreds of stalls filled with all sorts of amazing things.  Kyle and I saw TONS of furniture we would love to buy (someday).  

There are also some really odd items, but all interesting!

Looking for a sculpture with a tongue ring?

Or maybe a head in a jar?

How about a million key chains?

If you ever find yourself in Paris needing Western gear and a noose, I know where to send you.  Weird.

The second part is on the swankier side.  There was everything from vintage Chanel and Louis Vuitton to amazing artwork to the most opulent furniture you've ever seen.  Most places wouldn't let you take pictures, so I had to be stealthy about the few I got.

Bisous!
Maygan