Exploring the Left Bank

Tuesday we set off to wander the left bank & find a few places we had missed on previous visits. Our first stop was Saint Germaine des Pres district. This area is lined with wide boulevards, upscale art galleries, famous cafés, designer boutiques, restaurants, and a fine selection of museums. We spotted the famous Cafe de Flore & decided to return after our walk for their famous hot chocolate.

Our next stop was Luxembourg gardens to locate the Medici Fountain we had missed on our previous visit. The fountain was built in about 1630 by Marie de' Medici, the widow of King Henry IV of France and mother of King Louis XIII of France. Since our visit to Florence in 2011 Medici history has been of interest to us. Our timing was perfect as we were able to take cover from a rain shower under the canopy of trees surrounding the lovely fountain.

Once the sun reappeared we headed for the beautiful Pantheon, which was modeled on the Pantheon in Rome. The Pantheon was originally a church but it's now a mausoleum containing the remains of distinguished French citizens. At present it it undergoing renovations & although visitors can still visit we are unable to climb up to the top of the dome so we decided against joining the queue to enter.

We continued on to the famous Latin Quarter, a lovely area of narrow winding streets which almost makes you feel you have stepped back in time, until you notice the cars trying to negotiate the very tight corners. We saw one small car have to mount the curb & make a few attempts to get around a particularly tight bend. The Latin Quarter is home to the Sorbonne University. The area gets its name from the Latin language, which was once widely spoken in and around the University since Latin was the international language of learning in the Middle Ages.

We came across the permanent street market in Rue Mouffetard but unfortunately many of the stalls were closed today. Even so it was still a great place to explore. It is amazing to see the boulangeries (bakeries) & fromageries (cheese shops) display cabinets spill out onto the streets. Paris certainly loves its markets.

We then made our way back to the Boulevard Saint Germaine to enjoy our reward of hot chocolate at Cafe de Flore, after walking around 16 kilometres. It was served in silver jugs which contained 2 teacups of chocolate & was delicious. Now we have to try the famous Angelina's 'African' hot chocolate to compare.....someone has to do it.

Wednesday we decided to do the Palais Garnier, Paris Opera House tour as Paul didn't go in 2011. The building, which inspired the Phantom of the Opera, is very grand inside & out. We arrived at the opening time of 10am but it wasn't open so we thought it may not open on Wednesday.

Our next destination was to Galeries Lafayette an upmarket department store to see the beautiful stained glass dome which was installed in 1911. After enjoying the dome we decided to have a look at the beautiful items available for purchase. On my previous visit we were totally ignored by the staff but were amazed that we were actually offered service. We were even more amazed to find some clothes which were of comparable pricing to normal retail stores but many items cost much more than our return flight to Paris.

Since Galeries Lafayette includes an Angelina's restaurant we took the opportunity to try their hot chocolate. The waiter with the typical French aloofness ignored us at first & then finally acknowledged us & showed us a table. Despite his lack of welcome he was the most efficient waiter we had encountered. He returned with our order in a matter of moments & cleared other tables as soon as they were vacated. Most of the wait staff we have observed here in France don't rush at all.

The verdict on the hot chocolate, Angelina's was like a very smooth melted thin ganache. Much too rich for our taste & left us feeling rather sick. Lunch was certainly out of the question, even for Paul.

On our way out we found the gourmet food department which we both enjoyed exploring. The range of foods including cheese, spices, small goods, pastries, cakes & chocolates was amazing. Parisians are really spoilt for choice.

When we left Galeries Lafayette we saw Palais Garnier was now open (French time keeping is a bit laid back) but couldn't face the queue. We headed back to our apartment for a green tea & a relax before making our way to the Petit Palais hopeful being midweek we could get in. No luck, off course, we could have joined the queue but estimated it would take a few hours to get in & it was already after 2.30pm.

Instead we opted to check out the small market behind our apartment & then head to Tuileries & enjoy the sun. Sitting in the garden enjoying watching the world go by was a lovely way to end the day.