Notre Dame and Galleries Lafayette

Notre Dame

Bonjour! I'm excited to talk about our anniversary trip. We had such a good time in one of our favorite cities in the world, and also in one of our new favorite cities. You might have seen some photos on Instagram, but I have many more I'll be posting soon. I really write these posts for myself to remember what we did (it's a combo of my journal and my photos). However, if you're planning a trip to Paris or Istanbul, you might get some ideas of things to do and things to eat. It's probably going to take a while to post all of them, so if you want some resources rightthissecond, I have to send you to my dear friend Stacy's new website L'Amour de Paris. More about her in a minute!

Winging over the atlantic. Almost to Paris!

We took an overnight flight to Paris. Due to mechanical problems, we left five hours late--on a flight that's only 8 hours long. So we arrived around 11 am. Our friend Stacy (Reeves) Gulledge met us at the airport and we took the RER train to the apartment she and her husband Jason shared. It was fun taking the train for us Texans used to driving everywhere.

Recharge!

Hotel de Ville

Beautiful Christmas decor in Paris. Saving the idea!

After a quick stop for French Starbucks, we walked to Notre Dame. Both Zach and I have been to Paris about four times apiece, but neither of us had ever been inside this most famous cathedral. We finally got to do it this trip, and it was totally worth it. However, I 1) only brought my point and shoot and 2) massively underestimated the temperature. Only made those mistakes once! :-) Here are some photos from Notre Dame. We felt very fortunate to visit Notre Dame in during its 850th birthday celebration.

Chandelier in Notre Dame

The ceiling is my favorite

Stunning stained glass

Love this wrought iron

Beautiful wrought iron inside

Such a colorful ceiling

View from the back

Sunset at Notre Dame

Sunset

Notre Dame

With Stacy!

Notre Dame

We didn't get to go in the tower at Notre Dame because it was closed, so we headed to Galeries Lafayette for some hot chocolate. It's a fancy department store... not like one I've ever seen before. Exhibit A: the ceiling.

Galeries Lafayette - so beautiful!

We saw some crazy shoes in this place. Would any of you wear these?

cray shoes 

Angelina's Tea Room hot chocolate and macaroons

Onward to Angelina's Tea Room in the store for some hot chocolate and macaroons. It was just the ticket to warm us up. Jason met us there, and we went shopping for a top to wear for a photo shoot Zach and i were doing later in the trip. I also got to wear my jacket and got a giant scarf from H&M.  Parisians are all about these giant scarves. It's pretty much as warm as wearing a big blanket, but it looks cooler. :-)

Trying to look chic :-)

Metro stop - all the tiles are silver!

Some delicious foie gras, my dinner of salmon and penne, our dessert of creme brulee (my all-time fave) and wine!

We went to Le Bistrot des Comperes for dinner. It was one of the Gulledges' favorite places, and we really enjoyed it. It was a great introduction to Paris.

Zach and I and our hosts Jason and Stacy