Saturday is a main street market day in Paris, with many farmers and cheese makers bring their goods into the city to sell at different markets. Our plan for the day was to visit a few markets, and I had searched out a few different kinds of markets--each unique in their "flavor" and goods sold. We had our Metro route all mapped out, and off we went--another early start, as some markets only run until noon or 1:00.
Our first market--the Porte de Montreuil Market, a "flea market" with second hand goods, furniture, bric a brac, clothes, and a separate covered area with vendors selling very interesting ethnic food. Or so the book said........
Hmmm---it was interesting, to say the least. Very crowded, a jumbled maze of narrow alleys with tables piled high with used (!!) clothes and shoes, electronics, etc. We never did find the interesting food section of the market. Needless to say, we didn't spend a lot of time at this market. Sorry, no pictures of this one--didn't feel like we should take our camera out--enough said!
Ok--so much for that guide book description! We were seriously hoping the next market was better.
We found our Metro stop, and were off to explore the Marche Beauvau. We walked up the Metro steeps to the street and we knew right away that this was more to our liking! It was a charming neighborhood, full of great shops. We were a little bit lost, so we pulled out our trusty map, and must have looked very confused. An elderly French gentleman stopped to help us, and even though he spoke no english, and we speak no french, we managed to understand each other. What a nice, helpful gentleman!
Finally we found the market, at it was wonderful. Full of beautifully displayed fresh vegetables and fruit-some that were new to us. I have never heard of mirabelles, they look kind of like a large yellow cherry, and are sweet and delicious-we had one in a pastry. There were also some vegetables that were different than we get at home, the artichokes look quite different--they're purple! And those haricourt vertes--yummy!
We've bought them twice to fix for dinner.
Here is a picture of the main market street, and a few close ups of the fruit and vegetables, the market is two blocks long, on both sides!
There are also several flower vendors at the market, and their displays are wonderful! There are cut flowers and potted plants galore--just a riot of color.
There is also a "brocante" area in this market--which means used goods in french. Of course, I strolled around looking at the antiques, etc., but didn't buy anything. I;m a little worried about my suitcase getting too full.......
We found the covered , permanent part of the market. There were butchers, cheese shops, and a wonderful shop selling olive oil from big barrels, many kinds of delicious sounding mustard, pates, gourmet salts, and many spices. We spent more than a little time and euros here--it was a great shop. Just look at all those goodies waiting for us to take them home:
Now it was time for our daily sidewalk cafe lunch, and since we liked this neighborhood, we found a lovely cafe and had a nice baguette sandwich for lunch, and of course a cold beer!
What to do for the rest of the afternoon? We decided we would visit a shopping mall to do some souvenier shopping. The mall we found was not too interesting, but there was some pretty good people watching! Next on our list--the old Parisian department store-Bon Marche. It's pretty high end and fancy, we enjoyed strolling around and gasping at the price tags--but really didn't see much that we couldn't live without.
So back to our apartment, time to get ready for our evening out. Tonite we were going out for our anniversary dinner. We had been checking out menus at many restaurants in our area, and had chosen a nice little bistro with a great menu--the Bistro du 7 eme. We walk past it every day on the way to our Metro stop, and it's always full, with a waiting line! We thought this was a pretty good sign, and we were right!
We were both quite adventurous in our choices-- for the appetizer David had the escargo, and I had foie gras. Both were delicious. Our main course was Beef Bourguignon for David, and veal kidney in mustard sauce for me. Again, just wonderful. For desert, creme brulee and chocolate mousse. It was a lovely dinner with good wine, great service--but most of all a very special evening with my sweetie. There is nothing like celebrating an anniversary in Paris!
A lovely arm in arm stroll back to our apartment--another perfect day in Paris. I can only say that for two more days. We'll be sad to leave, but we have new adventures ahead of us!
Tomorrow--The Palace at Versailles!
Happy Anniversary to the "Most In Love Couple" so happy that you are able to spend it in Paris!
ReplyDeleteThe door of the day could be my favorite- I do say that every time, huh? Sorry your precious time is coming to an end there but the next stop will be just as interesting...can't wait :)