Midnight in Paris and living like Amélie

After falling asleep by 10 pm the first 4 nights, me, Melanie, Annie, and our friend Kells decided it was time to get out and see Paris after dark. We wandered around our neighborhood at first, the Rue Oberkampf/Republiqué district, just to familiarize ourselves and get our bearings. We then sat down at a café to have a glass of wine and people watch.

Watching Parisians pass by on the streets is absolutely fascinating. You see people from all walks of life...and I mean ALL. And its just a bonus that a lot of them also have cute dogs to look at like this.

I could honestly write a full entry just about the dogs I've seen here, but I'll spare you. I will however mention the lady I rode the metro with last night who was carrying her dog in a baby bjorn while he slept.

Anyways, after we had our fill of people-watching, we hopped on the metro to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. We left the café around 11--the beginning of the night on French time! And we hoped to be there at midnight because the tower sparkles for a few minutes on the hour from 7-12 each night. We got there around 11:30, so naturally, to fill the time, we waited in line for crepes du nutella. As we sat eating them, this was the view we had

We also asked a nice-looking French lady to take a picture of all of us, so here from left to right is Annie, me, Kells, and Melanie.

The next day, Saturday, we decided to visit the village of Montmarte. They call it a village, but it's used in the same sense as Greenwich Village. It's a former artistic haven situated on a hill with Moulin Rouge at the bottom and the Cathedral Sacre Couer at the top. I say former artistic haven because it's still a lively area with many shops, vendors, street artists etc., but living there has become quite pricey thus many artists can no longer afford it. 

If any of you are fans of the movie Amélie (I know my family is), then this should look familiar.

As we made our way up the hill, we took note of all the cute restaurants, stores, and cafés we wanted to come back and visit. We didn't see a single supermarket. Instead, there were individual shops for bread, cheese, meats, fruits and vegetables, etc. The whole area has a very quaint, laid-back vibe, and I have a feeling I'll be a frequent visitor. Here were a few of our favorite places we walked past.

Charming, isn't it?

Once we made it to the top of the hill, more beauty awaited. The plaza in front of Sacre Couer was crazy. People wandered around taking pictures or sat on the steps chatting with friends. Vendors roamed around offering everything from flowers to keychains to bottles of wine. A woman stood off to the side playing an accordion...there seem to be a lot of accordions here...and a young man did acrobatics on a lamppost. See what I mean by all walks of life?

No pictures are allowed inside the cathedral, but I can tell you it's just as beautiful as the outside!

View from the top of the giant hill...definitely worth the climb!

Playing the accordion.

Yes. That is a man performing acrobatics on a lamppost.

To round out an already busy Saturday, Melanie's parents took me and Annie out to dinner with their family. We went to La Closerie des Lilas, which was one of Ernest Hemingway's favorite hangouts. There was even a plaque at the bar pointing out his usual seat! It was a beautiful restaurant with incredible service and even more incredible food. I had a cod dish that came with asparagus, mushrooms, and what I'm pretty sure was a sauce made of literally sautéed artichokes and a stick of melted butter. Annie and Mel both got steak prepared "Hemingway style," i.e. cooked with bourbon. Evidently poor Ernest had a lot of sorrows to drink away.

As if we weren't already stuffed enough from dinner, her parents insisted we ordered dessert. And i guess if i'm being honest we didn't put up much of a fight. I mean who could resist this?

Homemade vanilla bean ice cream, roasted macadamia nuts, salted caramel, and whipped cream. YUM.