Paris, je t'aime

Paris.. city of lights... fashion capital of the world... and where Big finally told Carrie she was the one. I had been dreaming of visiting Paris since I was a little girl (not really but it makes it sound more magical) and it was everything I had expected and more. My dear friend Renaud, world famous rockstar and "the next George Clooney" as he says, invited me to come stay with him in his charming flat in in a small suburb right outside of Paris...

I finished unpacking and met Renaud and a few of his friends at a cafe down the street, however, after an hour of trying to join in the conversation with no success, I felt a little out of place. I'm not positive, but it could have been the fact that they were speaking french and "Bonjour! comment tale vous?" can only get you so far. To be honest I rather enjoyed just sitting there listening to them and sipping on my cappuccino. The first night out I was dying to see the Paris streets, taste the authentic French cuisine and drink fabulous French wine... so what did we do? We went to a Canadian pub for beer and cheesy fries of course!! I was perfectly fine with that though seeing as it was the only place around showing the playoffs...

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The next day I woke up early and set off to see the sights! Now most people would choose the obvious historical landmarks to flock to, the Louvre...Champs De Elysee's...Notre dame, but not I. Being the traveler that I am, I did my research and discovered a little unknown gem called..... The Eiffel Tower!! Haha.. ok so I am a total tourist, but it is a must see, simply magnificent....

 After visiting all the other previously mentioned landmarks (all just as breathtaking) I decided to spend the next few hours sitting at a beautiful little cafe overlooking Saint Michel. I stayed there for three hours, THREE hours, i drank four cups of coffee and smoked half a pack of cigarettes and just people watched. I drank, I smoked, drank, smoked... its a vicious circle really. I would begin to shake from the caffeine, so I would smoke a cigarette, which would in turn make me crave more coffee. Cigarette, coffee, cigarette, coffee. In between my caffeine and nicotine induced highs... an older French gentleman sat next to me and we ended up chatting for an hour. Turns out he was a film director who had a new documentary premiering at a local film festival. Oh... and he happened to be best friends with Sharon Stone.

I spent the rest of my time wandering the streets, completely in awe of my surroundings, Paris is truly one of the most beautiful cities in the world...filled with exquisite architecture, delicious cuisine and passionate people. I am already planning another trip for spring! Next up is Amsterdam... and we all know what happens there :)

xoxo

Danielle