As usual, the best moments were the serendipity. The "oh let's see my old hotel" turned into a jazz night in the lounge of a different hotel, Hotel D'Aubusson, complete with vocalist and pianist. At the end of the lovely concert, we found some late night snackage at a lovely Oyster Restaurant we passed by. "BEST TACO BELL EVER"! In seriousness, though, Oysters from Normandy the size of your HAND, toast with thin sliced "white bacon" (pork belly) and pink peppercorns. And champagne. Of course. Opium, La Cabane is a must go back location!
The kids found that Lime scooters were the best way to zip and zoom through the city, while we adults managed with Metro, Uber and cabs. The shopping in the Marais district is the bomb diggity, from Chanel and Gucci to hipster second hand stores, they had it all. I still love Kusmi Tea.
Pick any bakery, but look for the ones with "awards" on the windows, for the best breads and pastries. We also recommend the house red anywhere, because there truly is no such thing as bad wine in French restaurants. We found an amazing restaurant with delicious "tapas" like small plates on this trip, and terrific mosaic tile work because it used to be a giant water storage tank. Roxo Les Bains Paris. https://lesbains-paris.com/
Make sure you get some Euros and look for your local street markets, market days change depending on the neighborhood, but if you're there on a weekend, go see the giant Parisian Flea Market, it's got an incredible restaurant in the center. Chez Louisette looks like a Christmas Tree exploded, but it is old school French singers to live musicians in a cramped space. You must order food, no "drinks only" is allowed. Fun!
The museums are amazing, but my favorite is the Rodin. There's an outside statue garden and coffee shop, so if you like walking outside, this one's for you. Another must see is the view at night (on the hour light shows, too) from the Trocadero Metro stop of the Eiffel Tower. Make sure you time it right to see the light show. And if you love museums, make sure you do them all, more museums than you can ever visit in one visit. The Louvre alone takes days. We love the Musee D'Orsay for it's vast impressionism displays. The Musee de l'Orangerie if you love Monet.
We still have the Giverney gardens to visit sometime in spring for a full picture of Monet's work, but I've now seen the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, swoon, drool, smile.
