Breakfast in bed…

It isn’t everyday that I wake up to someone handing me a cup of strong espresso and a warm pain au chocolat, but in Paris anything is possible and that is exactly what happened this morning. But it was also early so we drank our coffees, ate our croissants, planned our day, then promptly went back to sleep. Just an hour or two more is all we need; after all, we reasoned, yesterday was busy and today would be even busier. Just a while longer to rest the weary lower extremities…is it too much to ask? Paris is a walking city and we were feeling the effects.

But by 10:00 a.m. we were leaving the apartment headed for the Musee Carnavalet; everything you ever wanted to know about the history of Paris, and some things you really didn’t care if you ever knew. Museums are like that, you have to pick and choose where to spend your time or you will end up like Tom Hanks in The Terminal or worse yet, like you checked into the Hotel California. We did enjoy the history…the prehistoric times, Paris in the 16th century, Paris in the 17th and 18th centuries, Bonaparte, Louis the XVI, the Hotel de Ville and the Bastille, fires, revolutions, rebuilding, coups, occupations, more rebuilding. We remarked at the wealth of information, so much to look at and digest and speaking of digestion, isn’t it about time for lunch and a little wine? A nice fresh Nicoise salad with some crisp Champagne and Sancerre and we were on our way…home for a nap before our 9:30 reservation. Hey, it was a late reservation…we needed a nap!

Which brings me to the second part of our day…dinner at Mon Vieil Ami. If you remember my saying that I would have to look long and hard for a dish better than the bouef bourgogne I had at Robert et Louise, I found that I had to search no farther than Mon Vieil Ami. After we split an heirloom tomato and burrata salad that could stand on its own merits, I was served a risotto with chanterelles and roasted sweetbreads that raised the bar for the best dish in Paris. We shared a profiterol, sat and finished our 2009 Gevrey-Chambertin, chatted with the Americans next to us and the Italians next to them. It was a long and leisurely dinner and at the stroke of midnight we crossed the Seine on the Pont Marie and I thought…Midnight in Paris. Perfect!