'Photo Shoot at Pierre Herme

 I got an invitation to a "private" visit at Pierre Herme
185, rue de Vaugirard boutique. J. who works for Pierre Herme, bought a half dozen watercolors - all Pierre Herme-related. We were going to meet, but with the Paris transportation strike and school holidays we didn't make it. As a sort of consulation prize I got to "tour" the shop and take pictures during pre-opening hours last Tuesday morning.A macaron-lover's dream non? The front door says, emotions to share.
I want to share my visit with you.Inside the rue de Vaugirard boutique is spacious.
The decor shows the hand of an architect at play - bright colors, airy, well-lite with big sunny windows. In every way different from the boutique on rue Bonaparte, which is a bit like entering a secret cave. And there was no line out the door! The ceiling is a playful use of Pierre Herme's logo.The boxes match the color of the counters. The long rectangular box holds a set of 6 macarons perfectly. I call it the "petal" box - the leaves open up like a flower. Pastries wait their turn in the wings to go onstage.

Staff checks that all are perfect and identical.

Like carefully choreographed dancers, the staff moves silently with delicacy.

Placing each pastry

like a jewel in it's setting.
The Pierre Herme logo awaits.

To go on these Millefeuille Plenitudes lined up like soldiers. Whole trays are tossed out if they don't come up to Herme's standards.

The last touch of perfection.

And not to forget the best macarons in the world!

Beautiful row after row of macarons await you. This one is the "marron et thé vert Matcha" and the green thing inside is the "crème onctueuse au thé vert matcha" (green matcha tea cream). Merci Florence.

Macarons are like balloons -
(macaron almost rimes with balloon)
Like puffs of pure joy
They take off and disappear.
But the memory lingers.
The colors..the flavors..the textures...the joy

Do you remember those lines from Funny Face?
Fred Astair: You're in Paris..
You're at the Tuilleries...
You've got balloons...
There's a sudden shower
And you're very, very happy
Audrey Hepburn: Why am I so happy?
Fred Astair: Because I say you are!
That's all you have to know.
You're happy!
Now run!

And I did.
I ran around that shop for 60 minutes taking as many pictures as possible - I was very, very happy!
Thank you J.

L'Ile Flottante

Did you have a dolls house when you were a kid?

I bought this silver tea tray on the Ile Saint-Louis at l’Ile Flottante.

And this doll's tea set I bought at the puce.

 Dollhouse memories came flooding back.

A dollhouse can be a refuge - an escape from reality.

If you happen to have an older, bigger sister, who isn't thrilled you showed up, then your dollhouse is a sanctuary.

Like Alice, you choose the "drink me" bottle.
You become very small. You hide inside your dollhouse.

Inside you can dream up anything you want. Your imagination takes off. Out of adversity comes...creativity.

This tiny shop, L'Ile Flotantte on the Ile Saint-Louis is heaven for former and current dollhouse addicts.

If you can't run over there today, take a look at their wonderous website.

Or take the Metro to the Pont Marie stop and just cross the bridge.

I still have this tiny sewing machine - the last remnant of my dollhouse. It never stitched up anything except the fabric of my dreams. Perhaps I should thank my sister ☺️

Place des Vosges

How 'bout a walk in the park?

My last morning in Paris...

I know..I know. Soon I'll be talking about my last second in Paris... Anyway I ran over to the Place des Vosges in the Marais for a relaxed walk around the parc and because I had spent my second day in Paris there with Jette and M.

For a bit of history, the Place des Vosges goes back to 1604 when King Henri IV built a Royal pavilion at the southern end of the square. It's now one of Paris' oldest squares. It's got free WI FI too if you happened to bring your laptop battery to Paris, which I did not :( Dogs are not allowed inside the park FYI. The fountain is at the center of square - all is perfectly symetrical. The fountain provides plenty of negative ions...or is it positive ions that are good for you? Whatever, it's a lovely peaceful place to come and avoid thinking about the unfinished packing back at the apartment...

The cafe Ma Bourgogne is the perfect place for lunch.

Naturally they serve the perfect Paris ice cream...

The arcades along the four sides of the park are full of art galleries etc. - fun to wander through. The Vicotor Hugo musee at #6 is free and interesting..bla bla bla

I loved this poster hanging at Ma Bourgogne. The colors are so Parisien but I couldn't find the gallery and decided it was time to run.

Here's a nibble after your hard work promenading - the BEST caramel macaron in Paris in my opinion and only a 6 minute walk away from the Place des Vosges.

You can find this macaron at Pain de Sucre on 14, rue Rambuteau 75003.

Why is it the best you ask?

Well it's filled with a ton of REAL melt-in-your-mouth caramel instead of that creamy ganache stuff. And the outer shell/coque is delicate and thin - croustillant as the French say.

So you have the contrasting crunch of thin bisquit combined with unctous yummy caramel.

I didn't just paint this baby, but I should have gone back and gotten a whole box of them.

Something to do next trip...

New York!

I'm back! I made it safe and sound without a hitch really...

Though I did have to leave some of my treasures behind malheureusement.

It was either leave the new laptop or leave a cup or two and some macarons - very difficult choice.This morning I had my usual cup of chocolat chaud in a brand new Potiron cup!

Taking an evening flight has some advantages - you get to sleep through the universally bad airplane meals, this includes AirFrance sad to say. And US customs are tired too when you arrive at 10 PM and could care less what's inside your bags. I'll keep that in mind for next trip..
CDG has a new departure lounge full to the brim with fancy shops and nothing to eat. Except for awful overpriced stuff from a Take n' Fly chain.

Bring your own sandwiches and yogurt PLEASE!
I spotted these Potiron pastry mugs in one of those duty-free shops.

I thought they were macarons and only now see they are "patisserie Religieuse" cream puffy things decorating the edges here...
I was first tempted by these Fauchon pastry mugs in the airport...
AND Fauchon matching teapot...
Fauchon matching pitchers too. They know what we want. Don't they! More macarons Please. If only macarons were so transportable and non-perishable...
Some of you have asked about the missing French Scarf post..
Thanks to excellent counsel from blogger, Anali I chose not to end up in a French prison and removed the offending post. Too many people could sue me for invasion of privacy and they would be in their rights totally. Don't worry! I've been on the lookout and will come up with another French scarf post that will not offend soon.
PS The trip isn't over till I've gone through all my gazillion Paris photographs and by that time I should be ready to return for more.
A bientot! :)