Travelin' Fullers Blog: PARIS!

Ok, we have a lot of catching up to do! I thought I was spending the week in NYC with this amazing itinerary that Arlene Feen had put together for us! BUT, last night, at the magnificent Rainbow Room (just reopened in August) with its revolving dance floor and 12 piece orchestra , a waiter delivered an envelope to the table which announced that I was leaving the next day for Paris! Wow! What a surprise my husband has been working on!

So, after a feverish shopping trip to FAO Schwartz before we left New York, we made our way to JFK and the flight to Paris! We are staying at the newly opened (August 2014) Peninsula Hotel! We have truly been treated like royalty! EVERYONE came out to welcome us --including the General Manager! No detail has been left undone! Our suite is quite beautiful and filled with champagne, white roses, and cookies! What more could you ask for! The suite is ultra modern, but very easy to live in! Everything is controlled by iPads or electronic touch plates! But unlike some places that have tried to institute technology, this room really works! You don't need a PHD in electronics to survive!

My thoughtful husband had planned an early morning massage before we launched on a walking tour of Mont Martre with our delightful,guide, Katia Strepacki! She is a "guide extraordinaire" with a wealth of information at her fingertips! Mont Martre is still an artist colony of sorts, but it's also become a very exclusive, upscale place to live! While walking in the street, we encountered a talented street artist who stopped us so she could do a 10 minute chalk sketch of me! (I only wish I looked that good!). She was very nice.

As we ventured further along the street, I was set upon by a "gypsy?" ( a guy dressed as a woman fortune Teller) who proceeded to "read my palm" with extraordinary accuracy! He knew the name of our first dog, how many children I had, my granddaughter and where we had recently Traveled! (Quite well informed). At the end of my palm reading, he gave me a necklace with a small key on it. The key to the city of Paris.

After visiting the Basilica, we ventured into a famous square in Mont Martre where a young man appeared calling my name! (He looked remarkably like the woman gypsy who had given me the key.). He handed me a wrapped package. Behold, it contained a locked wooden box that my key magically unlocked. You can read the message inside the box in the photos below. After that, surprises were still awaiting me! We entered the famous meeting place in Mont Martre called the Maison Catherine! It is one of the original bistros. AND, we learned the origin of the word "Bistro"! It is a Russian word that means "quick". It came about when Prussian soldiers (who were not allowed to have alcohol) rushed to the outskirts of the city (Mont Martre ) to get a drink. They would rush into a "saloon" and say, "Bistro! bistro," asking for a quick drink! Thus came about the name for the small cafes that served liquor in Paris!

But I digress! One more surprise awaited me! In the Maison Catherine, (a famous meeting place for the artists of Mont Martre ), what should magically appear but about 30 beautiful red roses! My husband has outdone himself in the romance department! Take note, gentlemen!

We topped the evening off with dinner in the Roof Top Terrace at the Peninsula Hotel-- a restaurant with a magnificent view of the city and a spectacular view of the Eiffel Tower! More adventures tomorrow, so check back!