The end of summer is sneaking up on us, but we won’t be home to see it. After months of planning, the time has arrived to enjoy our vacation in France. We made some minor tweaks to the itinerary and now we’ll see how all that effort works out.

With the excitement skyrocketing, we were brought back to earth with news of a strike by the French Air Traffic Controllers on the day of our arrival. So right off the bat, we had a lingering dark cloud. There’s a Bart Simpson quote that immediately came to mind, but we tried to stay positive.

On Wednesday, the news came out that the strike had been averted as the result of an agreement that had been agreed upon by the parties. Mini high-fives were exchanged, via telephone, and we were back on track. Yay!

So with the excitement building once again, our friends arrived to pick us up to head to the airport in Toronto. We were able to book a direct flight from Toronto’s Pearson Airport to Paris’ Charles De Gaulle Airport at a good fare; couple that with a nice exchange rate and it was an excellent deal. After sliding the luggage into the trunk, the four of us set off to begin our adventure.

With the afternoon traffic, it took us a little over two hours to arrive at the car park. The shuttle dropped us off at the terminal to complete our check-in and drop off our bags. Next came the security line, which is always a pain, but it actually moved along fairly quickly.

Since we were flying business class, we were able to take advantage of the lounge before our flight. This is a really nice bonus from Air Canada. We’re not talking a couple of cookies and a coke, we’re talking full entrees complete with wine or drinks. It was delicious, but we tried not to overdo it since there is a meal served on the flight.

The flight from Toronto to Paris went well. Air Canada’s business class is nice. The seats are comfortable and the area around the seat doesn’t feel confining. The have good entertainment selections and the flight attendants were friendly and attentive.

The food service was also good. It’s a shame we had the bigger meal at the airport lounge because our meal was very good. The wine selections were also nice. No complaints from me!

As for the flight, it was smooth most of the way with just a few minutes of light turbulence. We had a tail wind, which made the already fast feeling flight be literally faster. We arrived in Paris about thirty-five minutes early.

Once we deplaned, we were transported to passport control where, amazingly, we breezed through in less than five minutes. It only took another ten minutes to gather our luggage and pass through customs. Wow!

We snagged a taxi that could take all four of us and we headed to the city. Since it was early, we were caught in some commuter traffic and the beginning of a lot of construction. It took a little over an hour, but it was nice to arrive at the hotel.

Our first hotel of the trip was located in Paris’ 6th arrondisement, the Saint-Germain-des-Prés area to be more exact. The Hôtel des Marronniers is an inviting hotel, tucked away in a courtyard off of Rue Jacob. Stepping through the entrance, you’re greeted by their garden walkway. Unfortunately, since it was a bit too early to check-in, we could only drop off our luggage.

An overnight flight and the time change does create a disturbance in the force, so the first day is always a ‘take it easy’ kind of day. We went for a little walk around the neighborhood to get the lay of the land. There are quite a few art and antique galleries in the area, a couple of close by restaurants, a few hotels and some other small businesses. We ended up trying one of the cafes – Cafe Bonaparte for a quick bite.

Though check-in time was 3:00 pm, we went back to the hotel a bit past 1:00 pm and our rooms were available, The interior is charming and the rooms, while not huge, are very comfortable and well appointed.

A little nap? Oui!

For our first dinner, we went to Le Bistro de Paris. It was just a ten minute walk from our hotel and it was an interesting place. There has been a restaurant in that location since 1848, with this incarnation having been opened in 1965 by Raymond and Michel Oliver of Le Grand Véfour.

We had a scrumptious meal featuring Duck Confit for three of us and a Chicken Fricasee, We paired it with a bottle of Givry 1er Cru burgundy that was delightful. We then ordered a Chocolate Mousse with four spoons provided by the waiter. The wait staff were all wonderful. They were very professional, but also fun and kept the evening light and enjoyable.

We took the short stroll back to the hotel and hit the pillows pretty quickly. It didn’t take long to fall asleep after the long day.

Over the weekend, the 40th European Heritage Days celebration will be taking place. I was hoping for fireworks and free wine, but alas, it means free workshops and admission to most of the museums. You may save a few Euros, but you have to deal with mobs of people, especially children. Not that there’s anything wrong with that!

Stay tuned to see how the weekend turns out.