Day 1 – Lazy day in rainy Paris, but good news came our way.

We woke up to the sound of the rain against the windows. The weatherman predicted rain and wouldn’t you know it, he was correct this time. Oh well, we have a nice warm place to stay until it ends.

We cleaned up and then went down to breakfast. It’s a buffet breakfast, but has all the essentials. There were only a few other people eating this morning. However, more would arrive a little bit later.

We returned to our room after eating and the housekeeper was just coming up to our room. We grabbed our iPads and went back down to relax in the lounge while the housekeeper was tidying up our room.

A little later, back in our room, we decided to just hang out while waiting for the rain to stop. It was supposed to end around 12:30 pm and it actually did. The sun came out and we took that as a sign to go for a little walk.

As we are surrounded by some iconic restaurants and the Church of Saint Germain des Prés, the streets were pretty crowded. We have also come to realize that there are still some fashion events taking place. If I had known, I would have brought some dressier clothes to fit in. Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton had events that attracted some celebrities. We altered our plans and stopped for financiers at the Monoprix grocery store.

Refreshed from our walk and picking up some water and snacks, we returned to the room. Sue was feeling pretty good, but we got her leg up for a while before we had to leave for dinner.

We walked down to get a taxi to go to dinner and wouldn’t you know it, it started to rain. Luckily, a taxi came along and we only endured a few sprinkles of rain. The ride over was uneventful, but there was a lot of traffic….mostly taxis after the rain started.

Tonight we were dining at Le Violon D’Ingres. It’s a much hyped one Michelin Star restaurant near to the Eiffel Tower. We arrived a few minutes before our reservation time, but they were nice enough to seat us right away.

We started the evening off with a glass of champagne to warm up our palates. It was a very tasty Bollinger Champagne.

We began with an interesting amuse bouche. It was puys (tiny french legumes) over a mushroom crème fraîche. For our entrées, we both had a langoustine ravioli in a seafood broth, It was rich and delicious.

For our main course, we both had the sea bass filet, served with mashed potatoes and mushrooms. It was cooked perfectly and the mashed potatoes and mushrooms played off of the fish flavors perfectly.

We paired the meal with a bottle of 2020 Olivier Leflaive Puligny Montrachet. It was a perfect pairing!

Next, for dessert, I ordered the mille-feuille and Sue had a grand marnier soufflé. Then, just to make sure we were full, they produced a plate with chocolate and lemon tarts.

The food truly lived up to the hype that we had heard. However, we weren’t as impressed by the overall ambience. It was a bit on the loud side and the tables were close together. And while the service was great, it seemed a little bit like a production line. Everybody was nice, but it felt a little lacking in warmth.

We grabbed a taxi for the ride home. There were pockets of people along the way, but overall it was pretty quiet on this Saturday evening, especially along Boulevard St Germain.

As for today’s good news, it appears that the Air Traffic Controllers strike has been cancelled. We’ll have more information when it is released.

Back at the hotel, it felt good to get changed and to digest our meal before heading off to dreamland.