If you'd recognised the pic in my earlier post, you'd know I was in ... Paris!
We took the Eurostar from London to Paris, and were pleasantly surprised to be offered by our very friendly Eurostar customer service attendant first-class tickets which for some strange reason were cheaper than the standard-class tickets!
Snapped this pic of the Eurostar trains at the Kings Cross St Pancras Station in London ...
Our arrival approx 2 hours later at Gare Du Nord, Paris ...
Our conveniently located lil hotel: Mercure Paris Opera Garnier ... just 5 min walk from Printemps and Galeries Lafayette ...
ok ... before we go on ... I must first say that this was a trip for me to silence my shopaholic desires which have been growing increasingly louder over the last ten years .... so brace yourselves for just a dab of culture/sightseeing, and mostly pics of shops and shops and shops and shops .... :)
The charming courtyard near the breakfast area in the hotel ...
A view of Printemps from a passageway linking Printemps Homme (Men) to Printemps Femme (Women) ....
Galeries Lafayette ... just next door to Printemps .... two of the largest dept stores in France just minutes away from our hotel ... what more could I ask for? :) :) :)
As we had had only a light meal courtesy of our Eurostar first-class tickets, we decided to have some lunch, and stumbled upon this charming little creperie - Crepes City ... I was drawn to delicious looking savoury crepes that some French customers were having on the sidewalk outside ...
We ordered some Orangina (I know! How French can that be, oui?) ...
And shared an absolutely delicious galette with jamon (ham) and emmentel (cheese) ... it sounds oh-so simple, but it tasted simply wonderful! The ham was divine ... and I'm not one who cares for ham much, but this was really good! Together with the melty emmental cheese .... ahhhhhh .....
We then continued our journey in search of more shopping .... and as we walked, we came upon street after street of gorgeous old buildings, all beautifully preserved! To anyone going to Paris for the first time, I say, don't take the trains if you can help it - walk! walk! walk! Take in all the beautiful sights along the way ... the tree lined boulevards, the charming courtyards you can peep into, the stylish Parisians, the beautifully decorated shops, the endless number of shops lining practically every street .... sigh ...... no wonder people say Paris is such a romantic city!
This pic was snapped along Rue Tronchet (I believe) ...
Place de la Madeleine
By pure chance, we found this gourmet food store, Hediard, which I'd read about in my Taiwanese guide book (incidentally, for anyone who can read Chinese, do check out the Taiwanese guide books - they are filled with beautiful pictures of everything recommended, so you know pretty much what to expect) ...
And directly opposite, was Fauchon - another famous gourmet food store in Paris!
A little further down the street, we found a veritable treasure! Laduree!!!!
I'd heard tons about Laduree - I was told the flagship store was beautiful and charming, and the macarons were divine - so it was a definite must-see for me this trip. But the queue was so long, and we had just had our lovely galette, so we vowed to return to Laduree (and visit the flagship store on Champs Elysees) before we left Paris ...
Just look at those sumptious towers of macarons!
And the exquisite packaging!
While on cakes and breads and bakeries, near our hotel, we also found "Paul". My first exposure to "Paul" was in Taipei, where there was big hoo-hah when the first store opened. Based on Taipei's "Paul", I was expecting "Paul" in Paris to be equally as impressive, so I was surprised to find that it was actually a rather common boulangerie which could be found on practically every street corner ...
Finally, after Laduree, and a short walk later, we found our destination
- Rue du Faubourg St Honore!!!!!
Oooooo! The mecca of the most famous French names in the international fashion world! I was so thrilled! I couldn't believe I was actually finally really here!!!! I had spent the last few years lurking around the purse forum, watching the lovely sophisticated ladies revealing purchases from the French fashion houses on this very street!
(erm ... excuse the rather slanted photo ... apparently I wasn't tall enough to take the street sign at eye level .... )
And speaking of famous French fashion houses ....
Yes! It's HERMES!!!!
Honestly, we were standing at the junction of Rue Royale and Rue du Faubourg St Honore wondering which way to go when I looked up and caught sight of the magnificent horsemen waving his signature Hermes flags/scarves in each hand, and I just knew! Hermes!!!!
This was a picture I'd seen so many times on Maitai's blog! I think Hubby was stunned that I could tell that was the street when we'd never ever been here before! Hahahaha ....
Here's the Hermes shop in its full glory ...
They had the most elaborate window display ... recreating almost like a forest in autumn ... with Hermes accessories (like bags and china) scattered throughout ... wow ....
(apologies for the poor pics ... it was difficult to take pics without the reflection of the street ....)
Views of Rue du Faubourg St Honore ...
In true keeping with the Italian Prada style, a lavishly decorated Prada store on Rue du Faubourg St Honore ....
Christian Louboutin boutique! Sadly, I couldn't afford anything here ...
Towards the end of the street, we found a little crowd gathered outside this distinguished residence ...
When the gates opened, we could see a magnificent entryway with a sparkling chandelier! Who could this belong to? French President Nicholas Sarkozy of course! (naturally, it's no small coincidence that his wife, Carla Sarkozy is an ex-supermodel who is known to be extremely fashionable, and is oft seen toting designer bags from this very street! Nice!)
Beyond Rue du Faubourg St Honore lies Place de la Concorde ... an impressive square or crossroads where three main roads converge. Here, elaborate street lamps, fountains and obelisk can be found - all built to honour King Louis XV...
A view of Champs Elysees and the Arc de Triumphe from Place de la Concorde ... simply stunning ...
A glimpse of the famous Eiffel Tower ... also snapped from Place de la Concorde ...
And on one side of the Place de la Concorde lies Jardin des Tuileries ... one of the most famous gardens in Paris as a result of its proximity to the Louvre - one of the most famous museums in the world.
One of the many beautiful statues around the Tuileries ...
Unfortunately, by the time we got to the Tuileries, it was closing time, and we couldn't get in ... but I did manage to snap this gorgeous pic of Place de la Concorde from the ground of the Tuileries just before we were chased out of the gardens ...
Since the shops were all closed, and we were tired from all that walking, we made our way to this streetside cafe (Triadou Haussmann) which was bustling with activity ...
I ordered the Duck Confit ....
Hubby had the salmon ...
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