After our morning shoot, we headed back to the Marais, grabbing macarons on the way but intent on a good midday nap. When we woke, we grabbed some lunch (including the best couscous I’ve ever had) at the nearby Marche des Enfants Rouges. Fueled and fed, we had one afternoon left to enjoy Paris.
We decided to spend it in true Parisian fashion, so we did a little walking and shopping, and then headed into the 10th to explore along the canals, skip some pebbles Ameliè-style, and enjoy the beautiful day.
Some of my favorite parts of any trip are the time we spend surrounded by locals rather than tourists. It was really lovely to just sit among them canalside, and drinking wine alfresco in the middle of the day always feels so very luxurious. I was a little sulky thinking about our impending departure, but after such a wonderful whirlwind, I just wanted to stay in Paris forever.
Based on tripadvisor reviews, we had purchased tickets to cruise the Seine with Vedettes du Pont Neuf so we made our way to the dock, onto the boat, and were sailing merrily along in no time.
The tour was perfectly fine- the boat was very well kept, and the guide was knowledgeable, but we’ll skip this the next time we visit Paris. Perhaps it’s because we were already acquainted with most of the highlighted sights, or that we aren’t fond of the cattle-herd feel of group tours, but we pretty much just went in a little loop. Other than taking a few pictures, which is way more David’s jam (obviously) than mine, it was a bit boring. 
It was nice to see things from another perspective, though. And our feet certainly appreciated the respite- according to David’s Fitbit, we had walked just over a hundred miles across Barcelona and Paris in the preceding weeks.
It was nearing dinnertime when we disembarked, so we walked through the Ile de la Cite towards the sidewalk bistro table that awaited us. For my final Parisian meal, I specifically wanted a platter of French cheeses. Astier was another stellar recommendation from David Leibovitz, and I charmed the darling maitre’d into bringing the cheese platter for my appetizer rather than dessert. It was a vision of epic beauty.
So I promptly and gleefully demolished the vast majority of it. Seriously, I had room left for just a few bites of our flatiron steak and kidneys- I was fat and happy and full of cheese! We lingered past dusk, chatting with servers as they lit candles on our tabletop.
We took dessert home to our little flat, where we drank wine, packed, and prepped for the early morning TGV back to Barcelona and our return to the States that night.
loveRavayna
