Au Revoir Paris

Well it's just after midnight, our plane is leaving in 12 hours, the shuttle will be here to pick us up in 7.5 hours...everything is all packed up, Grace is sleeping, and I am going to write my last blog entry for our time in Paris.. I am tired but am having travel/flying anxiety and know that if I try to sleep that sleep won't really come..
Grace woke me up just before 10 and we headed out sometime after 11...Today we were going to a Metro station in the opposite direction of the one we usually go to.. There were a lot of people out and about, then I remembered it was Saturday! The photography shop we walk by every night was actually open. I thought it was only a photography studio but I was wrong. He also sells antique/vintage old photos- he has hundreds of them.. Probably picked up at flea markets.. I started looking through them because in his window I saw one of a Boston Terrier that he had done some hand coloring on and it was fabulous (but a bit pricey).. I became mesmerized by these old photos.. Old memories of people long gone.. babies, kids, candid shots, portraits, travel photos, landscapes.. They were mostly tiny (wallet size to 3x5) but some were bigger. I then decided I wanted to buy one but which one should I buy? Of course then I decided I wanted to find a cool one with a dog or cat...this was a more challenging feat. Because then my OCD self felt like I needed to look at all of them (which was impossible) while my impatient child was bored out of her gourd. The shop is tiny.. The man set up a chair so that Grace could sit in it and he even brought her an old fashion Mickey Mouse viewfinder to look at.. (because she was busy taking self portraits of herself with her camera) Then he offered to take her picture "As a gift".. He used an old fashioned camera that takes 4 pictures and they print out on one sheet (like the photo booths of today but the pictures are in a square rather than a strip).. They turned out cute! I finally found a photo of a woman (who looks very French) on a balcony hugging a cat, and a photo of a retriever type dog with a child against a brick wall.. Not sure how I will display them yet but they were fun to find. After leaving the photography shop we headed to the Metro and ended up at the Trocodero station. We bought lunch from a stand- a hot dog served in a baguette that has been warmed up in a panini press.. And a crepe avec sucre (sugar)..and ate it on a bench overlooking the Eiffel Tower. Then we went to the (overpriced) Paris Aquarium. It was an interesting aquarium. They have the fish. They had some cool eels. Pretty tropical fish too.. But then they also show different films in multiple open theaters. The chairs to sit in and view the fish are red chairs in the shape of a hand. Then we came across a wall that children could paint on. The kids were having fun painting fish. That was pretty cool. The touching pool was a koi pond (and Grace loved it). Santa even made an appearance while we were there!
After leaving the aquarium I wanted to check out the Christmas Market on Champs Elysee (to make sure I wasn't missing out on an opportunity to buy any cool art or handmade stuff before I leave).. We got off at the Franklin D Roosevelt stop and it put us right in front of the Disney Store! It was packed in there and after the EuroDisney meltdown I refused to go in.. So we were walking down the street and came upon a huge crowd in front of Quiksilver/Roxy. Turns out the professional skateboarders/Tony Hawk Show was in town and they were out in front signing autographs! The crowd was mostly young French skaters and they were so excited to get their boards and posters signed...Grace was able to wriggle her way towards the front and ask to be in a picture with a couple of them (Sandro Dias and Kevin Staab)..We couldn't get close to Tony. Actually I am not even 100% sure he was there it was so crowded. But anyhow that was kinda cool and exciting. Wish we could have seen them perform- they were having the show tonight in the Grand Palais- the first time a skateboarding event has been held there...And it was probably amazing.. (I've always had a thing for skater boys ;)
So the Christmas market was kind of a disappointment for me (but not my pocketbook)..but not for Grace. She got to ride a carrousel, slide down a huge slide (twice) and play in a bounce-house park..She had a blast. We did buy a Belgian waffle with whip cream that was tasty...After the market we made our way to the Concorde station and took it to Grand Avenues..I wanted to eat dinner at the Chartier Restaurant (recommended by a friend)..We found it easily (just around the corner from the station) and got a table right away. We ordered tomato and cucumber salad and crudettes (shrimp) for appetizers, Grace ordered spaghetti bolognese.. and I had the boeuf bourguignon (beef stew).. And I am not really a fan of beef stew so I am not sure why I ordered it other than they were featuring it and I decided I should have something "French". (and I wasn't sure what most of the other stuff on the menu was but I knew I didn't want anything "tartare").. By the time we left the restaurant was literally PACKED... a group of at least 60 people came in (maybe from a tour bus?)..So I am glad we got there when we did. We briefly walked down a covered shopping passage next to the Wax Museum and found a toy shop that sold anything and everything you need for making a custom dollhouse...We took our last Metro ride home and worked on writing our 44 postcards together. Grace decorated some with custom drawings... (we had 45 stamps but Grace over licked one and it won't stick anymore).. Then we went down to the mail box a few blocks away and mailed them.. Hopefully we put them in the correct box! Since then I have been packing and organizing and cleaning (there is a hefty security deposit on the line).. I can't find one of Grace's VANS..but it definitely isn't here. So if it's not at home then I lost it in the hotel in Seatac or our hotel the first night in Paris..C'est la vie...she would have outgrown them soon anyhow (although they are the coolest shoes ever! Rainbow unicorns and all)
It definitely has been a great week in Paris.. The weather was good, the people were nice, the city is beautiful, there is so much to see and do....We should have kept a dog tally but by far the most popular breed here is the Jack Russell Terrier, followed by the Yellow (then Black) Lab.. We saw one or two Cavaliers, one Papillon, a few French Bulldogs, a Boxer, a Brittany, a Golden, some Shih Tzus and Yorkies, and a black Cocker Spaniel (for those of you who may be interested!). We can't wait to get home to our menagerie... :) Bon Nuit!