France 2026—May 20th & 21st, Paris

May 20th Paris, Day 1

Today was a travel day. We drove the 35 minutes from Bayeux to Caen and turned in our car. I rented from Sixt and will use them again. They made picking up and dropping off the car effortless—so much better than Europcar. We had a little over an hour to wait for the 11:59AM train to St. Lazare, Paris. I intentionally gave us extra time between driving from Bayeux and catching the train to Paris just in case we got lost. We didn't get lost and could have caught an earlier train, but it was fine; we were able to relax.

At the St. Lazare station we found where to purchase Navigo Easy cards. We stood in line for 25 minutes, and the older gentleman next to us asked where we were from, and when we said Seattle, he smiled and said, "That's a pretty part of the country." We talked back and forth and found out he lived in Vancouver B.C. for 1.5 years teaching law at University of British Columbia. Today he is a judge in Paris. During our conversation he joked that standing in line was part of the civil service bureaucracy. I joked back that at least they had one that worked for its citizens.

We were finally called forward and purchased our Navigo cards and added 10 rides to each card. The exchange took less than five minutes. The young woman who took care of it was gracious, answering our questions about the best way to get to St. Michel/Notre Dame RER or Metro stop. 

She looked up the most efficient route on her phone and relayed it to us. We followed her directions, and after taking the Metro 14 line to Chatelet, we transferred to the #4 line to St. Michel where we climbed the stairs to the street level. I looked around and saw rue Huchette on the side of the building (we know where to look for street names) and walked down our street to #12. 

The directions VRBO sent us were perfect and we were in our apartment within minutes.

After we settled in, we took an orientation walk away from the Seine and Notre Dame. Our goal is to always walk opposite of the area that draws tourists. On our walk we discovered a restaurant that makes the best barbecued duck and chicken in Paris. At least that's what a guy from New York told us.

We continued our orientation walk and made a circle back to Restaurant Mirama and ordered take out. And then we headed back to our apartment and enjoyed a fantastic dinner.

Waiting in line to purchase a Navigo Easy card at St. Lazare
 train station. Normally it's crowded with people rushing about.

I took this panorama at the end of our street.

Dinner!

As I was taking this picture, a guy came out with
a take out bag and told us it's the best roast duck
in Paris. "I should know, I'm from NYC." 

At our apartment we really loved our crispy chicken and cashew
and veggie pork dish.

This is the name of our street.

We looked out our window and noticed two people sitting at Giglo
Restaurant across the lane looking at their phones instead
of looking or talking to each other. Hmm.

May 21st, my birthday, will be our first full day in Paris. We will be having dinner at Thomas and Claire's at 8PM. 

So, during the day we'll just hang out and walk the streets, maybe over to Notre Dame, and just get "lost". In other words, take another orientation walk. 

May 21st Paris, Day 2

We rose at 6:30AM to a quiet street and walked down to the Paris Baguette cafe at the end of rue Huchette and had a cup of coffee and croissant. We returned to our apartment and cleaned up and I made a reservation for 9:30AM to visit Notre Dame. Entrance to the cathedral is free, but to avoid the crowds they recommend making a reservation. I've included pictures outside and inside without commentary. The last time we were inside it was so dark and dirty that you could barely see across the transepts. The clean up after the fire is stunning and the pictures prove it.

After the visit we walked around our Left Bank neighborhood, just enjoying being in Paris. Later, in the early afternoon, we walked up to the Pantheon, down to the Luxembourg Gardens, over to St. Sulpice, into the heart of the St. Germain neighborhood, and back to our street and apartment. This was a relaxing day despite having walked 5.2 miles.

We'll rest up a bit before catching the Metro to Thomas and Claire's in Courbevoire for my birthday dinner.

Here are some pictures from our first full day in Paris.

Our apartment windows are the just above the flowers.

We didn't realize our door is right of

this Irish pub. We didn't hear a thing 

last night.

       The front of Notre Dame, obviously.

                    

There are relics in there at the center, supposedly.

West Rose Window.

East Rose Window

East Rose Window.

Our Lady at the center of the main aisle and transepts.

One last picture.

The beehive is back!

 

Sorbonne

Luxembourg Garden,

St. Sulpice (1646) is the second largest church
in Paris behind Nortre Dame.

This organ is magnificent and you can enjoy it
at 10:45AM Sunday mornings for the prelude
and then during 11AM Mass.

St. Sulpice ceiling at center of transepts and center aisle.

We stopped at a brasserie in St. Germain to rest, refresh with a beer, and do some people watching before heading back to our apartment. Thomas and Claire invited us for dinner and we'll get to see Adele now that she's home for the summer. She just finished her first year at University of Paris, Dauphin in London, and this summer, is doing an internship with Prada.

At 7PM we took the Metro (#4 St. Michel line to Reaumur Sebastopol w/ transfer to #3 line in direction of Pont de Levallois) and then walked to their home. We had a relaxing evening and it was fun catching up with Adele. After dinner where Claire prepared a delicious quiche, they surprised me with a birthday dessert. 

When we got back to our apartment I checked my pedometer and saw we had walked 7.3 miles over the course of the day. 

Adele looking relaxed on summer break
before starting her internship.

St. Michel Metro stop You can't tell in this shot
but our street is a happening place and has been
since medieval times. 

Okay, here's the translation of the plaque:

Rue de la Huchette

Its name comes from a sign attested at the end of the 13th century: the Golden Huchette. Famous from the late Middle Ages for its inns, and in the 17th century for its roasters and cabarets, it was also disreputable, and its pickpockets were notorious. There are many old houses here. At No. 14, on the corner of Rue du Chat qui Pêche, a medallion affixed to the facade is adorned with a Y, a rebus for "lie-grègues," laces used to fasten breeches and hose.

The street has regained its bustling activity of the Middle Ages with the establishment of numerous Mediterranean and exotic restaurants.