Voici Paris!

 

Burgundy, July 2023

 

Cheri,

Comment vas-tu? I write in a bit of haste, since we just arrived in Burgundy. I was in Paris a few days ago and thought of you. I hope you are well? How is your garden, and your stables? What about the horses at Chateau de C.? I trust all in good condition with your keen eye. Well, Paris was lovely, I hadn’t been in so long, I loved walking on its streets and boulevards again. We visited the Louvre in Lens first. The museum was interesting and very cleverly done. It was all arranged chronologically. So it started with Mesopotamia or something rather and finished at the late 18th century. After strolling around and some much needed lunch we drove on to Paris. We had an adorable little hotel and although there was no bell boy for our steamer trunks, we managed to get them up the stairs and to our rooms. Even though I did get stuck in the lift on my way up since the lift was less than one square metre and I was squeezed in there with two trunks! The doors blocked and I feared I was stuck in there but the doors released and managed to push one of the trunks out of the lift and go upstairs with one and sent the lift down again for the other, what a way to start the holiday. We started with a little walk and a lovely and a much needed (again) aperitivo with the boys. We had great fun, and afterwards walked over to Musee D’Orsay along the quai whilst the sun was setting, it was gorgeous. We went to the lovely Degas and Manet exhibition and enjoyed it thoroughly even though it was trampled with tourists, but what can one say in July… There were a few terribly good ones, the dead matador is a particular favourite of mine with his pale pink socks and black pumps, an extraordinary painting. I hadn’t been to D’ Orsay since 2008 I think along with my darling sister, I remeber it well since the day after we went to Versailles, so it was a treat to see it again. So many glorious paintings of 19th century scenes and of dashing people and of course the Impressionist collection. I could easily spend a day there. Most of these paintings made me think a lot of this lovely girl in know who used to live in Paris. She’d fit all those painting beautifully with her quiet elegance and her delightful dresses. After that we roamed the streets of the Faubourg St. Germain and once more looked at shops and lovely window displays and talked about Peter Watson and his Paris flat before the war. We ended up at an old favourite and one of the places where I often if not always go for lunch or supper, Brasserie Lipp. The service is always impeccable and friendly and the food delicious. I just adore the St Germain, it’s much quieter and the shops are lovely and during the day you can walk to Luxembourg. We had some lovely things at Lipp, as always and celebrated the birthday of one of our friends, all very jolly! I had a Montblanc for pudding since the Ile Flottante was finished much to my dismay but the Montblanc was divine and I adore chestnuts. The taste always reminds me of the pudding Mummy used to make for Christmas when I was little, like Nesselrode pudding. Afterwards we walked back over the Rue Bonaparte and past one of my favourites little shops which sells the most divine beauty product, thank heavens it was late at night and they were closed! We crossed the river via the Pont de Arts and walked past the back of the Louvre, sublimely lit with its imposing colonnade we stopped and looked at it for a while and then walked back to the hotel where we fell fast asleep after all that driving. The next morning we strolled along some streets and found a lovely little café where we had breakfast with some pastries and a caffe crème and walked past the Centre Pompidou, which I think is beyond hideous but the Studio Brancusi is rather splendid and if you haven’t been you should pay it a visit. Then we went to the Picasso museum which was lovely, I hadn’t been to the Marais in forever either and never been to the Picasso Museum. It was fun to see some different things, the museum was lovely and although I really only like early Picasso, it was curated very nicely and I adored the colours on the walls. Not to mention the splendid Hotel Sale, this for me was naturally the highlight of the visit and the courtyard with its splendid cour d'honeur. Afterwards to an old favourite! The Musee de La Chasse et la Nature. I’m always in awe of that little museum since its done so beautifully and the array of paintings and objects are displayed so beautifully and are quite frankly perfect. It really feels like you're in a trophy room in a chateau somewhere. They even have a little house for your Petit Prince so he’ll feel right at home there and quite frankly, not very different from your house. The way they display their taxidermied animals and specimens is truly extraordinary and the polar bear always makes me shiver a bit, he's huuuge! Next time I'll spend some more time in the Marais, there are a few museums and shops I want to see again, so perhaps we can do it together one day? I found a lovely pharmacy where I stocked up on some good beauty essentials and were then on the hunt for a good boulangerie to supply us with some lunch. We stumbled upon one with a wall covered in beautifully foxed mirrors. We bought the most delicious tuna sandwiches and cherry and cream clafoutis kind of tart. All very good, which we brought to the car with us so we could eat it on route to Burgundy. Once back at the car we packed everything and settled in nicely. As we drove through the streets of Paris I thought, as I always do of all those times past and imagined those streets as they could have been in the 20's and 30's always a wee bit magical I find. Once on the motorway we started our packed lunch and resumed our holiday playlist. We were well on our way to beautiful Beaune. It's so lovely here, but I'll write you more about Beaune later. I want to have a bath first and get ready for supper. Once again, I hope you're doing well and look after le petit prince.

With Love,

F.