Paris - Day 3

We woke up late today....long night out. We decided to pub/bar/night club crawl last night. We ate dinner at the Buddha Bar, which was really cool. The atmostphere was really interesting. After dinner, we walked to Champs Elysees and had a martini at George V (Four Seasons). This is such a beautiful hotel, with a really neat courtyard with perfectly trimmed junipers! Once we left Champs Elysees, we THOUGHT we were going to go home...however, we ended up venturing into a club called Bar 3 Beach Club Au Bar. We walked in and it was like something from a past college spring break trip. Tiki huts, tropical drinks, etc. We walked down the stairs to the dance club section and I stepped into SAND! The basement of this club was several different caves filled with a sand flooring! VERY VERY odd! We thought that this was so funny, so we decided to walk around and find more of these interesting Latin Quarter clubs! We walked around the corner and found another one called the Carwash! HILARIOUS! These people listen to American music from the late 80s and early 90s like it just came out on the radio. Jeff and I had a blast listening to "old school" American music! Around 4:30 we made our way back to the hotel and crashed.

So this morning, we were exhausted but still got up to enjoy one of our last days in Paris. We walked over to the Jardin De Luxembourg, which is so beautiful. Jardin De Luxembourg is Paris's largest public park . It is the garden of the French Senate, which is housed in the Luxembourg Palace. These gardens include a large fenced-in playground that is popular with young kids and their parents. Adjacent to it is a puppet theatre and a merry-go-round. We also saw pony rides! In addition, free musical performances are presented in a gazebo on the grounds and there is an anonymous, inexpensive restaurant nearby, under the trees, with both indoor and outdoor seating from which many people enjoy the music over a glass of wine.

The garden is famed for its calm atmosphere. On the little pond children play with miniature boats, while the adults enjoy the various statues and sculptures. Surrounding the pond are a series of statues of former French queens.

We really enjoyed the park. We decided to get quiche from a local restaurant and eat it at the park. It was nice to enjoy the sunshine and beautiful scenery.

After the park, we walked over to Le Marais. Le Marais is considered to be one of the most chic and trendy areas in all of Paris. It is located just about 8 blocks from Notre Dame on the right bank. Very cool area, with a lot of unique boutiques and home decor shops. This area has both a large Jewish population, as well as a growing gay community. We loved how diverse it was and consider this a must see. The home decor stores were so amazing! I actually bought a beautiful vanity and mirror set for our new home. Can't wait to show it to all of you!

Last but not least, we went to dinner at Le Entrecote. Founded in 1958, this restaurant is famous for its Steak Frites Parfait.

From the Zagat France book: Addicts of a "mythic entrecote", "crip, hot frites" and "secret-magic sauce" "stand in line" (no reservations taken) and sit "on top of each other" at these "outstanding" steakhouse "staples" in Saint-Germain and near the Champs; when ordering from the "friendly but no-nosense servers","rare", medium or well done are the only words you need to know" because the "reasonably priced" beef’s the only game in town here; but "when they have perfected this so well, why serve anything else?"

I know what you are thinking....Yes, I ate meat! I couldn't pass up the opportunity to eat at this famed brasserie. We waited in a line of about 30 people to eat here. We knew it had to be good once we saw the line. It was really fun to be part of this famous Parisian eatery. I highly suggest this to anyone visiting Paris, it is an experience! http://www.relaisentrecote.fr/uk/index.html

We decided to get dessert on our own and we went WAY overboard! I got Italian Gelato (tirimasu, white chocolate, caramel vanilla, and mascarpone cheesecake) on a cone and Jeff got THREE pastries. He is HOOKED and I have the pictures to prove it! We are turning in early tonight (well, 12am). Not sure we could pull off another 5AMer.

Tomorrow is our last day and our calendar is full - dinner at Le Christine, Moulin Rouge, the Louvre, more shopping, ect. So much to see and too little time!