Strasbourg - Cathedral

The Strasbourg cathedral may not be the biggest or the most famous cathedral, but it's the only one that consistently takes my breath away every time I see it.  It's tower is visible from a distance as you approach the city, but, because the buildings of the medieval city cluster closely around it, you don't see it again until you step out of a narrow path and discover it towering above you.  It's awe-inspiring.

There happened to be a children's Christmas concert when we went into the cathedral.  They sang christmas songs and re-enacted the Nativity story.




Oh, and there's a giant old clock in the corner with creepy figures that move when the bells chime.

Strasbourg - TGV

Jaron, this post is for you:

On our last day in France, we took a day trip to Strasbourg, which is on the eastern side of the country, very near the German border.

Strasbourg is about 280 miles from Paris, and in the car or a normal train, the trip would normally take more than four hours.  We didn't want to take all day getting there back, so we took the high-speed train (called the TGV).  It's a non-stop trip from Paris to Strasbourg with top speeds just under 200 miles per hour.  The trip took a little over two hours.

Strasbourg train station

Here are some clips of the countryside along the way:

Paris, Day 5 - Opera Bastille: Cendrillon

The Cendrillon that we saw performed at the Bastille Opera House tonight ranks among my favorite performances ever.  I knew I would like the music (I'd heard it a few years ago when I saw the Kirov ballet perform it), but I hadn't known what to expect from Nureyev's choreography:  He set the story in 1930s hollywood, with Cinderella an aspiring actrice, the Fairy Godmother a benevolent producer, and the Prince a dashing movie star.  It all worked gorgeously -- and dovetailed serendipitously with the early Hollywood theme from The Artist. 

The opera house itself, however, inspired a most vehement ambivalence.  The exterior and the lobbies are dreadful -- those elements of the building are indistinguishable from any unfortunate convention center, sports arena or subway stop.  The auditorium itself, however, has an vast, Japanese sci-fi feel that somehow seems to enhanced the feeling of being transported to another world while watching the performance.

Paris, Day 5 - Foodie Crawl

How should you spend your last full day in Paris?  You could (A) go shopping at the flea market; (B) cram in a few more of the must-see churches and museums; or (C) abandon your plans to do the foregoing in favor of tracking down the most delicious delicacies in the city. 

We chose option C.

Eric Kayser Boulangerie
Known for bread and pastries.  We started the morning here with quiche and pastries.

FNAC
While digesting breakfast, we stepped into a nearby FNAC and had fun in the book section.  In addition to some new French novels, I also found some translations of Spanish author Carlos Ruiz Zafon that are not available in the U.S.

Luxembourg Gardens

En route to lunch.  Lovely chrysanthemums.

Random Cafe in front of Saint Sulpice
For sustenance before an afternoon of sweet debauchery.

Pierre Herne

Delicious chocolate, but WAY overcrowded.  Also, a tad unreasonable on the credit card policy:  The rule was no credit cards for purchases under 15 euros.  My total was 14.70 and the woman absolutely refused to allow me to pay with my card -- even after I said I would pay the extra 30 cents.  Smelled to me like a trick to get people to buy more, and I told her so.  (Grrr!)  Fortunately, her colleague intervened and waived the rule.

Intense dark chocolate praline with croquants

Laduree

Like walking into a giant Easter egg.  Reputed to have the best macarons in Paris.  (I was scolded for taking a picture inside the shop.  I am SUCH a vulgar tourist -- gah!)

Chapon
To my mind, this was the winner of the sweets:  Super friendly staff and a tasting bar of chocolate mousse.  The mousses are made with sole sourced cocoa from around the world, which means that they all taste slightly different based on the growing conditions in the country of origin.  After tasting several varieties, I narrowed my selection to chocolate from Equador and Cuba -- with Cuba winning out in the end. 

Nicole Barthelemy
To keep our caloric intake up, our last stop was at a fromagerie.  The shop was closed when we arrived, with a sign indicating that it would open in half an hour.  We could smell the cheese wafting through the cracks in the door as we stood outside waiting.  !!!  Once inside, we told the guy to pick two adventurous and distinct cheeses.  We ended up with a Stilton and some uber-creamy cheese that I can't remember the name of.  We took these home and ate them in our hotel room after the ballet.  Both cheeses were very pungent and absolutely delicious.

Au Lys d'Argent
Returning to my Breton roots, we had galettes for dinner on the Ile Saint Louis the way to the ballet.

Berthillon
A peach sorbet from the famous ice cream maker as dessert.  No matter that it was cold enough to be wearing a long wool coat with a scarf and gloves.