Monthly Archives: November 2012

Flashback Friday – Brief Stop in Budapest

16 Friday Nov 2012

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In 2008, Mr. Selfish and I took a trip to Budapest and Prague. We started in Budapest and then took a train to Prague. Budapest was a delightful city where the currency is cheap and there aren’t many tourists.

In particular, Mr. Selfish and I loved the Hungarian baths and the Budapest opera house. No photos were allowed in the baths, but they were grand and relaxing. As for the opera house, Mr. Selfish and I purchased tickets for a private booth right next to the king’s box for very cheap. We never had such great seats for the opera, but it was too bad that the opera was in Italian and the translation was in Hungarian. I couldn’t tell what was going on most of the time!

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The Night Life in the 18th Arrondissement

15 Thursday Nov 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I lived only two metro stops away from the red light district of Paris in Montmartre. Of course, we walked around to enjoy the ambiance. Moulin Rouge also happens to be one of my favorite movies of all times. I still love the elaborate singing and dancing sequences with the shaky cam feel.

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Day Trip to Parc Asterix

14 Wednesday Nov 2012

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I fondly remember the cartoons and comics of Asterix and Obliex from my childhood. When I learned that there was a Parc Asterix near Paris, I knew that we would check it out.

The price of the park was 24 euros per person if purchased 7 days in advance. This advanced purchase saved 9 euros per person. Although I thought this was a good deal originally, the day that we chose ended up having horrible weather. It was in the 40’s and literally hailing right before we left for the park.

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Gypsy Jazz and Steaks in the 19th Arrondissement

13 Tuesday Nov 2012

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While we wandering all over Paris, Mr. Selfish and I kept seeing ads for a Django Reinhardt exhibit. Since Mr. Selfish loves gypsy jazz, I tracked it down online and discovered that the exhibit was in the Cité de la Musique, which is in the 19th Arrondissement. Since there isn’t much going on in the 19th, I figured we would check out the exhibit. Plus, on Friday and Saturday evenings, there is live jazz.

The Django Reinhardt exhibit was very interesting. It chronicled his life and set up sound booths whereby you could listen to the music that Django created during that era. We also enjoyed the live jazz session.

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The 7th Arrondissement: The Eiffel Tower

12 Monday Nov 2012

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As many times as I’ve seen it and from assorted angles and different times of the days, I never tire of admiring the Eiffel Tower. This post is dedicated to the Tower.

I love it on sunny days. The United Nations bears in the front are fun. Each country that is recognized by the U.N. has a bear. I posed in front of the Vietnam bear.

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Père Lachaise Cemetery in the 20th Arrondissement

11 Sunday Nov 2012

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In my effort to visit every arrondissement in Paris, I knew that we would go to the Père Lachaise Cemetery in the 20th Arrondissement. As far as I could tell, there isn’t much else out there, but the cemetery should be enough of a draw itself.

This was our second visit to Père Lachaise. Mr. Selfish and I had been in 2006, but we didn’t have a map so we just wandered aimlessly around. This time, we downloaded a map onto our phone and were able to find all of the famous graves. I would recommend downloading or purchasing a map of Père Lachaise. It is a very large and hilly cemetery with over 1 million bodies buried there (this number does not include the number there was cremated there). You will have a very difficult time finding any graves in particular if you don’t have a map.

Nevertheless, if wandering around aimlessly is your goal, this is the place to do it. There are so many places to admire and ponder, and it was particularly beautiful with the autumn leaves.

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The Lovely Luxembourg Gardens in the 6th Arrondissement

10 Saturday Nov 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I enjoy wandering around the 6th Arrondissement, particularly the lovely Luxembourg Gardens. The park is in the garden of the Senate, which is actually located in the Luxembourg Palace. We found a day when it wasn’t raining and headed over to the gardens.

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Flashback Friday – Miami!

09 Friday Nov 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I lived in Florida for over eight years. We went to Miami twice during that time. During our first trip, it was August and crazy hot. As a result, our second trip was during February. Not only is the beach not crowded but I find it much more tranquil in cooler weather. I don’t have to swim in the beach to enjoy it.

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Hanging Out in the 5th Arrondissement

08 Thursday Nov 2012

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Other than the Panthéon, Mr. Selfish and I decided to check out the other areas in the 5th Arrondissement. First, we went to the Jardin des Plantes, which is the main botanical garden in Paris. There are several museums and a small zoo, but mostly we just wandered around and enjoyed the great weather.

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Monet’s Water Lilies in Giverny

06 Tuesday Nov 2012

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While in high school, I became fascinated with Claude Monet. To this day, I still adore his paintings. The brush strokes and the amazing colors mesmerize me each time. I knew that we had to take a day trip to Giverny while in Paris. Monet lived in Giverny from 1886 until his death in 1926. Of course, he painted his famous series of water lilies in Giverny.

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Bastille in the 11th Arrondissement

05 Monday Nov 2012

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Prior to taking this trip, I started following David Lebovitz’s blog. He is a renowned pastry chef, who worked with Alice Waters and has published several dessert books. Mr. Selfish and I have taken to heart many of his recommendations. I also read his book “The Sweet Life in Paris,” and discovered that he lives in the Bastille area in the 11th Arrondissenment.

When Mr. Selfish and I decided to explore Bastille, I secretly hoped that we would run into him at the market perusing the fresh veggies. We had no such luck, but I still enjoyed the Bastille area. Of course, the Opera Bastille and the iconic Bastille memorial is in the 11th Arrondissement. The selection at the Bastille market was also quite diverse.

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More Musées in the 8th Arrondissement

04 Sunday Nov 2012

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After going to the Grand Palais on Nuit Blanche, I knew that I also had to go to the Petit Palais, which is across the street from the Grand Palais in the 8th Arrondissement. We also wanted to go to the Musée Cernuschi, which is an Asian art musée in the 8th. As a bonus, both of these musées are free.

The Petit Palais is definitely a worthwhile musée to visit. The building was built in 1900 for the Universal Exhibition. Today, it houses the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts. The Petit Palais has an outside courtyard and garden, in which you can drink coffee and have snacks. The first floor of the Petit Palais had interesting pieces and sculptures. There is also a painting by Monet of the Seine.

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Montmartre Wine Harvest Festival in the 18th Arrondissement

03 Saturday Nov 2012

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Since 1934, Montmartre has held an annual Wine Harvest Festival at which wineries from all over France showcase their wines. Vendors also sell a variety of delicious food. Mr. Selfish and I knew that we had to attend this festival that was just outside our front door.

We learned a neat piece of trivia – Montmartre only has one functional winery left. It is a small winery that only produces about 2,000 bottles of wine a year and is only about 1,500 m2 (around 5,000 square feet) in size. Nevertheless, this winery is sufficient to warrant a four-day festival and a firework show. Due to the fireworks being set off right in front of Montmarte, the front entrance was blocked off, and everyone was forced to walk on the right-side steps.

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Flashback Friday – A Quick Trip to Pittsburgh

02 Friday Nov 2012

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In May 2011, Mr. Selfish and I took a quick trip to Pittsburgh for his sister’s graduation. Mr. Selfish attended Carnegie Mellon for his Master’s but he never really did the touristy things while there. We took care of that in a short weekend trip.

First, we walked around downtown and went into the Cathedral of Learning. It was built in the Late Gothic Revival style. Also, at 42 stories, it is the tallest educational building in the western hemisphere.

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