Friday, October 5th

The weather has stayed so great that we’re walking our feet into stumps continuing to focus on doing things outdoors.  We hadn’t anticipated this level of activity -- we’ve always thought of this stay as more “living in Paris” than extended sightseeing.  Our saving grace is that most of what we’ve been doing is not hard core sightseeing, but instead just taking advantage of the weather to be out and about.

First, the disappointing news. Emmy has not been enjoying this trip to Paris very much.  This neighborhood is much busier, both with people and motorcycles (she hates noises). So, mostly our “walks” have been only the length of our street before she’s done what she needs to do and is pulling on the leash to go home.  It only took her a couple of days to know which door was our apartment building and she'll pull us there and stop.

Up until now, the one fun excursion she’s had was to participate in the Jimmy Buffett tailgate picnic at the Eiffel Tower. We’ve been looking for other ways to get her out, both for the exercise, but also because we feel guilty being gone so much of the time…  Maxine found a Meetup group of dog owners that gathers on the lawn at the Louvre which is 2500 feet from here (good apartment location!), so guardedly we walked over. As we arrived, Emmy was greeted by 2 dogs. And there were 50 or so additional dogs playing together off leash.  We’ve found our dog’s fun in Paris!

That afternoon we did a walk of our own. First stop was the garden at the Rodin Museum. The last time we were in Paris, we went to these gardens and the weather was cold and dismal so we resolved to come back when we could appreciate being outdoors.

From there we walked across the Pont Alexander III to the Petit Palais museum, not to go the museum but to enjoy the cafe which we’d read was one of the most picturesque in Paris.

We then walked back towards home but stopped for a drink at a stationary boat docked on the Seine.  The weather has been amazing for early October!

Dinner was our second visit to Juveniles on this trip.  A tiny bit of history… A million years ago when I (Tom) was living in New Jersey and just out of college I found a picture for the restaurant Willi’s Wine Bar in a tour book I was reading.  Over the years we’ve gone to Willi’s 5 or 6 times and became aware of their (at that time) affiliated restaurant around the corner, Juveniles. After Willi and his partner split up, the partner kept Juveniles and a few years ago turned the place over to his daughter, Margaux, who we’ve come to know just a little.  We’ve switched our loyalties to Juveniles where we go for straightforward French food.

Food this visit -- foie gras, country pate, sauteed chanterelles (all Tom), grilled octopus with potatoes in vinaigrette, duck breast (Maxine). Dessert was a chocolate concoction for Tom and grilled figs with mascaparone for Maxine. And the best part? Margaux knows us by name and asked about our dog! We're now regulars!