paris: day one

Before I dive into day one details, I must tell you that there were almost ZERO days. While this blog is very much a highlight reel of my fav finds and fun events, I don’t want it to be an over edited version of life. This trip was a serious high, but it started off with a serious low. The day before my trip I realized my passport was EXPIRED. Not like 30 days expired – 6 months expired. I don’t know how I let this happen, but I did.

I stood there expired passport in hand visualizing my hotel reservations, carefully curated restaurant reservations, walks by the Eiffel tower, and trips to the Louvre dissolving into thin air. After a small pity party, I called one of those ‘renew your passport in 24 hours’ numbers that I looked up online. The representative told me that they could get a new passport me by Wednesday. It was Sunday, and my flight as Monday evening. I’m no math whizz, but I think that’s a couple more than 24 hours. I was about to hang up the phone (and dissolve into a puddle) when he casually mentioned that I could renew same day at a passport agency office.

We were flying out of Atlanta, and thank baby Jesus, there is a passport agency office located downtown. You better believe I was in line bright at early the next morning with my expired passport, new passport photo, and expedite fee in hand. The Atlanta Passport Agency is an incredibly efficient operation, and in less than 6 hours I had a brand new passport in hand. Now on to the good stuff!

Day One

After a short layover in London, we arrived in PARIS. We were exhausted physically and mentally, but buzzing still with excitement. We took an Uber from Charles de Gaulle to Marais – our home for the next 5 days. Our trip would be brief so we chose to stay in Marais, a trendy area near Le Seine. Marais is filled with cafes and shops while maintaining it’s old world charm. I could go back and spend a whole week in this little pocket of Paris.

We stayed at Hotel Duo, a modern boutique-style hotel, based off the recommendation of one my b-fries from college. She frequents Paris for work, and this hotel caught her eye during her last visit. The decor of this hotel was chic and playful. Old beams are mixed with clean lines and modern furniture. There are oversized drum lights and an atrium adding drama without being too serious. We loved it.

After unpacking, we decided napping was too dangerous – heaven forbid we sleep through our first night and most importantly our first meal! We freshened up, put on our carefully curated thrifted outfits, and headed to the hotel lobby.

For my first night in Paris, I kept it pretty simple and comfortable with a Wilson’s (remember this mall icon?!) vintage leather front zip mini skirt, chambray button down (you can see on the tag it say the perfect shirt, and isn’t a lie), Target flat-forms (hunted NWT), Silence + Noise red vegan leather cross-body, and my absolute favorite jacket. It’s the packable down coat made by 51 degrees. It’s warm, but also so light weight, AND rolls up into a teeny tiny ball for travel. You might remember it from this post when I did a hunting show and tell.

Our first stop was the hotel bar for a complimentary cocktail. It was tiny, but delicious. We didn’t have dinner reservations for our first night even though they are highly recommended especially during the busier seasons, so we consulted Stephan at the front desk. We read a lot about him while scouring Trip Advisor reviews, and he didn’t disappoint.

We wanted traditional French fare for our first meal in Paris, and he recommended Au Bourgingnon du Marais, a neighborhood favorite specializing in food from the Burgundy region. We we starving, but to ensure an authentic Parisian experience, we let him make a reservation for 8pm. This was still a bit early by Paris standards, but it was the middle of the night by ours.

To kill time before dinner we walked to the closest landmark literally down the street, Notre Dame. I was worried that it wouldn’t be impressive at night, but I was quickly reminded that this is the city of lights! I knew Paris would be beautiful, but I had no idea.

We stood there, mouth agape, admiring the medieval Catholic cathedral widely considered to be the best representations of Gothic architecture in existence. Every time I felt like I had taken it all in, I saw something new. Intricate doesn’t even begin to describe it. After we tore ourselves away from Notre Dame, we strolled along tiny streets ducking in and out of boutique shops trying not to buy everything in sight.

Wine – I have no idea what wine we drank, we let the waiter pick, but it was divine.

First course – A salad…sort of. Delicate greens were topped with thin sticks of granny smith apples and hazelnuts surrounded by crostini topped with a goat cheese and cured duck and a balsamic reduction. I don’t know if it was the jet lag, or the wine, or the food, but my mom and I could barely form sentences. We just made ohh and mmm noises as we scooped up perfect little bites.

Main course – I ordered beef bourguignon (how could I not?) and my mom ordered a white fish in a butter saffron sauce. The beef bourguignon was absolutely one of the best things I have ever tasted. Served in my own little personal cast iron pot, it was rich, tender and super hot. The fish was also extremely good – delicate and flavorful.

Dessert – We let the waiter surprise us, and he did with an almond tart drizzled with caramel. It was one of those desserts that was ok on the first bite, but somehow it got better and better until we were practically licking the plate clean. Tipsy and full, we agreed our first night was a success. 

That’s a wrap on day 1, click here to read about day 2.

I always encourage you to hunt for look-a-like items at your local second hand stores. If that’s not your style, check out some very similar items below.