Paris Day 6 or Cooking Like a Parisian or Beautiful Views

Since we had decided against a weekend trip away (instead opting for the Versailles day trip), we thought we'd find something a little more unique to do in Paris.  We found several well-reviewed cooking classes on our Paris Trip Adviser app and chose one that would balance a laid back atmosphere with some real cooking experience.  We chose A World In A Pan.

What a great decision that was!  We met a lovely woman named Marie outside of her train stop and met up with a young Saudi American couple (they were very friendly, both currently working as brand managers for Mars in Dubhai).  Marie suggested some menu ideas and let us choose what we wanted and then we were off to the outdoor market.

I can't tell you enough how much I love outdoor markets!  Everything at this market was fresh and organic.  There were so many fruits and vegetables I had never seen as well as many different cuts of meat and fish that aren't common in the USA.  I could've spent the entire day ogling the food but we had to stay on track and get what we needed for our cooking class!

Marie talked us through everything she purchased and we walked away with duck legs, oranges, eggs, cheese, bread, fingerling potatoes and some herbs.  We headed to Marie's family home where her husband and four children live (at least two of her children are in college now).

Marie made us all a cup of tea and we got to work learning how to be authentic French cooks!  Here are some pictures of the food we made.

We left Marie's home with full bellies and happy hearts!

From there, we headed home to freshen up and get ready for Sacre Coeur.  Sacre Coeur is one of Russell's favorite places in Paris.  He said he always had fun there when he was a little kid.  We were trying to get there before the sunset so we could watch it from the top of the mountain, but of course we missed it.  All was not lost though!  The view of the city at night from Sacre Coeur is remarkable.

After we took in the view from the steps, we went inside the chapel.  It was breathtakingly beautiful, and so moving.  The quiet made it easy to sit, reflect and thank God for our good fortune and ability to take such a wonderful vacation.  I could've stayed for hours.

Upon leaving the chapel, we took a little trip up the cobblestone streets to the square where the local artists are drawing and painting.  We were getting there just as everyone was painting their last strokes and taking down their easels.  We did a little haggling with a man for a beautiful painting but decided not to get it as we couldn't decide if he had actually painted it himself.  Of course we did a little more wandering and headed back to the steps of the chapel to drink some hot wine and watch some fun street performers sing Beetles tunes.

*side note* I can't remember if I wrote about this in the beginning and at the moment I'm too lazy to read backwards to figure it out!  Our friends Katelyn and Peter were so kind to rummage through our apartment, find our passports and overnight them to AR for us. They were both SUPER busy at the time and we appreciated their patience with us!  I should also note that Peter had to send us Passports and binders in the summer as well.  All Katelyn said she wanted was an Eiffel Tower.  For some reason, I stressed about that Eiffel Tower the WHOLE trip!  It had to be the perfect tacky souvenir.   I found the most "beautiful" pink jeweled Eiffel Tower in a gift shop on our way to Sacre Cuer. I was so excited about it- it was ridiculous!*

For dinner, we headed back to our favorite place, Au Pere Louis near the Luxembourg Gardens.  We just had to visit one more time before the trip was over.  This time our food was just as good, the atmosphere cozy and the wine superb!

To bed we went with happy hearts and full bellies!