Snow in London

This trip I was filled with the spirit of Christmas,

and knew exactly where I wanted to be.

I headed for the Chelsea Farmers Market.

http://www.ukattraction.com/london/chelsea-farmers-market.htm

This is a beautiful place to be most any time of the year,

but during Christmas, it is enchanted!

The Market Place Restaurant, is a lovely, cool oasis in summertime.
http://www.marketplacerest.com/

In winter, it becomes a warm cozy retreat,

with a roaring fire in the center,

snuggling blankets on the chairs, and serving warm mulled wine!

I ordered a delicious light meal of mushrooms sauteed with garlic in a light cream sauce over a slice of brioche........and, of course, some mulled wine.

Later I wandered through the conservatory











and the garden shop,

which was alight with Christmas color.

I walked thru several shops and past a few more restaurants in the marketplace,

including El Gaucho and the Monkey Bar.

http://www.elgaucho.co.uk/restaurants.htm

I stopped for a while to flirt with the snowmen.

It was getting dark by now, and I had been awake for over 24 hours.  I took the bus back to Gloucester Road and headed to my hotel.




I slept well, while visions of sugar plums danced in my head.  Maybe it was the mulled wine.

Christmas with Dickens

My first day on reserve and I got a last minute trip to London.   It was the trip I would have asked for if I had a choice.  I was mostly ready when they called me, so I finalized my packing and headed to the airport.  We landed the next morning to a snowy landscape.  It was the most beautiful London layover






























I had visited the Charles Dickens Museum on my previous trip, but left my camera in the hotel room.
Duh.  In all fairness, sometimes the lack of sleep just dulls the mind.





http://www.dickensmuseum.com/
















The walk to the museum from the Russell Square tube station is interesting.

You walk past Brunswick Square with all it's classy shops, restaurants, and condominiums.

I would love living in this great location, but I would pay about twice as much money for about half as much space as I have in Dallas. Maybe I will rent a place here someday, if just for a while.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brunswick_Square

Also along the way you pass Coram's Fields

http://www.coramsfields.org

 and occasionally meet some of London's wilder crowd.

Everthing turned out well, since, as I had hoped, the museum now was decorated for Christmas. The woman at the entrance remembered me and my forgotten camera, and she allowed me to enter without charge to take my photos.

The drawing room is a bit gaudy, in a popular early victorian manner, and the festive decorations befit it well.

The study was where Dickens liked to seclude himself and write.

















During the time he lived here on Doughty Street, he wrote "Pickwick Papers" and "Oliver Twist", among other lesser know works.

Dickens was said to be an excellent host, who enjoyed entertaining immensely.








I loved the small basement courtyard which held his wine cellar.

I also loved the outdoor Dicken's Courtyard

and the cafe courtyard, though neither are inviting in wintertime
















The snow covered tables were best enjoyed from inside the cozy cafe while having a warm mince tart and a hot latte.









If you visit London, love Dickens, and would like to be a part of the wonderful organization that supports it's upkeep, you may become a member here.  There are some nice perks included with membership, but mostly a sense of preserving history.

http://www.dickensmuseum.com/join-us/american-friends.html

Paris Autumn

I find it interesting how you can skip a week in a city, and come back to a totally different scene. 

When I returned to Paris after two week, the leaves had changed colors and many had already fallen to the ground.

I had an errand to do today, so I headed out to Place Vendome, and Fratelli Rosetti.  I was exchanging some boots for a friend of mine at this lovely store on Rue St. Honore.

http://www.fratellirossetti.com/en/Catalogo/

After exchanging the boots, I had a ten Euro credit.  Knowing the prices here, I asked what I could purchase for ten Euros.  The salesgirl replied "What color shoe polish would you like?"  I laughed and chose black.

The Place Vendome was laid out in 1702, and the Vendome Column was originally erected by Napoleon to commemorate the victory of Austerlitz.  You can read about the history at the link below.

http://france-for-visitors.com/paris/place-vendome.html









I have shamelessly stolen the photo below, so you can see how magnificent the place is at night.

I then headed over one street to the Rue de Rivoli, alongside the Lourve, past the statue of Joan of Arc, toward the Tuilleries garden.

This is likely one of the most famous streets in Paris, and certainly one of the most popular. It was very cold and the wind was brisk.




The streets were crowed, and everyone was bundled up.  One of the things that I love about Paris is that cold weather seldom keeps Parisians indoors.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rue_de_Rivoli,_Paris

I was hungry now, and decided to have a late lunch/early dinner at the Brasserie Le Carrousel, across from the Tuilleries.  There are some really nice photos of this cafe and the area around it in the next link.

http://www.mightymac.org/london2010/10UK14.htm

I had the Croque Monsieur, a fancy grilled ham and cheese sandwich, and a nice sancerre wine.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croque-monsieur

Now I was ready for a walk through the Tuileries Garden,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuileries_Garden











past the D'Orsay Museum

past the carrousel and the man doing tai chi,

past the Eiffel Tower to the Place de Concorde, where I caught the Metro back to Boulevard Saint-Jacques.

I enjoyed a wonderful, creamy lemon tart, another fine sancerre wine, a delightful waiter and lovely atmosphere at Cafe Carmel.

The colorful lanterns and fall leaves created a surreal fairytale effect, and set the tone for sweet dreams. 

Not Quite Autumn in Paris

I had a layover in Paris the last week in October. I was really tired, and the weather was cold and overcast.


I didn't want to do much, so I decided to walk through the grounds of Sainte Anne Hospital. This is a huge psychiatric hospital,  research facility, and teaching school.






The history of the place goes back to 1651, but the hospital was established in 1863 by an edict of Napoleon III.

The hospital offers 24 hour emergency psychiatric services, health care clinics for patients, and many services are available to assist patient's families.





Baron Haussmann was in charge of carrying out the design.   If you are really into history, you can read about the hospital at the first link.
You can read about Napoleon III, who was both the first titular president and the last monarch of France, at the second link.

Information about Baron Haussmann can be found at the third link.

http://www.ch-sainte-anne.fr/site/centrHosp/historique/presentation.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon_III
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges-Eug%C3%A8ne_Haussmann

The architecture is beautiful and the grounds are well landscaped.
There are statues and pieces of art throughout the grounds.

For some reason, the statue below is my favorite.  Somehow it just speaks to me. Hmmmmm?

There were beautiful walk ways and paths through the grounds,

and modern sculpture among the classic.

It was very peaceful walking through the gardens, but by now my feet were tired and my knees were aching.

I sat on a bench by this statue and drank  "un grande creme", strong coffee with cream, which I had carried with me.  I knew that, today, it wouldn't keep me awake.

I read a very interesting blog written by a woman who lives in Paris.
At one place in this post she tells you the difference between a "grande creme" and a "cafe au lait".  If you want to get a true feel of living in the city, check out her blog.

http://www.paris.org/Kiosque/feb03/letter.html








I decided to forgo seeing the chapel.



















I stopped at the grocery store to pick up some pate and bread, for a light supper and some
rhubard yogurt for breakfast.





I settled down in my warm room and soon was sound asleep.  I'll be back in a week, and hope to be more rested. Sometimes, even when Paris is calling, you just have to listen to your body.