simply vintageous...by Suzan: Apartments

I think I may have forgotten to mention that I own an apartment in Paris - nothing too fancy - but with the prices of hotels I figured I'd just as soon purchase one I could call home -

My Living Room - I tried to keep it classic and elegant -

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My office - I have to work to be able to afford this place - picked up that armoire at a flea market

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my guest room - come visit me sometime!

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Where I kick off my Louboutin's and relax

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my kitchen - and btw I never never never paint furniture when I'm here -

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I had that wrought iron imported from Italy - isn't it perfect?

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my dining room - and yes that's the Notre Dame Cathedral -

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another shot of my living room

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this is actually my game room,although I had company in today and so we had tea in here, excuse the mess

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my little balcony area - I sit out here often

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my bedroom - which I just crawled out of to snap these photos for you - now I'm jumping back into it

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And then just like that I wake up from the most lovely of dreams - put on my sweats - grab my paint and start on another dresser....................

It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else.
Erma Bombeck

Now on to a bit of reality!!! I've been extremely lucky to have been to Paris many times ( for business ) and it really is as spectacular as you think - in fact it's far more so.
This is where we stayed for many years

Hotel Relais Bosquet

this is a simple 3 star hotel - ( but it felt every bit like a 5 star to me- isn't it lovely? ) I would highly recommend it if you're ever planning a trip to Paris! It's 5 minutes away from the Eifel Tower. You can click on the source for details

and here are a few shots of the famous Rue Cler market - at the bottom of the street - where we'd get our Tartine in the mornings (crispy baguette with cold hard butter - too die )

many many fun nights at this little bistro - basically 10 feet from the hotel

Now we stay in Montparnasse ( adjacent to Ste Germaine de Pres )
and I say NOW loosely - I haven't been in 3 years - John's been going on his own due to this
crappy economy

Here's a few shots of Montparnasse

We haven't been loyal to any hotel in Montparnasse - stayed at a different one each time - all quite lovely - but honestly you could stick me in an alley with a sleeping bag to be in Paris....................not quite but the experience of being there is so beyond a hotel room ......................

My absolute favorite restaurant

Here's an amusing story about this restaurant ( L'entrecote ) for many years John and I ( and everyone else we knew that attend the fabric shows ) used to travel well over an hour to get to the restaurant because it was so worth it - had to take the subway ( people say it's an easy subway system - please don't believe it - not for 1 second ) and the RER ( train ) and then wait in the inevitable line up - sometimes for over 30 minutes just to get inside....................I did it for at least 5 years with John - but I know many people that made this trek for 20 years.
Anyway - the first hotel we used to stay at ( the Relais Bosquet ) was about a 15 minute walk to Champ E'lysee and we would do this walk every couple of nights ......................one night as we were on our way I noticed a big crowd of people down one of the side streets - and Lo and Behold there was another L'entrecote 10 minutes from where we'd been staying all that time - Les Touriste Stupide LOL - there's 4 or 5 of them - and there's one on Blvd Montparnasse - where we stay now - literally a 3 minute walk.
1 item on the dinner menu only - roast beef and fries - with a special highly guarded secret sauce - and a dessert menu that's out of this world! Crowded and noisy with laughter - it's really the perfect evening out!
But we also had many perfect evenings with baguette and cheese and wine bought locally and brought back to the room.
We've had years when I shopped till I dropped and years where we were literally counting our euros to stretch them out - ( and I mean literally Counting our Euros ) but I've learned how to travel on a dime let me tell you! And I'd rather be broke in a cafe in Paris then just about anywhere else in the world....................................anyday.
One year I went with a girlfriend - PARIS IS NOT ONLY FOR LOVERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In fact it's the perfect city to be with a girlfriend in - we sat for hours at the world famous Cafe de Flore

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Thursday, October 4, 2012

My Paris Apartment

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