Indiana girls in Paris day two

After a restless night of "steak tartare revenge" we headed off to a delicious breakfast at the hotel.  Lisa was feeling better and Marcie was not taking "NO" for an answer on a French haircut for her.  They checked with the concierge and we headed across the street to check out the salon.

I asked if they spoke English and there was one stylist who could speak "un peu".  Lisa had been saying that she wanted something "French"….well, that was until she walked into the salon.  She kept trying to "tell the stylist" what she wanted (in terms that the FRENCH stylist couldn't understand) instead of just letting the scissors fly.

The stylist was talking back and forth with her co-workers trying to come up with the English word for what she wanted to say….finally, I suggested "helmet" and she beamed.  Lisa had purposely not allowed her Indy stylist to cut her hair so that it might be long enough for a French style….The stylist was right, she currently was sporting a helmet.

 I think that this pit stop was just what the doctor ordered for Lisa after her first l-o-n-g day in Paris.

Day 2 provided lots of shopping, again.  Champs Elysées is an enormous shopping avenue in Paris.  You can find everything from Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Tiffany, Lexus and Sephora to H&M and Abercrombie and Fitch.  You can't just "walk in" to A & F, you stand in line on the sidewalk and are let in only as people leave. The perk here is that they usually have male models as the "guards".  If you enjoy seeing half-naked men, then you'll want to visit in the summer….it was a bit too cold for no shirts at the end of October.

 

Lunch was "soup" at a cafe.  I use the term "soup" loosely.  I ordered French onion soup and it was delicious.  Marcie and Lisa ordered a vegetable soup….it was like pureed baby food.  Seriously, not a chunk of any vegetable. I think that they just threw everything into their food processor and then ladled it into a bowl. However, this was the first restaurant that offered us butter with our bread, so that made them both a little happier.

Today's funny story involved Marcie.  We had both packed a pair of black leggings/boots to wear.  I had a long black shirt and she had a "long" black sweater.  Well, after putting her sweater on, it was more like a belly shirt…you know, the ones that teenage girls wear so that everyone can see their tramp stamp or their pierced belly button?  Well, not really, but it definitely didn't cover her derriere.  Fortunately, she has a tiny hiney and still looked cute.  She was, however, very self conscious about it.  We made a stop at H&M and she bought a 15 Euro mini skirt.  Guess where she happen to put it on?  Yep, right in the middle of the sidewalk on Champs Elyseés.  I told her that her daughter, Elizabeth would be mortified. LESSON: Check "long sweaters" after putting them through the dryer.

Our time in Paris had come to a close.  Marcie and I had decided that we were going to make one last dash on the metro back to the Trocadero and buy some macaroons.  (We had tasted a heavenly salted caramel one the night before)  Lisa headed back to the hotel to gather our luggage. We called a taxi to take us to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner.  Yes, I know it's not very Parisian, but I just needed some American food.  We gave our taxi driver the address and off we went.  45 minutes and 35 Euros later we were still in our taxi and from what my iPhone indicated, we weren't close to the restaurant yet.

We asked the driver to pull over and hauled our luggage onto the Metro.  15 minutes later we were at the Gare (train station) and seated at a French restaurant for dinner.  All I really wanted was a burger and fries….we couldn't even get a side order of fries!!  Lisa and I settled for a Caesar salad and Marcie had a salad with Apricots and goat cheese.  We finished with minutes to spare to hit the train back to Strasbourg.

Still smiling….despite the cab ride from….you know where

This guy could obviously spot cute American women…he was at the light beside us. 

Best part of our taxi ride…..a beautiful rainbow

A big thanks to my hubby for staying up late to drive across town and pick us up.  We were all happy to be back at the apartment and were looking forward to a good night's sleep.  Tomorrow's adventure would be at the open air market and Marcie was SOOO excited.

Wishing you one of God's "rainbows" in your times of frustration….He is faithful and He can deliver you if you let Him.