Getting coiffed to visit a magnificent venue!

After Tuesday’s walking, Wednesday was more of a kick-back day. Christiane left for Venice in the morning and I had a hair appointment at 10:30 and a tour of the newly refurbished Hôtel de la Marine at the Place de la Concorde at 5:45 pm. Today the best part of the day was the tour.

It was an indulgence, and a nice one, to have my hair shampooed in Paris and the commute was geeat. The Salon de Sandy was across the street! The chair where I was shampooed even had a massage feature, which was quite relaxing.

After my newly coiffed hair, I stopped off at the pharmacy around the corner to check on Covid tests for my return on the 10th. I will need an antigen test, which I’ll get at the pharmacy Monday between 10-12. Results will be given to me in twenty minutes, and I’ll have a paper to show to the authorities two days later when I get on the plane.

On to Monoprix to pick up a few items: tea, shopping bags, yogurt and wine – all the essentials.

I couldn’t resist taking a selfie with these hearts to send to my sister and Marilyn. We text hearts daily. Why? Who knows. We find them everywhere. This was the beauty department of Monoprix.

I found an interesting looking Italian place called Pastis so I stopped by for lunch. The staff was very welcoming and my eggplant with parmasan was to die for – beautiful and healthy too! The fries? Not so healthy. I never eat them at home but have had them many times here, as you can tell by the photographic evidence.

One last stop: Paul for macarons for tonight’s dessert!

I got home loaded down with goodies and relaxed a while with Diego. He likes to zoom aroumd the rooms. He’s not a toy boy but loves looking in bags and investigating. He doesn’t understand the concept of social distancing when he’s looking at new things! I left again at 4:30 to check out the Opera house and go to my appointment. It was busy as people were getting off work and shopping at the department stores, Printemps and Galeries Lafayette.

Then I made my way to the Place de la Concorde for my tour of the fabulous Hôtel de la Marine.

Yes, Paris is for lovers and I found another heart, courtesy of the Banksy tote while waiting at the stop light. The building is to the upper left.

The restoration of this building is big news in Paris. Built between 1757 and 1774 by the architect to the king at what was then the Place Louis XV, it was one of the highlights of the square. If you Google “renovation hotel de la marine,” you will find a site called sortiraparis.com that gives you a nice article called “The Magnificent Venue to Discover in Paris.” You can also go to wikipedia for more information. These articles do it better than I can. I know my limits.

The tour that I took , the historic tour, covered the rooms that had period renovation features from the 18th crntury and the grand loggia, where diplomatic receptions were held. The headsets “ know” when the visitor in a room and gives the correct information. Amazing!

Before we began the tour, we waited in the inner courtyard and enjoyed the new touches. The glass ceiling was designed by Hugh Dutton and Associés. The ancient melding with the modern is a frequent feature of Parisian architecture.

We were taken up three flights of stairs with ghosts of the past whispering in our ears. This tour is only for the fit and hardy!

We began our tour in the anteroom. I’ll only show you a few rooms, so you get the idea.

I thought the bathtub and the couch- bed in the same room was a nice idea. Bathrooms were meant to be spacious, since the bather often had company to conduct business and therefore needed more space!

Since the windows of these rooms give a good view of the Place de la Concorde, it was difficult to decide whether to photograph the ancient building or the modern world whizzing around outside the windows.

We now begin our tour of the loggia, rooms comprising a very long hall, where many public events took place, such as diplomatic signings, balls and entertainment.

The tour ends at the balcony, where we see today’s Paris.

I finished my evening with dessert with Diego and wrote yesterday’s blog. I’m now caught up! It’s Thursday and my friend Ann from England is arriving. You who read this blog may remember her from our adventures in Tuscany and Umbria. She’s staying down the street, taking the night train then Eurostar from London. We facetimed two days ago but I haven’t heard from her so I may walk down and see if she’s at the hotel.

I now know of a place where there’s great French onion soup, just a short metro ride away. I hope she’s up for it. She’s been my partner in crime for many food adventures since we met on a tour in the mid 80s, and I’m sure she’ll be happy into getting into a little mischief. It’s her first trip out since Covid so it’s sure to seem strange.

I walked to the Opera and the Café de la Paix because I learned that the best millefeuille – a multi-layered pastry – are to be found there. Think we can fit it in? Maybe…it’s good to be prepared.

Of course I’ll report back but we’ll be busy. We have museum reservations for Friday, Saturday and Sunday and she leaves Monday. There will be lots to see and do. Be patient, dear readers.