Champs Élysées Noel 2015

Paris is totally breathtakingly beautiful year round, but at Christmas it is even more spectacular!  The Champs Élysées along with the whole city of lights sparkles with as many bright colours as baubles on a Christmas tree.

Christmas markets galore, smells of spicy vin chaud, hot chocolate and roasting chestnuts fill the brisk air.   It is really a very special time to visit if you don’t mind the cold, grey skies, and often foggy mornings.

Paris is always a foodie city and during the holidays, storefronts are literally  groaning with festive foods to make you drool. Ribbon tied birds with plumes for roasting, mounds of foie gras, mountains of every type of cheese imaginable, overfilled baskets of oysters and seafood and dazzling Christmas pastries and bûches de Noel.

Sunday afternoon I went to another fabulous food salon at the Louvre Carousel, and ended up coming home with some goodies that I couldn’t resist, and did not forget the escargots this time!

Last night I started out with the intention of going to the rooftop terrace of the Printemps department store which offers a fantastic view over the city, to take photos for the blog.

Well, because of all the extra security in the city, I did not make it.  My bus had to stop at the Champs Élysées in front of the Petit Palais, due to  a suspect package on the other side, and could not cross the avenue.

Blue lights of police added to the festive colours up and down the avenue and even though I was mildly disappointed not to get to my original destination, it was a marvelous place to get dumped!

The whole place was magical, like a lit up fairytale. I was happy to see that the city had replaced last years tree decorations , which I did not like, to more festive ones of gold and blue cupolas.

On both sides were the white huts of the annual Christmas village and marche chock full of wares from every region of France and beyond.  It was the first time to see the blazing fires of slow roasted Scandinavian salmon, which had me salivating.

For a Monday night, the crowds were pretty thick and I had to dodge many on the very wide sidewalks.  Getting stuck on the medium of the Champs Élysées, by red lights is fine as it is the best spot to take photos and with some luck a lull in the rush of cars.

It is a fairly long walk down to Place de la Concorde, but I stopped by the ice rink and watched skaters whizz by at breakneck speed. Heard lots of American voices on the way down, along with multiples languages from all over the world.

Just about everyone else was photo snapping away, enough that I often stopped out of politeness to not trample into their views,  but that happens just about everywhere in Paris year round.

Armed military were making their rounds, which in this day and age only adds to a more secure feeling, especially so soon after the attacks.

Apparently the tourists are flooding the city again and I never tire of hearing their enthusiastic remarks, because I still feel them too!  I love seeing all the sights and lights like the first time, because no matter how often I see them, they are always breathtaking in beauty!

It is very easy to be a perpetual tourist here, not only because of all the beauty, but there are always little discoveries, that for some reason you never knew about!  Just for the fun of it, I often go exploring different parts of the city that I haven’t been too in ages.

The Ferris Wheel was the prettiest I have ever seen, lit up with red, blue and white and looked larger than before.  If you want a great view with a little adrenalin on the side, you can’t beat taking a ride you will never forget!

Going around the side of this huge gorgeous plaza, I headed to the left in back of the American Embassy on Avenue Gabriel.  Policemen were there too, preparing to lead a 7 car motorcade of officials somewhere that left me wondering who they might be!

I was tempted to turn on Rue Royale, walk past the Madeleine church towards  Printemps, but by that time I was getting cold and hungry.  Decided to walk down Rue Rivoli alongside the Tuileries gardens instead of taking the metro at Concorde .

Though  the subway is quicker, I preferred to catch bus 68 near Palais Royal that would deliver me practically to my door.  It is another long walk but it makes for more picturesque sightseeing, which obviously isn’t the case by subway.

Angelina,  famous for their baroque interior,  chestnut mont blanc pastry and divine hot chocolate  was not as full as expected, but it was time for an aperitif, not hot chocolate, however deliciously thick theirs is.  I like looking at the ancient cracked mosaic tiles along the long arches that are in need of repair, having had too many feet treading upon them.

By far the most outstanding christmas decor was the Hotel Meurice, one of the most elegant and historic hotels of the city. It has been there since 1835 and remains a bastion of exquisite taste having one of the best luxurious restaurants in Paris.

Although Angelina’s decor might be prettier, handsome pastry chef Sébastien Gaudard has recently installed a corner chic salon de thé further down, where you can taste his magnificent mille feuilles pastries; most recently the best that I have tasted.

The fountain in front of the theater of the Comédie Francaise was still illuminated with red and blue lighting.  The bus stop was announcing more transport disruptions, this time line 3 metro for the same reason; a suspect unattended package.

I settled in the back of the bus by the window and enjoyed passing through the Tuileries with the Louvre to my left and crossing the Seine with the golden glittering Eiffel Tower lighting up the dark blue sky on my right.

Passing the Musée d’Orsay, we turned into the 7th arrondissement picking up Blvd Saint Germain and then Blvd Raspail passing by the Bon Marche department store looking like it was iced with cherry pink icing.

By this time I was finalising my menu in my head, while taking still taking in all the brightly coloured lights till I got to my stop. Nothing like a very long walk along the Champs Élysées,  pass Place Concorde  to  Palais Royal in the brisk cold air to build up an appetite.  Paris je t’aime!