When I woke up today there were a bunch of nice puffy white clouds in the sky..but somehow by the time I left my apartment it got entirely gray and had started to rain just a tiny bit. I saw drops on the ground but figured it would pass quickly as it often does in the fall here.
So I started out. Here I'm coming out of my dead end on onto the street, looking down towards the river, where I'll be headed. You can just see one of the towers of Notre Dame.
The remnants of my neighborhood market which had ended about an hour before.
A block from the river, you can see the main part of Notre Dame behind the end of the street. I love this little corner because to the right of the picture there is a Vietnamese produce market and restaurant, and to the left a bunch of cute pubs.
By this time the rain had become more steady (and it was cold!) and the wind began to whip up. I decided to keep going. At the river now: you can see Notre Dame behind the trees, and it's just across the river. In the foreground are the famous booksellers on the banks of the river. A bunch weren't open because of the rain and cold - the average temperature this week is about 45, so it's our first colder weather.
I got to the bridge, and this is the view. You're looking at Notre Dame from behind. (Now I started to take more frequent pictures because it's very picturesque here!)
The bridge I'm about to cross, and the Right Bank in the background. This is about 6 minutes away from my apartment.
When I go this way I generally cross this bridge, the Pont de l'Archevêché, aka the Padlock Bridge. It's the new bridge where lovers put their locks, after the two old ones cleared them out a few years ago.
Oh look, there's me! Self-portrait fail: it was getting too windy and cold now, my fingers were going bit numb.
Crossed the bridge, and now on the Ile-de-la-Cite, the island where Notre Dame and the Conciegerie are. Notre Dame is on the left, and this is a good shot of the touristy kind of restaurants in this area.
I was only on that island for a moment, now I'm crossing to the other little island, Ile-St-Louis. There is an awesome street jazz band that often plays on this bridge when it's nice out.
I was afraid my umbrella was going to blow into the Seine at this point! You can see the waves on the river, which aren't usually there. You'll see when I'm walking back, I crossed the bridge in the background.
One of the three main roads on Ile-St-Louis, which is mostly occupied by apartments and restaurants.
Crossing the third time, from the island to the Right Bank.
Already the Right Bank is more bustling than the Left Bank at this time on a Saturday. I'm now in the Marais, where the store is.
Going a bit farther into the 4th arr it becomes much quieter and more peaceful. Mostly there are strolling families, people walking dogs, etc. There aren't a lot of things to see in this area for tourists, although there are a lot of cool shops. Also all the kosher stuff is closed because it's Saturday.
Just seems like a silly street name.
Taken from between the bars of the sports area at one of the larger schools in the 4th. In the background is the back of this church. (Photo from my post on the 4th)
I love the little streets in this area! The American store is ahead on the right.
These streets near the river have a ton of amazing little shops that have all kinds of stuff - lots of antiques, from clothes and furniture to instruments; food shops; art and photo galleries, etc.
That's the end of my walk to the store. I bought just a few things - red beans and rice, Jello (don't ask - I've been wanting it since I was sick a couple of weeks ago), and salt and vinegar chips. It's always super crowded on Saturdays, especially now with people stocking up on stuff for Thanksgiving (the holiday, not this store!).
I took a slightly different path back, but didn't take too many pictures.
Here is a classic Paris bateau mouche (boat) tour on the river. This bridge is from the Right Bank (left) to the Ile St Louis (right).
This is what all the banks of Ile-St-Louis look like.
This is the most famous ice cream shop in Paris (possibly the world?), on the island.
Now I'm on that bridge I saw while walking there, and you can see where I was, near Notre Dame. This also shows how the two islands are situated - you can see the river going off to the right separating them, but they're very close together.
And finally here's a shot of the Tour d'Argent, one of the most well known restaurants in Paris (and also the world). It's renowned for its duck dishes but I hear it's gone downhill in the last 20ish yeas - it now has only one Michelin star. Parts of the adorable Pixar movie Ratatouille are set here!
So now I'm back on the Left Bank and I bid you au revoir!
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