Prologue: A Night to Start – I couldn’t believe it. We were actually touching down at Orly Airport, Paris France. This was a day I always dreamed of, finally being in the City of Lights. Don’t know why they call it that, but I was going to find out. 
We just left four days in Monaco for the Formula One Grand Prix, and now we’re going to spend four more days in Paris. And that only that, we are spinning four days at the Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme, one of the premier hotels in Paris. Like I always say, if you’re going to live the dream, dream big.
When we arrived at the Park Hyatt, I was actually a little surprised. OK let’s be honest, I was a little disappointed. This old broken up street of an alleyway is supposed to be the Rodeo Drive of Paris? I drive Rodeo Drive all the time, and this is no Rodeo Drive. But stepping inside the hotel, it is as elegant as I hoped it would be for €900 a night. Of course that’s what everybody else pays, we pimped out our credit cards, see PYCC, and are staying four nights for free! Does it get any better than this? Maybe, but now we’re hungry. So we step out to find snacks for our first night in Paris. We go down the street to Rue du Daunou, turn right, walk down past the Hugo boss store and come across a little Café du Cadran.
Stepping into the café we are met by someone who is either a manager, or a chef, I don’t know, but he’s a gregarious fellow nonetheless. We sit down and for €13 each, we have one of the best chicken dinners not only of the trip, but of recent memory. It was so simple yet so tasty. If this is the way the rest of Paris is going to be, I’m going to love this.
Day 1: Our first full day in Paris is a wet one. Oh brother. Since it’s not really the proper conditions for walking about, we decide to hop on a Viator City Tour Bus. This ought to be fun and get us pointed in the right direction with the best and biggest overview of everything going on. And then the plastic on the roof comes loose and drops water on us. Oh brother. But the good thing is that we get to see the sites that hopefully tomorrow, we can actually visit on foot. We drive by the Seine River, and are told its’ flooding in several areas and that the river attractions are closed to tourism for safety reasons. We see the main attractions: The Louvre, Notre Dame, the Paris Opera house, Moulin Rouge and the Arc d’ Triomphe. Perfect, these were the keen spots to hit, so good thing we get the see them laid out for us. We get off on the Champs-Elysees. Time for lunch. And since we’re American, we have to try the MacDonald’s to compare the flavor. But this Mickie D’s has some Parisian flair, so we pass on the Royal with Cheese, and instead opt for the Croissant sandwich, a couple of macarons…ok a lot of macarons, and a fruit stuffed-pastry. 
OK, I know, the Champs is full of little eateries where we should have stopped, but come on, you can’t appreciate the highs unless you’ve hit the lows. And honestly, it was quite tasty.
But interestingly, and fascinatingly enough, while in MacD’s, Nancy gets a text that her cousin Lani is in Paris, and not too far from us. Wow! What a small world. They text back and forth, and Lani proposes we have dinner at a true Paris steakhouse landmark; Le Relais de Entrecôte. Ok, you had me at steakhouse! Turns out Entrecôte is the cut of beef that is similar to a ribeye steak. They slice it thin, serve with a green sauce of some sort of aioli base, and fries. The original french fries no less. And that’s it. You sit down. They bring you a small salad, then they bring out the steak plate, with fries, and then you are asked if you want dessert, which is chocolate covered vanilla ice cream with almond slivers. Perfect. No ordering, just yes if you want it, and if you don’t, leave. OK, I stay, and I throw in some wine to make sure I enjoy it all. A bottle of Saint-Emilion pairs well with the meat. Good thing, because I think it’s the only wine they have!
Day 2: Well, the rain has stopped, but the sun has not broken a smile yet. At least we are able to do a walk-about and start seeing the city on our own. We exit the hotel to the right this time, and walk through the Vendome. This innocuous little spot is actually quite historical. It marks Napoleon’s triumphant return after victory in the Battle of Austerlitz back in 1810. We take a peek at the Dior store, too much security to feel comfortable, so we continue on to today’s adventure: The Louvre. What an amazing museum. The Louis the XIV room was incredible. Talk about some serious bling. A beautiful visit made even more memorable by the fact that I have seen it now: 
The Mona Lisa! Yes, the crowds are some 10-12 people deep, everyone snapping selfies with it. And for a tiny little 11×14 painting. cool thing is that I take a pic with Nancy and ‘The Lisa’ in the background. Later she shows me a picture of her with the same pose from almost the same position from 10 years prior! We head out of The Louvre through the somewhat secret entrance, the Le Carrousel de Louvre. This underground mall holds additional tourist shops and an entrance to the Louvre that is air conditioned and protected from the elements. Honestly, I could have spent the next 2 days just waking the halls and sitting with the artwork, but we must move on to the next destination: Le Tour d’ Eiffel
What catches me about the Eiffel Tower, is it enormity. The get a picture of it, movies and tourist photos have to stand so far away from it, it reduces it’s constructive impact. The base of the tower is huge. The riveting is incredible. It’s as intricate and any French designer’s fashioned lace camisole. The see it up close is just amazing and again, I could stay here all day just admiring the architecture of the tower. So the only I can truly pay homage to the tower, is a glass of cheap champagne at the top. Come one, I’m a tourist through and through!
After walking for what seems like 4 or 5 miles, we finally descend back to terra firma and say adieu to the Tower. Now it’s back to touring the Parisian neighborhood in search of the most elusive prey: Coq au Vin. Surprisingly, very few restaurants actual have this dish, a French staple, and perhaps, it’s most famous dish. As we walk through the neighborhood of The Tower, we come across Le Champs de Mars, a small nondescript little place on the corner of Avenue de la Bourdonnais. Did someone say Anthony Bourdias? One look a the menu, and this place had classic Parisian food all over it. So Coq au Vin it is. And delightful it was. Feeling rejuvenated, we begin to ponder getting a cab to head back to the room. A cab, no way, and miss all this lovely landscape. This neighborhood reminds me of a combination of New York brownstones and Westwood dorms. Its a neighborhood I instantly fall in love with, and yes, you guessed it, this is where I want to live when we move to Paris. Not if…when! About 30 minutes into the walk, and few wrong turns, we are kind of lost, but I don’t care. We walk past so many wonderful little cafes and shops. OK, now I care, the light disappears and gives way to rain drops, light and tiny at first, little champagne bubbles tapping our heads. Then harder and larger, and yes, it’s cab time. A rather rugged woman picks us up and delivers us to the hotel. Interesting, she really didn’t speak much English, just kind of grunted a few words in response to my directions and questions. I tried some French, and that just seemed to make things worse. Nevermind, just sit back and remember the day. Voila, nous somme ici! Merci Park Hyatt.
Day 3: Breakfast in bed is the way to start the day. In my attempt to have Eggs Benedict on every continent before I die, I order up and add a mimosa. Today is going to be a holy one. Slated for visits today are the Holiest of Holies: Notre Dame and Sacre Coeur. Two famed European churches, each distinct in design, location and purpose. Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, as it’s called, is the grand church of Paris, and a favorite for visiting Catholics. Google Map on the phone says its a 35 minute walk, and doing so takes us through past The Louvre and across the the Seine before arriving at our destination. 
With the unmistakable twin buttress towers, it sits just feet off the Seine River, which interestingly enough, was flooding at the time. This closed the lower level restrooms and forced visitors elsewhere for relief. Blessed art thou. The interior of the church is rather plain given it’s reputation, and quite subdued in it’s presentation of artifacts. A large Jesus on The Cross sits just inside the entryway, a couple of Virgin Mary statues and a Joan du Arc are rather simple, plain, and yet powerful in presentation. 
One of the more interesting displays is one of what appears to be Mary on knees, praying for someone, I would imagine, Jesus being helped out of a coffin, aided by a semi naked angel like person, and another in full shroud. All of this makes me feel like I have the whole scene wrong, as it is backgrounded by a wall of dark paper with golden H’s that looks more like the inside of an Hermès case than a display of holy martyrdom. I have no idea what I was looking at,. but couldn’t take my eyes off it. Should have looked down for a sign explaining, but that’s the beauty and mystery of God. OK, now off to Sacre Coeur, but now, the rain has become storming, so we duck into Aux Tours de Notre Dame, a little coffee shop right across the street from Notre Dame. The waiter is a bit grumpy, as everyone has piled in, but not to order and big luscious breakfast or lunch, but just to wait out the rain. Of course this is a double edged sword, because with so many people, he takes forever to bring 2 cups of coffee, so now, we wait so long, might as well order a croissant and an apple pastry. But that’s all, we’re leaving as soon as it stops. And it doesn’t. So of course, he starts giving us the eye, so I order another pastry and he begrudgingly serves us. A good 30 minutes goes by, amazing how some people put on quite a show by walking san umbrella through this storm, and finally it lets up enough, and the waiter applies enough pressure for us to leave. Perfect timing actually, I was not ordering another pastry, and we head to the metro towards Sacre Coeur.
I will commend Paris on an excellent, and quite easy to use metro system. Even for English speakers, it’s quite easy to understand and navigate. Sacre Coeur is built on the peak or butte of the Montmartre, the Martyrs Mount, and as it’s the highest point of Paris, it offers a truly breathtaking view of the Paris below. At least it does when not raining. But even in this light misting, you get a sense of the expanse of what the view would offer if the cloud cover is replaced by blue skies. The basilica is fully operational, and so much that church employees are constantly telling people to hush. And as well they should. We pay our respects and cross out hearts and head down the mount to the city. Walking down through the little tourist strip is fun, as I finally start to feel the desire for trinkets. We pick up an Eiffel Tower, a Paris – St. Germaine t-shirt, fridge magnets. And as we are starting to have fun, the rain lifts and the sun begins to break. OK, it is on Paris! When the going gets good, the good get going…to Moulin Rouge!
All I know of Moulin Rouge and it’s bohemian neighbors are what Baz Lurman showed us in his 2001 film. Maybe back then it was big time stuff, but now, it’s just a red building on a busy street of people carting around bags from Ikea. But at least the food meets expectations. MR is closed at the time, so we duck into Rouge Bistro directly across the street. We grab a couple of glasses of wine and these wonderful little croquettes. So tasty with a Raspberry mousse, a perfectly decadent little stop on our travels. The waiter was quite friendly and joked with us during our time in the bistro. Tres bon Paris!
From here we decide to catch the metro back to midtown and check out Champs Elysees to see the Arc d’ Triomphe. We make it there, snap some photos, and notice the large number of people standing in the line. Nevermind, and now the drizzle has come back, so we duck into a few stores to check out more shopping. Wow, Levi’s are like €80, that’s much more expensive than back home. I see why people come to shop in America, it’s so cheap, you can literally save enough money to pay for the flight. But now Nancy gets wind that the Louis Vuitton store is up the street. We head and she stands in line waiting her turn. I decide to walk around a little to see more sites.
I turned the corner and I see the Holiest of sites: Ferraris! These guys are letting you drive a supercar through the streets of Paris for €100. Driving in the streets of Paris in a Ferrari California was the dream of a lifetime. We drive from Champs to the Eiffel Tower and back, flooring it, racing down roadways. That alone was worth the trip, if nothing else. Wow, I mean I’ve driven the Ferrari on the track, but driving it as if it were my car through the streets of Paris no less, now this is awesome!
After an exhausting 20 minute drive around town through Paris traffic, we walk back along the Champs, reflecting on the day, and the trip as a whole. This has been an awesome time, an incredible journey, and I just can’t believe the sights and sounds of this city. And the best part about it, it rained pretty much every day. As we reach the hotel, we are told once again that our reservations for the restaurant Pur are not available. Thank goodness. Chef Jean-François Rouquette charges quite a euro for dining at the Michelin-starred restaurant. So on a whim, I say let’s go back to where it all began, Cafe du Cadran. We walk over in the drizzle, and out favorite manager/host/waiter is there! Henri! Beinvenue mon ami! We sit down, and have another wonderful dinner here. Actually, its the same dinner, we just reversed the plates. Ha! But hey, why mess with a good thing. We could have tried somewhere, but this was like coming home, and it was nice chatting with Henri, like an old friend. ah, what a trip. And thanks for the rain! What’s so great about that? Now I have a reason to come back! 2019 French Open baby! Au revoir!
Mandalay is the former capital of Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Myanmar is a small country north of Indonesia east of Vietnam. And that’s whats lost on Mandalay Bay. When you pull up to Mandalay Bay, you do notice that is lush, hidden behind lots of greenery, but no true indication of it Southeast Asian theme. As you enter Mandalay Bay through the lush greenery, you may catch a glimpse of tiger statues and other Thai, Indonesian, Vietnamese influences, but they are very low-key and not very prominent, so you really don’t have quite an idea of what you’re really getting into. Upon entering Mandalay Bay, did you notice that palm tree and a slight wicker thing. Strips of marble, and beautifully laid marble it is, are highlighted by brown strips of a textured marble to resemble the wicker themes from Southeast Asia. You’ll also notice that there are an excess of shutters surrounding the crown molding and door moldings of the lobby area. And this theme is carried throughout the rooms. There are large ceiling fans throughout the lobby, but that is the only true semblance of southeast Asia here. The dining area is your typical Vegas style, the buffet and lunch dining areas have about as much sense of tropical fare as south east Florida. I would venture to say Myanmar had their theme long before Key West did.
