We then caught a taxi to Travers' co-worker Travis Becker's apartment. He had recently moved to London and was living in corporate housing, but was planning on moving into his own place the next week! So he showed us around, and we had some cocktails and appetizers while we caught up on how he was enjoying living in London.
Later that night we headed to dinner at a restaurant called Busaba Thai. Apparently there are several of these throughout London, and although we ended up at a different one than we intended, it was still one of the most delicious thai dinners I think I have ever had. Yumm! After dinner, we strolled through Leicester Square, getting some Haagen-daaz ice cream for dessert. Double Yumm!
First night in London over, we slept like rocks and didn't rush to get up the next morning. When we finally got out of bed and ready for the day, we headed to Clapham, a neighborhood in London that Travis would soon be living in. We met him at The Windmill on the Common, a nearby hotel/restaurant/pub where we celebrated St. Patty's Eve by getting some beers and a tiny meat pie (yes, this was our breakfast).
Afterwards, we strolled around Clapham, around the common, a large open field where people will sunbathe (on the rare sunny day) or play sports. Travis showed us where his new apartment was going to be. Then we popped into The Sun Pub for some more beers and food, and to watch a rugby match that was on. We spent the next several hours chatting and enjoying the scene of the pub. And as its name says, the sun actually came out from behind the clouds and shone in through the all-glass storefront. Amazing!
That evening we had plans for dinner with our friends Chris and Jasmine Hodges, who had lived in Geneva for awhile, then had moved to London a year earlier, and were moving back home to Seattle in the next few weeks. So this was essentially the last time we would see them for awhile. We had dinner at Wahaca, a fun Mexican restaurant (yes, we get Mexican food in almost every country we go to). After devouring some tasty food and some yummy margaritas, we headed to a speakeasy called Purl, in a remote location, where you need a reservation to get in. We were shown a corner table and all ordered some elaborate drinks where some balloons were popped and things were lit on fire. Seriously. After a round of drinks, we called it a night, said goodbye to our friends, tried not to shed any tears, and headed back to the Bloomsbury for the night.
The next morning, we packed our bags and grabbed one last meal before heading to Heathrow. We met Travis (yes, we saw him a lot this weekend) near the Seven Dials and he showed us to his all time favorite restaurant to get Sunday roast, Hawksmoor. We were seated right away, and without looking at the menu, Travis ordered 3 Sunday roasts for us all. When the waitress came back with three huge plates of food, our eyes went wide. On each plate was a large cut of prime rib, lots of cooked vegetables and roasted potatoes, and a huge popover that rivals those at Neiman Marcus' The Rotunda! Amazingly, we all ate most of our food, stuffing ourselves almost to uncomfortably full. But it was well worth it as this was one of the best meals we've had in a long time. Needless to say, we were not hungry for the rest of the day until much later that evening back in Geneva at home.
Two days later, on a Tuesday, I woke up at 4am, packed a bag, and caught the bus to the train station, where I met my friend Shelley and her baby girl Harper. We were catching an early train to Paris for a one night girls trip! The train took about 3 hours, arriving in Paris mid-morning. We took the metro to our hotel near the Arc de Triomphe (getting our first taste of travelling with a stroller in the Paris Underground), dropped our bags, took in the view of the city, then headed out to take in as much as possible.
Starting at the Arc de Triomphe, we strolled down the Champs-Elysees, stopping into various shops and stores. It was almost lunch time, so we turned off the main drag and ventured into little side streets to find a cute cafe or restaurant. We settled on one with create your own sandwiches and salads. And even though we ordered in French, they can always tell that we would prefer English.After lunch, we continued our stroll towards Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore and almost had a run-in with Justin Bieber, who was in town staying at Le Meridien. We waited awhile to see if he would show up, along with lots of teenage girls with their camera phones at the ready. When he didn't show up, we continued our stroll and ogled the designer clothes through the store-front windows. We took a break at Le Pain Quotidien for an afternoon coffee and to tend to little Harper. She really enjoyed sleeping through the majority of her first trip to Paris. We tried going to the Ritz for a glass of champagne, because what's a trip to Paris without a glass of champagne! But the hotel was under construction, so we found a nice quiet restaurant that looked out onto the front of the Palais Garnier, the Opera!
After enjoying a much needed glass of champagne, we took the metro back to the hotel, just as it started to rain. We rested a bit at the hotel and played with baby Harper and took in the views of Paris lighting up after the sun set. For dinner, since we get French food all the time, we chose a tasty Thai restaurant in the 3rd arrondissement, then called it a night as the rain wasn't letting up.
The next morning, we packed our bags, dropped them at reception, then took the Metro to the Notre Dame. We walked past the Hotel de Ville, then crossed the bridge to the Notre Dame. And just our luck, the sun came out just in time to shine upon us and the famous cathedral. After taking a quick look inside, and some photos outside (you can see Harper is continuing to sleep through Paris in the photo below), we continued into the 5th arrondissement, walking past the Sorbonne, and ending up at the Pantheon.
Continuing our stroll up Boulevard Saint-Michel, we had lunch at a small sushi restaurant that slowly filled with locals. Then stopped in at a Starbucks (it had to be done) before heading towards the Louvre. We walked through the building and enjoyed the views of the beautiful museum.
It was getting time to head back home, so we took the metro back to the hotel, grabbed our bags, then metro'd it back to the train station just in time to catch our train back to Geneva. It was a whirlwind of a trip to Paris, but it is such an amazing city and travelling there is so easy from Geneva, that it just had to be done. One day we'll have to take Harper back there when she can keep her eyes open and truly enjoy the beautiful city.
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