Paris day 3 December 2011

The last day of our trip dawned WET, cold and grey and it was a day the Louvre was open so we did go there but the huge queues and the wet, cold grey air defeated us.
Breakfast at the hotel had been plentiful and delicious.
Warm and atmospheric.
And we fondly remembered the desserts of the night before...

Back at the Louvre, we decided to go look for a vintage shop advertised in a magazine the Hotel had provided, alas the shop had moved on or we failed to find the entrance to the second etage.
Instead having read the full Rough guide to Paris the evening before I wanted to find a ''Grand Passage'' and this is one of them.


Full of quirkly shops and dry for a bit! I can recommend the pocket rough guide while walking round Paris as it has a good map and succinct information, but the full guide is a better read.
Miss E liked this shoe-shop, but we - bedraggled and wet as we were- got stared at.
We sought refuse in hot drinks and pastries!

And wandered back to le Printemps for a bit more window shopping...

A paper dress, not a good idea in this rain?
Miss E in all her branded glory: Jack Wills jacket and scarf, Cath Kidston bag and duckie umbrella!

Browsing in le Printemps was similar to La Fayette but a lot less friendly than in say Liberty of London or Selfridges! This lady touched the Christopher Kane cardigan I was admiring - seeing it in the flesh after all the catwalk photos was AMAZING!- and was told off by guards.

The cashmere used in the granny square effect was thicker than expected, at least an aran weight I'd say. I loved the granny squares printed onto black leather for the skirts- see photo.

Very effective.
Then bored and tired we ended up in another CUPPOLA- quite by chance actually - and had lunch and a rest there, in the comfy leather sofa area, not the packed restaurant. I photographed/crocheted and the family played on their gadgets, i-phone and i-pad.











After our leisurely lunch we took the metro back and caught the Eurostar home.

Oddly enough this was the first and only break/holiday in which I bought NOTHING at all.

I also never found a yarn or wool shop- not allowed by the kids- despite having printed off a few addresses from google beforehand and bringing them to Paris in my handbag!!!

The kids brought back many sweets for their pals and that was it.

Lovely food though, THAT I will remember and yes I did gain quite a few lbs in just 3 days...