Spending the Holidays in the City of Light

"Do you want to come with me to Paris for Thanksgiving?"

That was all that was needed. And with a quick mouse-click on Expedia, I had my plane ticket on Air Tahiti to Paris. Without a second thought, I would be whisked away to the City of Light.

It's been a while since I lived spontaneously, on the edge.

Signing up for skydiving at the last minute and jumping out of a plane with the air pressing against my lungs in high velocity...

River rafting on the Kern with a group of relative strangers and staying at what seemed like the Bates Motel...

Flying to Paris on a moment's notice.

I was the first to arrive into CDG airport and took a cab to my hotel with a Cambodian transplant in Paris. He was incredibly friendly and talked of his daughter in Long Beach and mother in Orange County, and was shocked to hear that I was almost 30 years old.

I think I was more shocked to find out that my cab ride cost me almost 75 Euros and about two hours!

The mad Paris traffic was probably due to the local transit strikes at the time. So when I saw the meter hit 70 Euros, I got out early and walked the rest of the way.

By then, it was around lunchtime and I worked up a hungry appetite.

I walked to Eric Kayser's little boulangerie, BE after reading about it on Clotilde's Chocolate and Zucchini food blog in Paris. With cute little pastries, fresh baked breads of all kinds, and beautifully encased sandwiches, I knew I was in for a real treat.

I ordered three mini sandwiches for about 2.50 Euros each, as suggested by Clotilde:

* Duck on Tomato bread (my favorite with tons of flavors!)
* Tomato and Pesto on Basil bread (my 2nd favorite, a classic!)
* Olive Tapenade and Cheese on Olive bread (my least favorite because of the strong olive taste but otherwise, still very good!)



I also ordered a mini passionfruit mousse tart in a buttery, flaky crust which was deliciously sweet and creamy.

One bite, and I knew I was in love.

Paris - the city in which one loves to live, and I was living in another world and loving every moment.