Paris is one of the most popular touristic destinations in the world. While you find thousands of “good advises” and “must-see” spots I would like to encourage you to a lazy walk around one of the city islands: Île St-Louis. Frankly, even if Paris is not my favorite city I think I would agree with Audrey Hepburn who said:
“Paris is always a good idea”
I went to Paris many times and I saw it in various seasons: extremely warm when the city seams to be empty, in the rain, covered with autumn leafs. Personally, my last trip to Paris was the most memorable for me. Mainly because I saw it so many times before that I finally could get wonderfully lost.
If you are in Paris Île St-Louis is highly recommended. You may even be lucky and avoid the crowd if you visit this part of the city in late afternoon. The island itself is lovely, with its tiny little streets and stylish houses, with wonderful views on the river. But what you really need to do is to visit one particular place called Cacao et Chocolat, a small chocolaterie. It is located in Rue St-Louis en l’Île at the corner with Rue de Regrattier. It is very easy to find: all you need to do is to walk down the main street and at certain point it is simply there.
Why after so many years I still remember this place? Mostly because of the exceptional taste of hot chocolate with chilly, then because of a very cozy and friendly interior. It reminded me some old fashion cafes with wooden shelves and this beautiful containers for coffee beans, candies and other goods. Also because of a variety of smells and flavors. You get the impression that this chocolate comes from all over the world. But most of all because I visited Pairs in late October when it is already chilly. I traveled to Paris from Italy so even knowing it is much colder in Paris than in Rome I still had no warm clothes that I could take with me. So, I was freezing for most of the time. When I was drinking my chocolate I remember until today this soothing sensation of warm, first in my stomach and then gradually spreading all over my body. This was the only moment during my whole stay in Paris, that I was feeling warm. From this very moment for me Paris is a city of warm and sweetness. I don’t know if this place still exists but if it does you need to go there!
Credits: Samuel Globus and brangal (flickr.com)
