Europe

Today we slept in and didn’t make it down to breakfast. We have eaten so much food on this trip that we decided it wouldn’t be the worst idea to miss one opulent breakfast!

We decided today that we’d head to Porte de Clignancourt to visit the most famous flea market in Paris. The market is officially called Les Puces de Saint-Ouen, but is known locally as Les Puces (The Fleas). It covers seven hectares and is the largest antique market in the world.

On the way, we came across a charming little cheese shop, Chez Virginie. The French dedication to the presentation of food is really second to none.

We got to the market around 2:30 pm. We wandered around without much of a plan, knowing that we would not be able to see everything.

We stopped in a little workshop where we met Francois, who had started his own brand, making handbags by hand. We spoke with him for a while as he showed us the process of making a handbag. He was very nice and, of course, we made a small purchase!

By the time we started the walk back to the hotel, it was nearly 5:30 pm. Unfortunately, it started to rain on the way back, so we were somewhat wet by the time we got back. We had considered stopping at a restaurant on the way back for dinner but decided that the lure of a hot bath and room service was too great! We did stop at a patisserie on the way back and got a couple of pastries for dessert!

We had a very nice dinner in our room. Naturally, we opted for spaghetti bolognaise (as we usually do!).

Tomorrow we have a very early start. We have a flight in the morning to Ireland. Breakfast will be arriving in our room at 6:15 am, and we plan to be out of the hotel and on the way to Charles de Gaulle airport by 7:00 am for our departure at 10:10 am to Dublin. After walking more than 16km today, we expect to sleep pretty well tonight.