Nous Sommes Charlie.
It's been over a week since the Charlie Hebdo incident happened, and I must say, being in Paris during a sensitive period like this was a little unnerving. Honestly, staying in the Marais area did not make things easier. I decided if I were to explore the city, I would do it with someone like Aisyah (which was exactly what I did.)
After dragging her out for a morning coffee at my favourite coffee shop, Boot, we went on a hunt for remnants of the march and rally that happened the day before we arrived. Yes, the people are extremely angry. You could feel it in the piercing wind.
I realized the hunger from skipping breakfast was making me a little emotional looking at all the #JeSuisCharlie posters, decals, and magazine covers. That called for some comfort food, and our cravings for Mexican food brought us to La Candelaria which serves up some pretty yummy tacos. The taqueria's capacity is probably 11 people at most, with five at the counter and a table for six. Let me just say, this place does not need any more promo, so it would be wiser to beat the lunch/dinner crowd by arriving earlier. The servers here are not the friendliest, but the food... the food here is just spot on.
The waiter told me that the menu changes frequently, and they normally have a selection of only three types of tacos. I had been here once before, and this time nothing on the tacos menu looked remotely similar to the ones I ordered previously. If you ever pay a visit, please get their tamarind-pepper-dipped glasses of margarita and chunky guacamole (chips included!) These are the "resident" items on the menu and they sell out very quickly.
That heavy intake of calories over lunch also meant we had to explore the rest of the Marais by foot. I love this neighborhood so that wasn't much of a hassle for me. Even during winter, you can find vibrant color in its little nooks and crannies.
Being the usual gluttons, we rewarded ourselves with some desserts (no judgment.) I got us a couple dollops of gelato from Pozzetto, and as we headed toward the Hotel de Ville area we grabbed a cute little waffle loaded with vanilla beans from Yummy & Guiltfree (Y&G). Guilt-free indeed, it was organic and sans gluten!
With our full stomachs, we journeyed down to Rue Cremieux to take a look at the pastel houses. I was at Portobello Road Market slightly over a week ago, and walking along this rue just seemed like a deja vu.
The weather was really unforgiving on our second day in Paris, many of our plans were thwarted. Since we only had clear skies in the morning, we traveled all the way to the 1er arrondissement for a lovely breakfast at Claus, then continued our way to the Bir-Hakeim bridge à la Inception.
The croissants there were nothing to shout about, but I must give some love to the food presentation, good service, and of course... their organic (and home-made) jams. The strawberry and mint jam was so delish we were scraping the last of it with our brioche halves.
I know the Pont de Bir-Hakeim has probably been butchered to death but it's not everyday I get to enjoy Paris with one of my favorite home girls. Look at how happy we were, albeit freezing in the cold. The only thing missing is Ping. La prochaine fois peut-être?
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