Bijoux

One more abbey photo , just because it was so amazing…

The hotel room at Mont Saint-Michel was even more basic than I realised. Unable to turn the heater off, I opened the window, resulting in a blast of briny cold air from one end of the room fighting the 28 degree heat pouring out of the heater from the other end. The cold won, chasing me to the shower, and a five minute wait for a trickle of warm water. There WAS a Nespresso machine, but no milk, so cold but determined, I ventured down the stairs to the deserted restaurant. Tiny spiral stairs, in the semi-dark, at 5am are no laughing matter. I was completely prepared to raid the kitchen fridge, but found one of those automatic coffee machines and swiped a cup from the pre set tables to fill with hot milk. I felt quite proud of myself- one of those little moments when you just keep going and achieve success in the end. 

My sense of achievement was short lived , as I missed the shuttle back down the causeway. I tried to flag down the driver but the guy just waved back at me and kept driving. I walked. In the rain. The rest of the trip back to Paris was uneventful. I’ve included a photo of the causeway path seen from the abbey, and an interesting option from the buffet car (I wasn’t brave enough to try them)

Back in Paris, I collected my luggage and moved to my accommodation for the last few days, L’Hotel in St Germain. This is a little 20 room hotel built in 1828, said to be the first boutique hotel in Paris. 

The rooms are all individually decorated with theatrical flair - velvet, silk, rich colours and elaborate detailing. I believe my room is Mata Hari themed. It’s ridiculous, but fun, and feels like bring inside a jewellery box. 

The  hotel has a guest list as colourful as the decor including Salvador Dalí, Princess Grace, Frank Sinatra, and Jim Morrison. The most celebrated resident was Oscar Wilde, who spent his final days here in 1900 and died in room 16. I went down all five flights of stairs so I could check out the room. Evidence : 

St Germain is a fantastic area, full of galleries, antique shops, cafes and winding streets. I lunched at a  creperie, “Little Breizah”, demolishing a ham cheese and mushroom buckwheat crepe and a bowl of cider. Literally a bowl of- I wasn’t sure if a cup was coming but eventually drank from the bowl. It’s a tiny restaurant with tables crammed together but the service was friendly and food delicious. Highly recommend!

 

The afternoon was spent with a friend at Vignerons, a small private wine-tasting room across from the Tuileries. As we were the only two people booked into that time slot, it turned into a rather special experience.

There was a beautiful spread of charcuterie and cheeses, matched to the wines by region. Our sommelier, a Ukrainian woman with a wealth of knowledge, guided us through a tasting focused on small, independent winemakers. It felt like sitting down with a knowledgeable friend who just happened to have excellent wine and a good supply of cheese. We discussed everything and nothing, and the session ran at least an hour beyond its scheduled finish. We finished by trying dessert wine associated with the family behind Château d'Yquem, not part of the standard tasting, but brought out by our sommelier as a bit of a treat. 

By the time we finished, dinner was definitely unnecessary. I headed back to the hotel for an early night.