Les Halles-Rambuteau - A Day of Wondering Aimlessly

Today was wonderful.  No specific route planned, just an exploration of the side streets in the neighborhood.

If you have a Paris map, you can follow me.  Otherwise, just enjoy the tour.  My journey starts at the apartment location: Intersection of Rue Montmartre and Rue Etienne Marcel.  Etienne Marcel is the dividing line between 1 Arrondisement and 2 Arrondisement.  As I left the apartment, I thought that I would take a little walk and then return to one of the boulangeries (bakeries) and get a sandwich.  I started off going south on Rue Montmartre past Eglise Saint-Eustache. I walked through  (on the edge of) the park towards the Les Halles Metro station and continued on to Rue Rambuteau.  I turned right on Rue Saint-Denis.

I had bearly walked past two stores when I could smell something cooking.  I saw a crepe stand. My stomach rumbled and mentioned that I hadn't tried one of these, so now was a great time to do so.  I selected a basic one with cheese:

It took a little while longer for the cheese to melt, and then he folded it and put it in a paper container.  It reminded me of a quesadilla snack, only the crepe was softer with a taste of, well, crepe.

I munched on the crepe as I walked and window shopped, turning left and right in the area. It was a pedestrian section of town, so no need to watch for car traffic. Perfect when you are totally distracted.

Cheesy crepe

After a while, I saw the St. Eustache church again and decided to wander down rue Montorgueil.  I made it just a few steps when I saw hot chocolate.  I asked the attendant for some, and he told me that I needed to pay inside first. So, I walked inside and to my delight found two Italian men behind a counter filled with gelato.  Perfect!  I quickly forgot about the hot chocolate, chatted about the warm weather in Rome at this time of year, and ordered a dark chocolate and espresso treat.

Chocolate and Espresso Gelato

I strolled and looked in windows at every shop.  When the gelato was finished, I went in to Au Rocher De Cancale, selected a table inside, and ordered a caffe creme (coffee with creme).

Caffe Creme at Au Rocher De Cancale

I sipped and enjoyed the people watching.  After a while, I headed back to the apartment so take a nap. Ahhhh, busy day.