sundays are a day of rest in paris and practically everything is closed, so what do you do?

here are 5 things to do in paris on a sunday:

1) sleep in, then brunch

2) bookworm it

pop in to a cozy parisian bookstore and discover new {or old} books

& resist the urge to climb those ladders.

3) get your eat on @ rue des rosiers

rue des rosiers is a street in the marais neighborhood known as the heart of the jewish quarter. Lots of jewish bakeries, falafel shop(s), & new designers.
and there are two places you should most definitely stop by…

l’as du fallafel

the lines are long {especially on sundays} but even from this far away {see below photo}, it’s only about a 20-30 minute wait.

it might seem long and you may be tempted to stray to the other falafel shops, but don’t do it{!) because before you know it you’ll come face to face with these fellows who take your ticket and hand you a delicious falafel.

you take a bite and all that time you just spent waiting is immediately forgotten.

a warm soft/chewy pita filled to the brim with fresh hot falafel, tahina sauce (?), cabbage slaw, roasted eggblant, cucumber, tomato, parsley, tzatziki sauce, and optional spicy sauce.

the roasted eggplant along with the crunchy slaw are delicious additions and take that sandwich to the next level.

there are other items available on the menu, but this place is all about that falafel.
holy yum.

sacha finkelsztajn

a family owned kosher bakery serving up delicious sandwiches and desserts.

4) shop in the marais

come after 2pm {or after your falafel/sacha lunch} as all the stores should all be open by then. Lots of new designers, not just paris based, have opened shop here and makes for a fun afternoon of {window} shopping.
I say window because a simple beanie/hat can cost upwards of 80 euro.

otherwise, if you’re not in the mood for shopping, it’s still a great place to just stroll the streets, and in my case, walk off that falafel sandwich.

the streets there have such character, it’s fun to just look around.

5) just relax & stroll to dinner

take the long way through the charming streets of paris {or not} and just take in a nice dinner with family or friends and enjoy their company.

in my case, dinner was @ les 110 de taillevent

{cod over veggies}

and make sure to order dessert!

{delices de votre enfance/childhood favorites: a floating island, rice pudding, caramel cream, & chocolate mousse}

i think dessert rounds out a sunday perfectly. guaranteed.

yesterday was a day spent out and about just enjoying the cool weather and shopping.
it was a gloomy day, but i guess that’s pretty usual for paris in the fall.

i spent about 15 mins on google maps trying to map out where we walked {the best i could – it’s hard moving those little white dots on google maps!} and i’ve come to the conclusion it was about 7ish miles(?). its a rough estimate since we made lots of detours off the main roads.

On our way out.

On our way back.

 and here are some photos from todays trek.

arc de triomphe

side street off victor hugo

champs-élysées

laduree(!)

continuing the trek down champs-élysées

looking right

looking back

we made our way down champs-élysées, took a left at place de la concorde to rue st honoré where we made a right and continued onwards a little past place vendome and circled back passing the always ever-crowded Angelina’s.

tons of people waiting in line for hot chocolate and pastries.

 we headed across the street to jardin des tuileries

where it truly looked like autumn with orange leaves, bare branches, and grey skies.

this is exactly what i picture when i think of fall.

speaking of grey skies, usually you can get a pretty clear view of the eiffel tower from place de concorde, but the skys were so foggy (smoggy?) you can barely make it out in the distance.

it began to get dark on our way back and the christmas lights were starting to come on.
{eee – so excited for xmas!!} 

we veered off route a bit for dinner @ le relais de l’entrecote, a restaurant that serves up a french specialty, steak frites.

they literally only ask you how you want your steak cooked and what you want to drink.
a salad is served first

then the steak frites - x’s 2.
{once you finish your first plate, they bring you a second portion}

and i saw this on my way back to the hotel…

cannot wait to see it!

a right turn past the arc,

and we finally made it back to our hotel.

***

it’s currently 7am here and i’ve been up since 5am (totally jet lagged) so i think i’ll head down to the gym for a quick workout, eat breakfast, and then head off to pick up my sister who flies in today.

it’s going to be another grey day, but should be a fun one! i foresee some shoe shopping and macarons

hope your weekends are off to a great start!