Paris (in) spring

Lovely hot chocolate at Angelina's

So we got a cheap deal to go Paris for the weekend. The Boyfriend's brother lives in Paris and he knows his way around quite well.  So we walked from the Latin Quarter over Ile-de-France, to the Marais, then the Tuileries Gardens and then Luxembourg Gardens.  



It was 22 degrees under a cloudless sky. City flowers everywhere. Lots of lovely things to eat (including tasty authentic Moroccan food with friendly service near Place des Gobelin). Things to make you look everywhere. Insanely delicious hot chocolate with whipped cream at Angelina's.  

The Patheon

Graffiti in the Marais

Little park by Rue de Parve in La Marais

Goats cheese salad for a yummy lunch

Salted caramel and hazelnut
 ice cream on Ile de France

Doors!

Paris flowers

Love locks on Passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor

Jardin du Luxembourg

Graffiti in the Marais

On Sunday morning we ate waffles and fruit at my brother-in-law (to be's...) place before catching the Eurostar. Vive la France!

February

Where should I begin? I've not been around much again having said how much I was looking forward to blogging again last month. Well with the best placed plans of mice and men and all that...

We moved home. Finally! After a year of property searching, one purchase falling through and two particularly involved sales of our own flats The Boyfriend and I finally moved last week. Yippee!

We were bracing ourselves for something to go wrong at the last minute but moving day was unusually smooth.  We were assisted by a fantastic removal team run by Danny who exudes grace and calm even after a 10 hour stretch of hard physical work and also happens to work as a life coach.  

Even though we were exhausted by the end of the move day, our flat instantly felt like home. As our chairs, bed, sofas and tables came out of the removal van they just seemed to find their place and feel right. The last week has been a whirl of unpacking, taking in deliveries, handy men and electricians.  Our spare bedroom remains packed from floor to ceiling and we have cardboard boxes instead of curtains in our bedroom. But it still feels exciting to come home every time we step outside the flat.  

And...

... I've been thinking about changing career for some time.  I'm coming to the end of a 2 year secondment in a different sector. It was an easy option at the time. It was offered unexpectedly over coffee and it took me away from my old job.  I enjoyed the secondment to begin with and I was offered a permanent job pretty much immediately but I've known in my my heart that it wasn't for me.  I am aware that it sounds spoilt to be fussing about career changes when the job market is so difficult for lots of people at the moment.  However I reckon I have at least another 30 years before I get retire altogether so I need to be doing something I find worthwhile. 

The secondment has given me a different perspective and helped me think more fundamentally about what I want to do. I applied for a new job in a completely different field in February but I didn't get it. Apparently I came second to someone to who is an internationally recognised expert in the field (!) so can't feel too bad about not getting the job. I'm due to go back to my old organisation in a few weeks time but I'm a now bit clearer about what I want to go to, rather just what I want to run away from.  I'm also planning to check out this course at The School of Life.   

And...

The Boyfriend proposed last summer with a beautiful ring from Alex Monroe, my favourite jewellery designer (natch - The Boyfriend is very very good). However we always planned to chose a diamond together. With the move out of the way, last week we bought a lovely classic, sparkly ring. Its being resized at the moment so I can't show the pictures. 

We celebrated our engagement (again) with spaghetti and champagne the Cow in Westbourne Park.  The bread and butter pudding we ate for dessert was sensational. Apart from being almost the size of my head, which is a valuable quality in itself.  I think bread and butter pudding at The Cow may have overtaken the Albion's hot chocolate mousse in my affections.    

I'm so filled with pride and love.  I really can't wait to get married.  I doesn't make any sense but with everything going on all of a sudden I feel very grown up.  And I like it. 

x
      

The Birthday: Part 2. Manon

My final present from The Boyfriend was 2 tickets to see the English National Ballet at the Royal Opera House.       

We started the evening with an early dinner in Les Deux Salon in Charing Cross. We have been meaning to check out the restaurant for ages. I ordered monkfish with tiny sweet onions and The Boyfriend had pasta with pumpkin and mushroom.  I don't think the food is as good as Arbutus but we had a lovely meal anyway.

I enjoy contemporary dance but didn't know much about classical ballet before we went so I looked up the plot of Manon on the internet earlier in the day.  

The ballet is set in 19th century Paris and it is the story of a beautiful but poor girl - Manon -who falls into the world of aristocrats, beggars and courtesans.  Manon and a young student called Des Greiux are in love and they try to run away together. However her corrupt brother Lescaut has promised that she'll become the mistress to an old wealthy aristocrat and she is seduced by the promise of comfort and riches. The lot of a classical heroine is rarely good, and the unfolding story is a genuinely moving tragedy.  The performance itself is fantastic and I was surprised how clear the story telling was. Even if we hadn't looked it up it was easy to follow what was going on. 

The dancing was beautiful with amazing shapes and lines from strong charismatic dancers.  The leads were amazing and conveyed the tender and passionate relationship between De Greiux and Manon. My favourite scene was in De Greiux's student room. The ensemble cast were also brilliant and there were brilliant mini-vignettes danced by the ensemble dancers that helped establish the narrative but also add humour. 

Overall it was an amazing experience.  The orchestra sounded fantastic. The hyper modern bars and restaurants felt super glamorous. The gold and red colours in the theater and porcelain blue 19th century ceiling are opulent. But most importantly I experienced the whole thing with my lovely boyfriend.  We've cut back a lot of things this year because we've been saving for the wedding, moving and like everyone else worrying a bit about what the future holds. I've been feeling the strain a bit recently so this was a particularly thoughtful treat.  One of the reasons I love The Boyfriend so much.    

Manon is still running until 26 November and if you can get tickets then I'd highly recommend it. 

Chocolate Fondant at The Albion

The Boyfriend and I spent day 5 of the holiday in Shoreditch looking at a couple of wedding venues. Ordinarily we might have done a bit of shopping too - particularly The Boyfriend who is the most fiendishly stylish man I've ever met. However we're trying hard not to spend too much money at the moment.  Buying our new flat means taking on a bigger mortgage and up until now we've found new and unexpected legal things that we've have to spend money on.

Although we didn't go shopping we had lunch at the Albion which serves the most delicious chocolate fondant.  The last time I was there, I thought it was the most amazing thing I'd eat all year.  Having eaten it again today I can confirm that I was right.  Mmmmmmm.

Any other nominations for the most delicious food of the year?