This article is reposted from the WeChat public account of a reader in our WeChat group, 懒人 33 的吃喝玩乐. Original link.

Day 5

Day 5 was our last day staying in central Paris. After this, we moved to a hotel near Disneyland.

That morning, we went to the famous Angelina next to our hotel for breakfast. We arrived at around 10 a.m. and there was absolutely no line. Parisians really do start late. By the time we finished and came out, a line had already formed. When we passed by again later that afternoon, the line was incredibly long.

Located near the Louvre, Angelina is best known for its Mont Blanc and hot chocolate (Chocolat Chaud). The story goes that these two items were favorites of Coco Chanel, but the real reason they are so popular is simple: they taste great. The Mont Blanc wraps meringue in chestnut cream and chestnut paste, combining rich chestnut flavor with vanilla cream and crisp meringue for a sweet, smooth dessert. The chocolate is also excellent—rich, fragrant, and sweet. They also sell hot chocolate mix, so you can bring some home, add milk, and make your own Angelina hot chocolate. The flagship location often has a line, so the Louvre or Versailles branches may be a better choice.

Even without a line, the place was still pretty full inside. Since we had a stroller, they even had us switch tables. Our server felt like a very straightforward French auntie. When I said I wanted to order the Mont Blanc, she told me not to get the seasonal version because it was more expensive and not as good as the classic one.

The must-order Mont Blanc definitely had a strong chestnut flavor and a very delicate texture. But for me, it was still very, very sweet, and after a few bites it started to feel a bit too rich.

The hot chocolate was sweet, silky, and intensely rich. Chocolate lovers would probably adore it.

Our favorite was the omelet. It was fine—solid and standard. The greens on the side with vinaigrette were decent too.

The Salmon Eggs Benedict was also pretty good, though there’s not much more to say about it.

Musée de l'Orangerie

After breakfast, we walked through the Tuileries Garden to reach our first stop of the day: the Orangerie. The Tuileries Garden was hosting this year’s Christmas market; in past years it had usually been on the Champs-Élysées. During the day, you could get a sense of what the market would look like at night.

Maybe because it was Christmas Eve, there were hardly any people in the Tuileries Garden.

Once we crossed the Tuileries Garden, we arrived at the Orangerie. It was my favorite museum of the whole trip: small but exquisite, quiet, and unhurried. You could sit and stare at the giant Water Lilies for a very long time.

Near Place de la Concorde along the Seine by the Tuileries Garden, part of the former Tuileries Palace remains and has now been converted into the Musée de l'Orangerie. Although this museum is small, it is exceptionally rewarding, and even people who are not especially into museums may want to stop by. The entire first floor consists of just 8 huge oil paintings displayed across two galleries: Monet’s masterpiece from 1914-1918, Water Lilies (Les Nympheas). Sit on one of the benches in the middle of the room, look all around you, and quietly take in the subtle changes in Monet’s garden across the seasons and throughout the day.

Beyond that, the lower-level galleries, though also not large, are filled with famous names: Picasso, Cézanne, Renoir, Matisse, Rousseau, Derain, Gauguin, and more. From orange trees to Water Lilies, the Orangerie building was constructed in 1852 by architect Firmin Bourgeois to house the orange trees grown in the Jardin des Tuileries. The Orangerie was once used as a warehouse, and in 1921 it was incorporated into the Ecole des Beaux Arts. The school then decided to follow the example of the Jeu de Paume and convert it into an exhibition space.

However, at the suggestion of Georges Clemenceau, the Orangerie was turned over to Claude Monet to house his Water Lilies series, which he began creating in 1914. The museum was renovated in the 1960s, and at the start of the 21st century it returned to its original glory. In addition to the Water Lilies series, the Musée de l'Orangerie also hosts temporary exhibitions.

One thing to note: the barriers in the gallery were fairly low and the sides were not blocked off. Our child almost went in to touch the paintings, which gave both us and the staff quite a scare. If you’re visiting with a small child, be extra careful.

Musée d'Orsay

Besides the Water Lilies, the downstairs exhibits were also well worth seeing. Because the museum is small, we finished in fairly short order. After leaving the Orangerie, we headed to our next stop: the Musée d'Orsay. The museum is on the Left Bank of the Seine, but it’s very close—an easy walk from the Orangerie, just across the bridge.

Across the Seine from the Tuileries Garden in front of the Louvre, the beautiful building with the large clock used to be Paris’s southwestern train station. In 1986, it was converted into the museum with the world’s largest collection of Impressionist works.

One of Paris’s three great museums, the Musée d'Orsay mainly houses artistic treasures from 1848-1912 (for works before 1848, the Louvre is recommended; for art after 1912, head to the Pompidou). Highlights you should not miss include masterpieces by the great Impressionists and related artists: Van Gogh’s Self-Portrait and The Church at Auvers, Claude Monet’s Impression, Sunrise and Woman with a Parasol, Jean-Francois Millet’s The Gleaners, Edouard Manet’s Le dejeurner su lherbe, Paul Cezanne’s still lifes, plus many works by Renoir, Gauguin, Picasso, and others.

We rented an audio guide at the Musée d'Orsay, and Chinese was available. Our kid fell asleep in the middle of the visit, which finally gave my partner and me a chance to sit down, take in several paintings properly, and listen carefully to the commentary.

By then our kid was just about awake, so we had to go back to speed-walking through the museum. We wrapped up the Musée d'Orsay visit with Van Gogh's Self-Portrait.

Café de Flore

By then it was afternoon again. Since we were already on the Left Bank, we decided to go try the famous “Left Bank coffee.” We walked there as usual, though this stretch was a bit longer—close to 20 minutes on foot.

We picked the classic Café de Flore.

Café de Flore, named after the Roman goddess Flore, has been around since 1887. Located on the Left Bank of [Paris](http://place.qyer.com/paris/), this café has witnessed many important moments in history—it was a cradle of existentialism, the birthplace of Surrealism, and even appeared in Xu Zhimo's prose. The café is beautiful and clean, and the ingredients are very fresh, but prices are high. Two salads, a glass of wine, and mineral water cost about 50 euros!

We ordered a mille-feuille, which was pretty good and not overly rich. My partner really liked the Flore tea, so I even took a dedicated photo of it.

I have no idea what the proper name is for this messy-looking meat patty of some sort, but it actually tasted pretty good.

Even the paper placemat said “Café de Flore,” and it was very pretty. But the servers were clearly overwhelmed, and the service wasn't great. When it was time to pay, we waited 10 to 20 minutes before the bill finally arrived.

The photo below is of another famous café, Les Deux Magots.

Les Deux Magots, also known in Chinese as the “Double Old Men Café,” got its name from the two elderly Chinese figurines mounted on the café's interior walls. Located across from Café de Flore, it is equally historic and famous. Hemingway and Picasso were among its regulars, which is why it still draws many travelers today.

After lunch, we noticed an LV store across the street and went in to browse. The sales associate said that because of the holiday and factory closures, they were basically out of bags. She even showed us display cabinets that would normally hold bags but were now filled with plates because they literally had nothing else to put out. That really reset my expectations yet again. Naturally, we left empty-handed and headed back to the hotel to rest. We hadn't booked a restaurant for that day and planned to grab dinner later at the Christmas market in the Tuileries Garden.

Christmas Eve

Since it was Chrismas Eve that day, the Christmas market closed at 7 p.m. But we didn't know that ahead of time and assumed it would stay open late. We dawdled at the hotel before heading out, and not long after we arrived, it closed. A little disappointing.

After getting off the Ferris wheel, we started looking for dinner. We were like country bumpkins in the big city—everything we saw looked delicious.

I was still wavering over what else to eat when suddenly the market stalls started closing, and we were completely confused. It quickly became clear that this was really happening—security guards had already started ushering people out—so we rushed back to buy the one thing we wanted most: Spanish paella. We had planned to duck into a corner and eat it there, but the security guard said no. So in the light drizzle, carrying the paella in an open paper box with no lid, we walked all the way back to the hotel. Luckily, the hotel was very close to the Christmas market, so the paella didn’t get rained on too much. Maybe because we hadn’t eaten much for lunch, everything tasted especially good at that moment. That piping-hot paella was truly the most delicious winter dinner.

After eating, we hurried to pack our luggage, washed up, and went to bed. On Christmas Day, we were moving to a hotel near Disney, so we had to get up early. Good night, little Paris.

Paris Trip Series

This article was originally published in 2021, so some of the content is still related to the pandemic. However, most of the tips and experiences are still useful, which is why we’re republishing it on this site.

About the Author

This article is reposted from the WeChat public account of a reader from our WeChat group, Lazy 33’s Food and Travel Adventures. All of the articles are original and well worth reading, so feel free to follow if you’re interested.