Day trip to Paris, 2nd March 2024

Bread basket at Bouillon Julien - seven thick crust slices tightly packed onto a basket

Long story short: we had a chance to spend last Saturday in Paris, and so we did!

We were there for less than 12 hours. Yes, it sounds preposterous, but we embraced the absurdness of it with efficiency and organisation: we identified a few things we could do, but left ample margin to do so, booked a restaurant for lunch, and then executed with precision.

It really helps to live close to St. Pancras, so we could walk to the station and be there less than an hour after waking up. So, we were on time, and so was our train.

St Pancras concourse in the morning, and Tracey Emin's neon in the background. Our Eurostar train is to the left, waiting for us. A person wearing a high visibility vest waits by the travelator in the distance.
St Pancras concourse in the morning, Tracey Emin’s neon “I want my time with you” and our Eurostar train waiting for us
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In the soap shop of whimsy

The café in the soap shop

The rain was lashing the streets with violence (thank you for nothing, wind!). If you opened the umbrella, it was blown away and turned around. If you didn’t, you got all wet. It was all futile: whatever you did, you lost the battle.

It was putting me in a foul mood, so I thought maybe I should take my mind off the nasty weather by going to the shops.

I crossed this shop’s threshold —for there is no actual physical door in it, only an invisible wall of hot air separating the in from the out— and tried to gather all my layers in preparation of what was to come next: toiletry shopping.

My deliberate efforts to minimise the negative impact I leave on Earth had led me to conclude it would be a good idea to switch to soap rather than use shower gel, and what could be better than getting soap at a place where not only can you buy it by the weight, but is also made in an ethical manner?

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From Rinkoff’s Bakery to Floris Bakery in Soho

Detail of "Floris" sign on the Great Windmill Street side

The pictures in this fabulous article on Spitalfields life “at Rinkoff’s Bakery” caught my eye, as the owner was shown shaping a beautifully plaited bread.

One of my fascinations, as might or not have become evident by now, is the art of intricately shaped breads. Another fascination I like to indulge in is peeling off the layers of time.

This post combines the two!

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Valencia, February 2023

A tray with churros and two hot chocolate cups (one with cream on top), on the afternoon sun at Chocolates Valor, Valencia

We went to València last week and… it is definitely a place where you can eat well!

Big Zuu recently visited the city and surrounding area for his programme called “12 Dishes in 12 Hours”; he did a great job of tasting what the area has to offer, and here is our version, I suppose. Though we haven’t counted the number of dishes and this is more like a week… anyway, to the food!

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Tuesday, 18/07/2023: Cochem to Trier

Porta Nigra in Trier

On this day, we left the cosy town of Cochem and slowly started retracing our steps back to London. Figuratively, that is: we were taking trains, not walking!

And so we again witnessed the terraces on the slopes of the Mosel, and went through the tunnels, and crossed its bridges one more time. I’ll spare you the images and videos—you have more in the earlier posts 😏

Arriving in Trier, a former Roman city and the oldest town in Germany, we felt like stepping back into that hustle and bustle sphere we had left behind in Luxembourg. Suddenly, there was people everywhere, of all ages —not just retired people and young families, and not everyone was on holiday!

Strange sensation!

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