Sacré ble!

This morning, we took a long metro ride out to the 12h arrondissement to visit the Aquarium Tropical in the Palais de la Porte Dorée.   Charlotte found "Nemo", Jacqui liked the alligators, and Natalie slept.   After getting our fish fix, we hopped back on the metro and went to Square Armand Trousseau in the 11th.    The girls had a short scamper in the playground in the square, but as with most of our days here, the rain soon began in ernest so we ducked for cover and a hot lunch at Le Square Trousseau -- a surprisingly kid-friendly bistro on the square.  The host was kind enough to give the the girls a rainbow of chalk to do some coloring while they waited for their favorite dish: steak frites.  For dessert,  we walked next door to patisserie Ble Sucre for our daily sugar fix--madelines.   These were particularly plump and cakey and were doused with a sweet citrus glaze.   They would have been a perfect partner to a cup of Earl Grey but they were promptly consumed by the girls and I without any Proustian fanfare.

After a short siesta at home, Beverley and I went to the Musee Les Arts Décoratifs where we took in "L'Art de l'automobile" a superb exhibit showcasing Ralph Lauren's collection of classic sports cars -- my favorite was the fire red 1958 Ferrari 250 Testarossa although the streamlined form of the 1930 Mercedes-Benz SSK was impressive.  We also spent some time in the museum's permanent collection of decorative arts and interior design before heading over for another look at the d'Orsay which was open late tonight.  After another wander through the impressionism and post-impressionism works we were hungry and stayed on the Left Bank for dinner at Ze Kitchen Galerie.  The French-Thai fusion cuisine was a welcome change from the bistro fare that we have been consuming of late.

We completed the evening with a short stroll (and a nutella-laden crepe) in the Latin Quarter and a long walk home along the Seine for some much deserved rest.