Happy Birthday to me

It was my birthday on Saturday, which was a great excuse for champagne and spiders and sushi. Yes, because I say so and it's my birthday.

We started at the Pompidou Centre for the Louise Bourgeois exhibition which was marvellous. A comprehensive look at her life's work, which is largely biographical and tackles traditionally female themes like family and mothering with startling humour and typical frankness. I love her spiders, one of which is currently in the Jardins des Tuileries next to the Louvre, because of the little spindly legs which support their bulbous bodies.

Louise Bourgeois at the Centre Pompidou March 5th - June 8th 2008


Lots of sushi and coffees in the sunshine later, D and I ate dinner at the much-fabled Fish in St Germain which more than lived up to expectations. Run by an Englishman (Ha! yes), the Parisians have been raving abut this restaurant for months (probably without knowing it was run by an Englishman). Beautifully presented, succulent food with a fabulous wine list and service with an actual smile was a great way to round of my day, depsite some sad news the night before. D loved it so much he is lobbying for the national anthem to be changed to Mr Scruff's Fish.

With a night drinking burgandy, amaretto and cassis cocktails followed by dancing at La Scala two weeks before I think I have milked it for all it's worth. Normal partying shall now resume.

Taking the plunge

We finally made the decision and signed for the flat on Thursday. Here starts three moths of nightmare financial admin and hard labour before we move in...

Sunny Sunday of indecision

A lovely sunny Sunday. Just back from the market and about to eat cheese on toast, so all is right with the world. Or it would be were we not in an agony of indecision over yet another flat, which is going for a song but needs work. Great potential to be stylishly renovated, yet rather small. Property in Paris is small though, so we're trying to decide whether to buy it, make it look lovely and to sell on in a couple of years... or not. Prices are rising before our eyes, so buying at all will be out of our grasp if we don't jump soon... agghh. Anyway, back to the sunshine and the cheese on toast.


This week we learned more about one of our favourite items on sale, this sterling silver fern brooch, inherited from Sarah's great aunt. RoxyPalace got in touch to say that it was in fact a sought-after New Zealand souvenir from the fifties or sixties, when travel became easier, sowing the seeds for the tourism industry which the country enjoys today. With Hei Tiki Paua shell inlay, this is one of our most beautful items at the moment.