There's Always Paris

See how happy you can be here?
(Fact for the Day: The Eiffel Tower
was originally painted red.)

If you're a lover of art museums, a foodie, a oenophile, a history buff, or - better yet - all of the above, it's high time you booked yourself a trip to Paris.

The wealth of things to do in this beautiful city is rather overwhelming. There are the obvious sightseeing spots - including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, and Notre Dame. They're all amazing and undoubtedly worth the trip.

But there are so many other hidden treasures to be found here.

This spring, I was lucky enough to enjoy Paris for the second time in my life. And though I did revisit many of the typical touristy places, I made it my mission to discover a handful of new gems, too.

Here are three of my favorite discoveries, should you one day find yourself in need of whiling away a day in the City of Love and Lights.

Our daily Parisian "siesta":
Bread, cheese, wine. Done.

Today's Stefcations Highlights:

• What You'll Find: A few of my favorite places to visit in Paris.
• When to Go: I've visited in August and in April. August's weather is lovelier and less rainy, though many of the locals seem to be missing in action, as they are known to leave the city to go on holiday during this summer month. If you go in April, bring an umbrella and sunglasses everywhere you go - it can be rainy and sunny all in the same day.
• By the Way: Do not miss the Musee d'Orsay, known for its spectacular collection of Impressionists, including mind-blowing paintings by Van Gogh. I assure you, you can't imagine how awesome they are until you see them in person!

London: Where I Died and Went to Heaven

Just across the pond, you can, in fact,
enter heaven on Earth.

My husband and I recently returned from 10 days away, in Europe, with my in-laws. Along with my brother-in-law, his wife, and their 3-year-old. And yes, we no doubt resembled this bunch. Except there were more of us.

By some miracle of God, we did not all gouge one another's eyes out, as I may have initially expected.

Thankfully, my husband and I enjoyed some alone time here and there, separate from the fam (as so wisely prescribed in this recent TravelDudes blog entry.) And so all in all, it turned out to be a very lovely trip.

I am lucky enough to have a friend in London named Brian (known to many of us back home as Stu), whom I hadn't seen in nearly 10 years. Nowadays, Stu is happily basking in the historic beauty of London, no doubt drinking pints upon pints of delicious local beer on a regular basis, taking in the sights, and generally enjoying the heck out of this ridiculously fabulous city with his wife and newborn daughter. 

We couldn't wait to take full advantage of our alone time to meet up with this lucky bastard and have him show us around.

Eat anything this man recommends.

Stu did not disappoint. In fact, I am fairly certain he may have missed his calling as a tour guide. With the aid of his meticulous directions, provided along with his cell phone number just in case, we found our way to London's Borough Market. 

There, outside the Market Porter, a popular pub, where droves of British businessmen gathered outside during their Friday lunch hour to chat amiably over freshly draught pints of beer (seriously, what bastards!), we were reunited.

After catching up over an ale or two, we followed Stu into what, for foodies, has got to be the center of the universe.

Freakishly large rabbit, no?

Borough Market is an outdoor food market overflowing with fresh, um, everything - vegetables, meats, seafood, baked goods, cheeses, breads, and the list goes on and on. The variety is dizzying. A local guide (a la Stu) comes in very handy.

Today's Stefcations Highlights:

• What You'll Find: Foodie Nirvana.
• Where You'll Find it: Borough Market, London, England. Check out the map for the layout of the various stands.
• When to Go: Open Thursdays, 11-5; Fridays, 12-6; and Saturdays, 8-5.
• What It'll Cost: Whatever you like. Go nuts, or just indulge in the Greatest Grilled Cheese Known to Man for a few measly British pounds. Bring cash. Probably easier that way.

Stu offered up a number of options. We couldn't make up our minds on what sounded best to eat, so we told him to bring us to all of them. 

And eat we did.

I won't bore you with all the details. But I will tell you the facts in a nutshell: where to go, what to eat, and why.