If Thursday was the perfect autumn day, Friday brought rain, grey skies and an excuse to go for a decadent warm drink at Angelina's. I promise that soon I will expand my 'salon de the' repertoire, but for now the promise of the richest hot chocolate in town is enough to keep tempting me back. It's hard to beat the elegance of everyone who dines at Angelina's, especially the dapper gentlemen in their retirement still treating their fabulously stylish silver-haired lady friends to lunch. I had the 'Paris-New York' pastry, and I think it was definitely a good choice to give my tastebuds a break from a cocoa overload! Mum went for the equally yummy 'Choc Africain'.
In the morning our plans to go to the Mona Bismarck Centre had been foiled (Closed for the jour ferie for Toussaint, 1 Nov) and also to visit the Louvre (queues from here to Timbuktu). Instead we headed to the Palais Garnier which was thankfully still open for business. Known particularly at the setting for Gaston Leroux's 'The Phantom of the Opera' (or perhaps Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, eh!), the building designed by young architect Charles Garnier is an absolute masterpiece!
The central staircase is looming and impressive: I genuinely gasped as I climbed the steps and took in the magnitude of the Opera house. But I hadn't seen anything yet: the upstairs rooms, designed for the enjoyment of the theatre-goers during interval breaks were even more awe-inspiring:
Entry was €10 for my Mum, and €6.00 for me with a student card, making it a little more pricey than some of Paris' other cultural attractions, but I think it was well worth the price. There were no queues, and as we didn't investigate the 1 1/2 hour guided tour we were free to marvel at the Opera's cavernous, gilded insides at our own pace. I hadn't realised that the Opera is now mainly used for ballet, so seeing some of the prima ballerina costumes was an unexpected treat.


One of my favourite things was the library, where you could peek in at old mises-en-scene for theatrical spectacles of bygone eras. I have never seen such detailed stage decorations: each show must have been absolutely breath-taking. Apparently audiences were known to clap for ten minutes when the curtain was pulled up to reveal these incredible scenes, and set designers could make a name for themselves in a way that isn't appreciated today.
One of my most favourite things done in Paris so far, with one of my most favourite people :)
À Bientôt !
x
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