Day 8 Funiculaire and Jardin du Luxembourg

My morning quest is always for coffeeeee and food.  I have not gotten that figured out in the apartment since I am used to a espresso maker on the premises.  And besides, it gets me up and at em.  

I had just read about a boulangerie on the Rue du Abessesses on the other side of the hill from me.  I trekked up to the Sacre Coeur which was  quiet and lovely and unpopulated this morning.  I rode the Funiculaire down to the streets below which put me a few short blocks from the Rue du A.  

The Funiculaire is a vertical almost trolley that helps you avoid hundreds of stairs.

This...

 Or This....

I found the bakery and wouldn't you know, Tuesday is the day they are closed.  I continued on and found another which turned out well for me because i got the B.E.S.T. pastry I have ever eaten.  Yum!  I forget the name but it was  a flakey pastry filled with apple.  I ate this with my espresso machiato, which is about 2 oz of espresso with a splash of milk.  (I'll be getting my grande next time)  And yes, bought this at Starbucks.   Starbucks is my friend because they have coffee drinks I recognize and because they have bathrooms.    Their food does not compete with what else is around so I don't eat there.

Ok, the little guys are tiny beignets.  Ate them too. Also, amazing.  

One would think with the pastries abounding I would be porking out, but t'isnt true.  I hike an average of 8 miles a day with backpack full of heavy camera, so I find I'm able to eat whatever I want.  I usually don't want more than 2 meals a day, so it all works out.  Especially since lunch today was $22.00 for a small glass of beer ( I am NOT a beer drinker but after walking so much, it is inviting) and a Chicken Caesar salad.  I passed a place that offered a $20.00 cheeseburger.  I was in the fancy part of town. 

Sick of shopping from yesterday, I headed for the Jardin du Luxembourg, on the south side of the Seine.  I still don't know which is right bank and which is left, but I think I was on the left bank.  The side with the Eiffel Tower but quite a bit east of there.  The Garden was immense.  I had heard that it was especially delightful to walk around the perimeter, so that I did.  I am sure I only covered an nth of the place but it was only lightly populated and very peaceful.  I happened upon a couple practicing some dance  moves under the trees.  Lovely.  

I passed some vineyards behind fences,  trimmed and espaliered so tightly.  Just leafing out.

And eventually I came to the Palace.  There were two men on a kneeler unhappily planting a million annuals.  In a couple month that place will be lovely.  May is not the perfect time of year for this garden.  The tulips were mostly waning and the roses not yet out.  Mostly greenery, which was still quite beautiful.  

Today, again, was a nippy day in Paris.  I didn't see the sun at all, but at least it didn't rain.  I came home early enough that I may have time to read a good book after I finish the blog post.  Love your comments.... it helps motivate me to write every day.