Lily of the Valley and Sweet Decadence - Saturday, 1st May 2010

Today I enjoyed a bit of a sleep in after a restless night of to much bubbly and not enough H2O – all sorted now though!!

Asha and I caught the train to Champs-Elysees to visit some shops and Ladurée. But the shops were closed today due to it being May Day. May Day (La Fete du Muguet and La Fete du Travail) in France is a public holiday to campaign and celebrate workers rights. It is also an occasion to present ‘lily-of-the-valley’ or ‘dog rose’ flowers to loved ones which dates back to King Charles IX of France who introduced this custom in 1561. Small bouquets of Lily of the Valley and Dog Rose were available for sale on almost every street corner and all around Paris people were carrying or wearing small bouquets and giving them to loved ones and friends. It was really lovely.

Fortunately Ladurée was open so we went in for a hot chocolate and some scrambled eggs and bacon – and a dessert.

If you are ever in Paris – a visit to Ladurée is an absolute must – especially the one on Champs-Elysees. There are several around Paris. This one is quite large and absolutely spectacular. Everything about it is so beautiful, right down to every detail. The cakes and macaroons are delightful and so very pretty. It’s amazing. Unfortunately after our scrambled eggs we didn’t have room for dessert but we were determined not to leave empty handed so we both bought an amazing treat from the take away section! Wow and Yum!!

I decided to spend the remainder of the afternoon typing up my journal and relaxing in preparation for going to the Louvre around 6 pm. We walked over there and there were lots of people around, but it was closed and had been closed all day due to May Day celebrations. Never mind, we’ll just go back another day!