americans in paris

 

best. night. ever. 

(you can't see it in this pic, but we're standing under the eiffel tower)

do you know morgan?  she's pretty fabulous, and oozes good energy. (that's her on the right, next to her equally as fabulous, easy-going, food-loving husband joel)

morgan and joel planned a trip to paris. and since i like her so much, i decided to crash it.  after a long work week, we hopped a train to paris, swapped apartments with these american-parisians and met up with friends on friday night at our favorite place near the eiffel tower - cafe constant.  i hope to live 2 hours from paris for the rest of my life.

glorious food.
interesting conversation.
wonderful company.
it was the best night abroad ever. (can't you tell i'm REALLY enjoying it?)

here's the recipe for parisian dinner party success:

1. a pair of foreign service / npo APs (american-parisians) who are connected to everyone and know all the french secrets (like where the best crepes are and what time the prostitutes come out ... really, "everything they say is true")

2. one (and really, there is ONLY one) exuberant and gregarious euro disney AP who humorously shares the tales of her euro relocation --- "try a few attractions..."

3. a pair of mellow, well-traveled, energetic californians (at least, they are californians for now) who can chat with anyone about anything, are always up for an adventure (like going to a party in normandy with someone they met in peru, a year ago!) and love good food.

4. a killer french restaurant with a long line of people waiting to be seated before it even opens

5. a 5k walk after dinner to find the most delicious crepes and burn enough calories to deserve them

6. a location with rich history, stunning views, and exotic accents 

7. + one little sister on study abroad.

= PERFECTION in Paris.