Skip to main content

Happy Birthday, Hotel Lutetia!

(the front of the hotel~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

I recently learned (from a favorite blog o'mine, Paris Daily Photo) that the hotel where Vince and I honeymooned is having a birthday. I just have to share this little treasure with you.

(the lobby~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

Vince and I got married in April of 1997 and he surprised me with a honeymoon in Paris, France. I know, I know...April in Paris! Yes, he was that romantic!! He planned the whole thing~I didn't even know where we were going until just a few weeks before the wedding. I was SO EXCITED!! And it was a wonderful trip and maybe I will share more about it soon (we do have an anniversary coming up).

(The St. Germaine Lounge~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

Today though I just have to show you the Hotel Lutetia on the Left Bank. Vince (& his travel agent) definitely picked a jewel of a hotel for us to stay in for our honeymoon. The Lutetia was the first Art Deco hotel built in Paris and is one of the few luxury hotels on the Left Bank. It just exudes Old World glamour!!

It has quite a history, too. Charles de Gualle honeymooned here, as did Josephine Baker. Several artists and writers have made it their home, including Matisse and Picasso. It also played a significant role during the occupation of Paris and the Liberation of Paris during the time of World War II.

(The Brasserie Lutetia~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

Along with our room package came this incredible breakfast buffet. I mean, I start drooling when I just think about it. It included fresh croissants and a multitude of other fresh breads, Madelines, all kinds of cheeses, eggs, bacon, broiled tomatoes, waffles, caramel creme, fresh fruits, delicious pastries, fresh juices and, of course, rich French coffee. (I imagine that you're drooling now, right?).

(a guest room~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

Our room was very much like the one in this photo. It even had an adorable little balcony with a view of the Eiffel Tower! It just doesn't get any better than that! It was perfect! Oh~and the bathroom had the coolest old-fashioned deep tub.

I wish so badly that I had a good camera on that trip. I do have pictures, but they aren't that great. But maybe I will get them scanned in and share some with you soon.

We also enjoyed the surrounding neighborhoods. We especially enjoyed the Jardin de Luxembourg which was just right around the corner. Of course, Paris is full of history and there is something intriguing at every step. But the Hotel Lutetia was a great jumping-off point for us. We enjoyed our time there so much and hope to go back again one day. If you are ever in Paris, I highly recommend it! The staff there was so friendly and helpful. We don't speak any French whatsoever (unless you count *merci*) and I have to say that we did not meet one single *snobby* French person the entire time we were in Paris. Everywhere we went the French people were absolutely wonderful to us!

Happy 100th Birthday, Lutetia!!

(detail of the building front~photo from Hotel Lutetia)

Comments

Lisa said…
YES, I was drooling as you described the breakfasts, wow! The hotel looks lovely. Paris in April sounds wonderful, especially right now when they're calling for ice and snow this weekend....
Valerie said…
Paris is my all-time favorite European city. (and I've been to several) I've been there 3 separate times and I'm always looking for an opportunity to go back. Can't wait!

Thanks for sharing. Au Revoir!
Kari said…
Hey, your pictures weren't "that" bad. =)

And, thanks, for not bringing up the less appetizing foods you encountered. haha
Kari~
I thought about it...:)

Popular posts from this blog

The Making of an Egyptian Death Mask

We are learning all about the ancient world this year with Story of the World I and loving it! We've been learning a lot about Egypt, of course, which is completely fascinating. Most recently we have studied the New Kingdom of Egypt, which includes the story of King Tut. So we decided making an Egyptian death mask in the style of King Tut's would be a fun project. First since it was too cold at the time to paper mache in the garage (it probably would have frozen instead of dried-ha) and it was too messy to do it in the house, we decided to pick up a couple of cheap craft masks at Hobby Lobby. Next we cut out cardboard shapes to complete the shape of the death mask, attaching them with hot glue. Vince even put a little detail on the *beard* with the hot glue per The Princess' request. Then the kiddos started to paint them with this metallic gold tempera paint. It worked okay for the cardboard, but would not coat the plastic of the mask. We thought maybe a second coat

1st Day Back to {home}School, Among Other Things

We did it! We finally got unpacked enough and got our new learning room organized enough to start back to school! Frankly, I was starting to get worried...ha Today went very well though. So far I am extremely pleased with our new curriculum choices for math and language arts. Now, if I could just actually get some lesson planning done... And get the finishing touches done in the learning room, so I can blog it! In other news, it has been a bit of a traumatic week...pet-wise. Last weekend a sweet friend (who had asked my permission beforehand) brought the kiddos their very own little fish tank with two goldfish. Well, on Sunday we noticed that The Princess' fish was pretty lethargic...dead, actually. She was sad, but she handled it fairly well. And we went to the store that evening and let her pick out a new goldfish. Well, today during our school time~the fish tank is in our learning room~we noticed Mr. B's fish was acting funny. And then he was dead. It was a

Door Hanger Chore Charts

My kids have had a chore chart for a while.  It's one of those magnetic boards and they share it.  However, it's not by their rooms and often they (and I) forget to update it.  Plus it's a little bulky.   When I saw the concept of a door hanger chore chart on Pinterest, I loved it!  It was compact, right there were the kiddos could see it coming out and going into their rooms, and it costs almost nothing to make.   I headed over to one of my favorite stores: Hobby Lobby, of course.  They  have these little wooden door hangers for .79.  I also grabbed a couple of packets of decorative buttons for $1.99 each.  I already had the clothes pins and the paint so those cost me nothing.   I began by painting the door hangers (I used tempera paints because that's what I had).  Then I grabbed a fine point Sharpie and the clothes pins and started writing chores on them, making sure to write them correctly so they will clip on the right direction.   The left