Unless I'm getting on a plane, I don't get up early, but a friend was visiting who doesn't speak French, so to make sure she got on HER plane, I got up at 6 am! I was definitely in need of great coffee after seeing her off, so I headed over to Ten Belles. This perfect cappuccino almost made me forget that it was barely daylight. It was the best cappuccino I've had in Paris (so far)!
Canal St. Martin can be a desolate place in the winter, but with the lush greenery of summer, even rain clouds couldn't detract from the beauty of this area.
Yes this is a working canal with water locks that open and close.
Some areas are off limits due to the water locks, but there is plenty of walkable waterfront to stroll.
Besides coffee, I was in this area to pick up some Pain des Amis (bread of friends) from Du Pain et Des Idées; this is now my favorite bread and my only regret is that I only bought a quarter loaf instead of a half loaf! Baked in a wood fired oven, the smokiness in the crunchy crust and the long slow rise of the yeast makes the texture of the interior mellow, nutty, and slightly chewy. If you love good slow and low smoked BBQ with a smoke ring crust, this will be your paradigm for bread.
The seven hour process (as opposed to most bakers who only allow a 90 minute rise), the quality ingredients, and the passion of the baker are evident in every delightful bite. Even carrying it home on the metro was a challenge since the smell permeated through the bag enticing me to eat it all the way home. I was not at all tempted by the viennoiseries offered, finding them either too underdone or overdone, but everyone else seemed to clamor for the chocolate banana croissants. They had a line out the door and were already sold out of several items by 8:30 am, so get there early (they open at 6:45am). I am going to set my alarm and buying a whole loaf next time since I've already polished off most of the quarter loaf while researching this post :)
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