Autumn in Paris | Jardin du Luxembourg

For one of the most visited parks in Paris, Jardin du Luxembourg sometimes feels, during certain days under certain weather conditions, like you received a special invitation to enter this magical space and explore its gardens and promenades in all its tranquility... it felt very much like this last week when I went with my boys on a chilly October morning after the grey clouds finally broke.

Like a dream awake, I still find myself easily startled by the reality of where I am, my surroundings and moments like these...

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“...by observing things with a great deal of attention you eventually wrest some of their secrets from them, 

making them utter what they would most like to keep to themselves.” - Julien Green

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La Grande Mosquée de Paris

Tucked in a quiet section of the Latin Quarter is the beautiful Mosquée de Paris, a mudéjar style mosque built in 1922 as a token of gratitude to the North African countries who had helped France during World War I. 

On a sunny morning, I stopped by to take a peek and ended up staying for several hours. Every aspect of its architecture is captivating, and as you walk through the prayer rooms and arcades, you get a sense that in each detail - from the intricate wood carvings to the mosaic tile work, and in each shadow and slant of sunlight that streams through the Moorish style archways - there emanates a sacredness and beauty, a quiet and sublime divinity...

La Grande Mosquée de Paris

Address: 2 bis Place du Puits de l’Ermite, 75005 Paris 

Hours: Sat-Thu, 9am-12pm / 2-7pm

Admission: €3 per person (independent or guided tour). Free for children 7 and younger.

Online: www.mosqueedeparis.net

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Montmartroise Light & Paris Rooftops

Undeniably, my favorite thing about Paris is her light. Soft gray, pearlescent pink, warm gold and every shade of gauzy pearly white. Light that punctuates all the other beautiful things one loves about the city - the food, the architecture, history and multitude of hidden quiet spaces...

The other morning I headed to Montmartre to run an errand near the Sacré-Coeur Basilica. After descending the bus at Pigalle and making my way up the hill, I turned and became mesmerized by the streaming sunlight luminous over the rambling rooftops of Paris. I started walking to follow it, to try and take it all in, turning only to have it sweep me from the shadows into another veil of golden light... one street after another, up and down the hills, turning onto hidden corners of dappled light and finally getting lost within the cobblestoned maze of Montmartre...

There are so many must-do's on a visitor's list, and I'd have to add (or reiterate) this one if I may - a morning in Montmartre as a light seeker. To me, this is the Paris that consumes your very core and stays with you forever and ever, pour toujours et à jamais...

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A Paris Institution: Pierre Hermé...

... a little pleasure for all your senses

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