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| Victoria Brownlee |
Welcome to another #LazySundayinFrance
and today it’s a special Sunday here in France, as we are celebrating Mother’s Day. I am
delighted that author (and new Mum) Victoria Brownlee is letting us join her
and her family for a Lazy Sunday in Paris.
Victoria Brownlee is a food writer
and editor, originally from Melbourne and currently based in Paris. Her first
novel, 'Escape to the Paris Cheese Shop' is being published in four parts, with
part one already available and part two due to be released on 31st May 2018.
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| The Paris Cheese Shop |
A Lazy Sunday in France with Victoria
Brownlee
Sundays in Paris are blissfully
quiet. Early in the morning, there’s a sort of reverential silence that would
feel out of place on any other day of the week. In an ideal world, the weather
is sunny with a light breeze and I’ll fling open the shutters and enjoy the
blue skies and the ringing of the church bells.
A pot of coffee in bed with my
husband, Jamie, and snuggles with our little Clementine until she gets bored of
us reading books without pictures and wants to go play.
More coffee calls and we stroll over
to the Canal Saint-Martin for a café crème and a scone at Ten Belles followed
by a walk up the canal; or if we’re feeling energetic, a filter coffee and a
sablé from La Fontaine de Belleville on our way up to the enchanting Parc des Buttes
Chaumont.
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| Paris markets. Photo Victoria Brownlee |
When stomachs growl, we head back
into Le Marais towards Marché des Enfants Rouges, Paris’s oldest food market,
where stalls burst with cooked food, seasonal produce and fresh flowers. On
weekends the market is generally packed with tourists, but we don’t let that
deter us.
We’ll most likely head to one of
three favourite stalls. If we’re hungry we’ll make a beeline for the Moroccan stand
where tagines overflow with slow-cooked meats and vegetables. Affordable and
hearty, no matter how much we eat we’ll always end on a pot of mint tea and a
few pieces of baklava. If we’re happy to queue for a while, we’ll stop by Chez
Alain Miam Miam for what has to be one of Paris’s best sandwiches – the mix of
toasted bread, melted cheese, meat and avocado resulting in a (very filling)
thing of wonder. Or if we’re in the mood to sit and while away the afternoon,
we’ll grab a couple bar stools at Les Enfants du Marché and indulge in oysters,
bubbles and a mix of their daily seafood specials.
After lunch we might go down to La
Seine for an afternoon stroll and a hunt around the famed Shakespeare and Company
bookshop. Or we’ll stay local and shop. Produce for dinner and fresh flowers to
brighten up our apartment. Cheese from Fromagerie Jouannault and maybe even a vanilla
tart from Pierre Hermé.
Finally, home to drink tea, or better
yet, wine, and listen to music or read. Perhaps we’ll cook dinner; perhaps
we’ll just eat cheese – a log of Sainte-Maure, a slice of truffle Brie and some
Comté – with a fresh baguette and a little green salad. Simple. Decadent.
Perfect.
We tuck the baby into bed early and laze
about with more wine and watch a French movie. We avoid work wherever possible
and daydream about moving to the country, or perhaps to the seaside, maybe even
to Corsica. But after such a glorious day in Paris, it’s hard to ever imagine
leaving.
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| Follow The Paris Cheese Shop Blog Tour |
The first part of The Paris Cheese
Shop series is available now in ebook format, the next three parts are
available to pre-order and links to Amazon can be found below.
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