Friday, September 25, 2015

A Night in Paris.


B

efore coming to Paris, I had said that I wanted to see the city at night when the historic landmarks are all lit up.  Up until tonight, I've been too lazy to head back out once we had finished our day of sightseeing.

Tonight, we had tickets to see the cabaret at the Lido so we had to be out after dark.

Our boat cruise on the Seine was over around 7:30p and our show at the Lido was at 9p so we had plenty of time to make our way over from the boat dock to the Lido which is located on the Champs-Élysées.

From the boat dock, Z led us across Pont d'Iéna to the Left Bank.  We walked along Avenue de New York, taking in views of the tower as night was falling.  The landmark was already lit up ready for the dark.


Boat cruises were still running.  Though it was purely by chance that we had gone on a sunset cruise, in hindsight, that was the perfect time for the ride.


We zig zagged our way to a spot where another very familiar landmark came into view.  As we waited to cross the Champs-Élysées, I tried to take a few photos - so difficult in the low light.


A couple of determined photographers had set up their tripods on the median strip.  They were focused on the monument.  I just took a handheld shot as I arrived at the median.  A bit fuzzy but not bad considering I only stopped walking for the few seconds it too me to look in the view finder, focus as best I could and snap the shutter.



It was just about a quarter past 8p when we arrived at the Lido.  We still had time to kill so I suggested that perhaps we could grab a quick bite though short of eating fast food, there really is no way you can eat for under an hour at a sit down place in Paris.  Parisians are not into gulping down food and running, so to speak.

We did check out a few menus but we really had sticker shock here.  For the same price that we were paying for a three course meal, we could barely get an entree here.  In the end, we decided we would eat dinner after the show.  Hopefully, we'll find a place open that late.  Hopefully.

Walking down the Champs-Élysées.


At the Lido, there was already a line to get in.  We joined in.

We  left our backpacks at the coat check. Z was in charge of holding the ticket.

After we checked our backpacks at the coat check and Z used the facilities, we headed on inside.  An usher led us to our table.   The large room was packed with tables and the room was already filled with people!  Making our way to our table was like swimming between sardines in a can.  There were a lot of "Excuse me's" as I walked.  Looking around, I also realized how underdressed Z and I were.  Had we planned our day better, we probably should have gone back to the apartment and put on some nicer clothes....which I had actually brought along in case we did something like this.  But oh well.....too late.



There were already two other couples seated.  It looked like they had bought tickets for the dinner as well.  We only had the show tickets which also comes with a bottle champagne.  From our seat, it was hard to see to the stage.  I was a bit disappointed and the skeptic in me wondered whether or not the usher had taken one look at us and decided we weren't worthy of nicer seats.  Hmmmm.....I really wondered.

Our view of the stage before the show started.

In no time, a bottle of champagne had been placed in the cooler on our table and two glasses had been poured out.  I don't drink alcohol so I can't tell you if this was good, okay or bad champagne. I can tell you that after one sip, I didn't want anymore.

At 9p, something amazing happened.  The entire floor of the restaurant, just on the other side of our table, dropped to below floor level.  It was done deliberately.  The result was that our table pretty much had a fully unobstructed view of the stage and the performers.  I was so pleasantly surprised!!  I thought we had been given crappy seats when in reality, we had great seats!!

The curtain went up and the show began.  It was classic, albeit with modern touches, cabaret show.   There were plenty of naked women prancing about the stage.  A few times they were wearing blinged out costumes with those massive headdresses.  There were dances with feather fans and of course, girls kicking up their heels and doing the can-can. 

I have been to a cabaret show before but this was a first for Z.  Every now and again, I would glance over at Z and each time, I could not tell whether or not he was enjoying the show.  At intermission, he asked me why only some of the girls, in each performance, were dancing topless.  He thought that perhaps the topless dancers got paid more.The things that go through that boy's mind.  Of course, I had no idea why that was the case though it seemed that going topless or not was a factor in the type of costume the dancer was wearing.

Enjoying the show?  Not enjoying the show?

With intermission, the show lasted about an hour and a half.  The tickets were not cheap but I thought the performance was worth every penny.  I thoroughly enjoyed the show and I'm sure it will be a memorable experience for Z.

On our way out of the Lido, we passed the queue of people waiting to enter for the 11p show.


We took the Metro back to our neighborhood and looked for a place to grab a bite.  Lucky for us, the bistro that we had eaten lunch at on the day we arrived into Paris was still serving food.  Tonight, it was all about cheese.  I love cheese but Z does not so I was really surprised when he wanted to order the raclette.  I told him it was a variation of a cheese fondue.  I have to give him credit as he wants to try a different French dish each meal and that meant going with a raclette even though he's not a cheese fan.  I told him that perhaps having some nice French cheese would change his mind.  He was open to the idea but in the end, the raclette was not his cup of tea.....probably his least favorite meal in Paris.

Z had the raclette with charcuterie.

In keeping with the cheese theme, I ordered the tartiflette.  It was a lot of cheese and ham.  Too salty for me.


As we were eating, the restaurant was already closing down for the night.   I think we left just a few minutes before they locked the doors!

It was well past midnight when we made it back to the apartment.  I was more than ready to call it a night.  Tomorrow is Saturday and we have plans to meet up with someone special!

Good night from Paris!
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