Ooh La La

We knew when we moved to Paris that our apartment was in a fairly chic part of town.  I hadn't anticipated meeting Parisians around town, telling them where we lived and having them respond, "Oh la la! Tres chic!"  Frankly, I don't much enjoy it - I always find myself quickly explaining that we aren't fancy people, that we have a small apartment, that it was pure chance that we ended up in the 8th arrondissement when we wanted to be in the 17th.

At the same time, I've realized that we really are in quite a posh area (I'm really enjoying incorporating more British-isms into my vocabulary, definitely perk of having British friends and living close to the UK).  Nowhere is this more true than in Parc Monceau.  Having this truly verdant, lush, gorgeous park as my backyard is amazing.  But it is a bit intimidating when you stroll into the park, pushing a stroller while wearing your Old Navy jeans and a t-shirt from Target, and see this woman walking just ahead of you:

Those are some heels. And a tight dress. And this was about 3pm.

Or when you're at the playground, unsure whether you've showered in the past two days, and you're joined at the play structure by this woman, with her pristine Birkin bag matching her snazzy sneakers:

By the way, her kid was also dressed impeccably - gray suede loafers, and even a scarf. When they left he called out to Baby Oil, "Au revoir, petit garcon!" Tres adorable.

I wasn't able to snap a pic of the grandma in the playground another day, fully decked out in a little black dress and Christian Louboutins. So while I don't want people to confuse me with these actually fancy people, I have to say that if the high heels or Hermes bag fits, then Parc Monceau is certainly worth an "ooh la la." Or two.

When you live in a chic neighborhood like this, you have neighborhood events like the antiques and contemporary art street sale that took place along Boulevard Courcelles this past week.  No ratty flea market kind of thing like we've seen in other neighborhood brocantes - this one was full of legitimate antique and art dealers.  And naturally, even champagne was available.

"Hello, I'm just a regular French guy drinking wine in the afternoon on a Tuesday."

Speaking of enjoying a drink or two in Paris, I spotted this awesome product in the epicerie down the street:

That's right, it's called "Cocktail Me." You add it to alcohol, and voila! Cocktail. Mostly I love that they look exactly like the squeeze-y packs of fruit that Baby Oil eats almost every day.

And to cap off this review of fabulous neighborhood items, I loved this great t-shirt for sale in our neighborhood Monoprix.  I get such a kick out of European concepts of America.  Hey, France - it's Northern California.  Not North California. And I'm not sure what the kids are doing every week.

And in our newest, most exciting news in Paris - Chipotle is coming! Not to our neighborhood, of course - we are too fancy for that.  But not too far either.  Yes, we will go there. Who doesn't need a little Chipotle in their lives?! As the storefront says, "Vive le Burrito!"