Forever XXI

First time celebrating my birthday away from home. And of course, I had to celebrate it in Paris under the sparkles of the Eiffel Tower!

We left by train on the morning of my birthday. When we arrived at the apartment we reserved through Airbnb, we were half an hour early for check-in hence we explored the neighbourhood. The apartment was situated a three-minute walk away from the Alma-Marceau metro stop, which was close to Trocadero, Eiffel Tower, and Champs-Élysées. We were also steps away from the Tokyo Palace and we could literally see Eiffel Tower around the corner of each and every building. Ahhhhh~~~ <3

The lady (not the host/owner) who was supposed to meet us to go over logistics for renting the apartment was late. She finally arrived half an hour later and upon entering the building, I was really taken aback by the chicness of the tifanny blue walls. Even though from the pictures online, I already knew the apartment would be small, I was still excited and had hopes to be surprised. We took the elevator to the fifth floor and from there, we had to take the stairs to the sixth to where our suite was. Just as I opened the door to the staircase, I was shocked. It contrasted so much from the outside that it was like day and night. It was sketch as hell. I mean it was lovely, if I was doing a vintage horror photo shoot there. The lady told us the 6th floor (which seemed like an attic) was where the servants used to live back in the days while the richer families lived on the floors below behind the fancy tiffany blue doors. I tried to tell myself don’t worry, the room would at least be nice and bright and cozy. Well, it was “cozy” alright because it was soooooo much smaller than in the pictures!

We were told that the apartment had just been cleaned before our arrival. The entire room reeked of bleach, but I wasn’t so sure that the room was actually clean. There was a big, gigantic, squashed moth on the ceiling and bugs flying everywhere. The apples sitting on the fridge were rotting. There was opened and unfinished as well as expired yogurt in the fridge. One of the towels smelled like old man’s fart and shed a bunch of unknown substances. It was funny ’cause Jessica got that bad towel so afterwards she started smelling all the blankets just in case. And ew one smelled like fresh laundry in some areas, but other areas of the same blanket smelled absolutely horrid. And the toilet! It was facing straight at the window so when you’d do your business, everyone outside could pretty much see, not to mention it was built in right beside the kitchen counter and sink. It was thoughtful that the host had installed this, since the one down in the hall was shared (and apparently if you were to sit on it, the seat would break), but it was clear that she did not graduate with a degree in interior design.

At first I was iffy about this suite when I saw it on Airbnb but it was the cheapest one available and we were only there to shower and sleep anyways so I told myself that everything would be okay. It turned out to be petrifying! And super awkward at times because the two of us had to do everything in front of one another (shower, use the toilet, etc.). This was both me and Jessica’s first time renting an apartment. Jessica hated it more than I did and yes, I got used to it on the second and third nights, but sleeping with mosquitoes constantly buzzing next to my ears just wasn’t how I imagined to be spending my birthday long-weekend.

Anyways, enough with the complaints. Shit happens and there’s bad experiences in life, but the good will always prevail.

After settling down, we headed out for lunch at «Ladurée». **Exciting!!

I was cheap so I ordered the value package of one entrée (ou plat en français parce que entrée en français est “appetizer”) + one dessert for the price of €40. And I escaped the trap of ordering expensive Evian water! Hah! Never again! Tap water for me s’il vous plaît. Meanwhile, Jessica got a drink, appetizer, entrée, and dessert. 

The food was heavenly. I could hear bells ringing inside my head with each and every bite. I ordered «Filet d’agneau» which was lamb fillet with roasted acacia, millet croquette, and watercress. The lamb was divine. It was a teeny weeny bit rough (overcooked) but paired together with the glistening fat that was seared with sea salt, the two melted away into perfection in my mouth. The croquette was a bit of a disappointment though, but I think it was because the lamb was so rich that following that, the croquette tasted rather bland.

For dessert, the waitress recommended me to try their signature «Ispahan». 

I’m not a huge fan of macarons and I’m picky with the flavours since most of them are really sweet, but the subtle rose and lychee flavoured cream paired with raspberries balanced out the sweetness of the overall rose macaron. Mmmmm! Totally worth gaining 5lbs for. I’m drooling all over my keyboard now, ugh!

Having satisfied our cravings, we headed along Champs-Élysées for some luxury brand shopping (to have our wallets emptied out even more).

For dinner, we dined at «Il Carpaccio», the only Michelin-star Italian restaurant in Paris.

We shared the «Menu Carpolavoro» (signature menu), which consisted of grilled octopus salad, spring green risotto, sautéed fillet of John Dory, Italian cheese, and dessert by Pierre Hermé. And of course, no celebration goes without a glass of something something so we both tried the white wine from the Mastroberardino region.

For the perfect ending to a birthday in Paris, we headed for Trocadero. Our whole schedule got delayed because the check-in lady was late, so we missed the sparkling lights of the Eiffel Tower whereas the next illumination would be in one hour. I totally didn’t mind waiting since I could sit there all day and night just to enjoy its incredible beauty, but I felt bad making Jessica wait with me especially since we’ve already been to Trocadero so many times, it was evident that she was sick of it. 

And I just realized I forgot to make a wish on my birthday! But I don’t believe in birthday wishes anyways. If I really wanted something, I would do everything myself to achieve and accomplish it. Pftttt ain’t need no wish upon the stars. I’m too old for all that fancy fairytale crap.

It still hasn’t hit me yet that I am 21. It’s funny because I just realized I am now legal in the States! Whoohooo next stop Las Vegas!!

But the truth is, nothing feels different. I still have no idea what I am doing with my life, still running away from reality, procrastinating, and of course, spending big bucks on alcohol. How am I supposed to make life choices when I still use my fingers to count and sing the whole alphabet to see what letter comes next? I just can’t wrap my head around the fact that as you grow older, it’s really not as simple as sharing cookies and crayons anymore. People have walked in and out of my life, some leaving deeper footprints than others, but for those who have remained, they have really helped shape who I am today. Yet if you were to tell me to describe myself with one word, I would simply be speechless. How am I able to explore and uncover the universe when I alone can’t even define myself?  It’s questions like this that makes me fear the what ifs, the future, and me. But what the heck, that’s enough deep thoughts for the day. For now, I will just dance like no one is watching, love like I’ll never be hurt, sing like no one is listening, and live like it’s heaven on earth.